Sunday, March 24, 2019, saw the death of Dr. Raúl Lorenzo Posse Álvarez, a pioneer of education: teacher trainer in different parts of the world, and former director and professor of the Adventist University of El Plata.
The wake service took place in the Pioneers Hall on Monday, March 25.
The Universidad Adventista del Plata extends its heartfelt condolences to family and friends. It also expresses its gratitude for the ministry of Dr. Posse, who was an inspiration to the work of Adventist education in the various countries where he was active. Thank God for the blessed hope of seeing Dr. Posse again when our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ returns to this world to seek His children.
Summary of the life and work of Dr. Raúl Posse
Dr. Posse was born in San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina, on March 11, 1927, to Doña Mercedes Álvarez and Don Emidio Raúl Posse.
His mother got to know the Seventh-day Adventist Church when Raúl was little, thanks to meetings held in the home of his sister, Ramona, and his brother-in-law, Nicolás Lindow. He had his first approach to the Adventist message thanks to the work of a colporteur named Carlos Schmidt. Mercedes, Raul's mother, decided to be baptized and her son followed in her footsteps when he was about 12 years old, in a ceremony officiated by Pastor Juan Armando Bonjour. Some time later, his father, Emidio, also gave his life to Christ through baptism.
After a brief passage with his family through the city of Corrientes, they returned to Tucumán. While there, a colporteur named Enrique Collins urged his mother to send him to study at Colegio Adventista del Plata, known today as Universidad Adventista del Plata. Despite his father's initial resistance, Raúl studied in this institution for the third and fifth years of Secondary. In 1945, he became part of the first class of high school graduates with recognition from the Ministry of Education of the ngation in this educational institute. He continued his training in the same place, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in theology in 1946.
In 1947, after settling in Buenos Aires, he graduated from the National Institute of Teachers "Joaquín Víctor González", as a teacher of Literature, Spanish, and Latin. In 1959, he obtained the title of professor in Education Sciences from the National University of Litoral, with headquarters in Paraná, Entre Ríos. In 1965, he completed his licentiate in theology at the Adventist School of El Plata. Following this achievement, in 1973, he specialized in the Educational Organization and Administration program by UNESCO, at the headquarters of Lo Barnechea, commune of Santiago de Chile. In 1976, he went on to obtain a specialization in Social Psychology of Educational Administration, also by UNESCO, at the headquarters of the Republic of Panama. He then proceeded to homologate his degrees in Italy and, in 1986, obtained a Doctorate in Education (Dottore in Educazione).
In 1949, he made his home with Inés Schmidt, who died in 2016, daughter of Carlos Schmidt, the colporteur who carried the Adventist message to his uncle Nicolás Lindow. Inés was a National Normal Teacher, a Geography Teacher, as well as a passionate teacher trainer for decades, both in Argentina and in Spain and Italy. She was a great companion in Raúl's teaching and pastoral career. They had three children: Mirta de Casarramona (psychopedagogy and master in education), Graciela (biochemistry, specialist in clinical microbiology and master in medical education) and Raúl Ariel (chemical engineer). His surviving family includes five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Dr. Posse served as a high school teacher at the Florida Adventist Institute in Buenos Aires, while simultaneously carrying out pastoral work in the cities of Santos Lugares, San Andrés, Pergamino, Delta del Paraná, and Junín between 1947 and 1955.
In 1955, he moved to the Instituto Adventista del Plata, in Entre Ríos, where he worked until 1973. At the time, he worked as a teacher and mid-level rector, in addition to teaching theology courses. He organized and managed the creation of the Instituto Superior Adventista del Plata, with the following tertiary careers: Professorship in Philosophy and Pedagogy, Professorship in Economic Sciences, Professorship for Primary Education and Administrative Secretariat. Classes began, with provisional authorization, in 1967. In 1969, the National Superintendent of Private Education, dependent on the Ministry of Education (Argentina), approved the creation of the Instituto Superior Adventista del Plata. This Institute, of which Dr. Posse was the first rector, brought together all the tertiary careers of the Colegio Adventista del Plata, with the exception of theology. This tertiary institute was the precedent step that allowed the institution to reach university status in 1990.
In 1974, Dr. Posse moved to Spain, where he was the creator and general director of the Sagunto Educational Centre in Valencia, Spain. He also served as director of the Department of Education of the Southern European Union, which included Europe, Africa, and the Atlantic Islands.
In 1983, he was appointed director of Education of the Spanish Union and professor of theology at the Adventist College of Spain, in Sagunto.
From 1985 to 1992 he was professor and general director of the Higher Education Institute "Villa Aurora", located in Florence, Italy. He was also director of the Department of Education and Family of the Italian Union.
In 1993, he returned to Spain to serve as director of the Department of Education and Theology, and director and professor of the master's program in Education at the Adventist College of Spain. He was also a professor in the master's program in Education at the Universidad Adventista del Plata.
From 1999 to 2005, he collaborated as a volunteer as a teacher and coordinator of the master's degrees in Education at the Sagunto Educational Campus in Valencia, Spain.
His work transcended the frontiers of the Adventist Church, also serving as a consultant and advisor to the IDB (Inter-American Development Bank), the OAS (Organization of American States), and UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization).
He held classes, conferences, and seminars at the universities of Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, León (all in Spain), Florence, Padua, and Palermo in Italy.
These national and international services provided by Prof. Posse gave prestige to the Seventh-day Adventist Church and facilitated procedures for the development of its educational program, both in America and in Europe.
He wrote numerous articles and was the author of two books: "Para el niño. El arte de saber educar", co-authored with Julián Melgosa, and "El valor de los valores. Importancia de su transmisión", also a collaborative work with Roberto Badenas.
As Dr. Juan Carlos Priora put it, "Without a doubt, Prof. Posse was the man who gave the most international prestige to the educational program of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.” (We are grateful for the invaluable collaboration of Dr. Juan Carlos Priora in providing the information with which this note was prepared)
"Prof. Raul Posse was the Director of the Adventist Institute of Biblical Culture (1986-1991), now Italian Adventist University "Villa Aurora", [who] welcomed me to Florence, along with the sweet Ines, faithful companion of life and mission, when I began to study theology (it was September 1988). There are many positive memories that today, with great sadness, bring me back to him. In those years, I met my friend and now colleague Raul Posse, as a consecrated professor, a man and a believer of a great and profound humanity, sensitive and close to every difficulty of the students and staff, tireless builder of relationships of peace and support. A true example of service to be imitated", so Filippo Alma, current President of the Italian Adventist University, Villa Aurora.
"Raul Posse was a friend, a colleague, a teacher, and a pastor for many of us. I know that he was “tired of days” (92) as the Bible identifies its precious personages, and Prof. Posse was one of these, a precious personage at the eyes of God and His people", so Corrado Cozzi, EUD Communication Director. "Prof. Posse has been, for me, a role model. We worked together on some projects, and his amazing approach to the education matter was, for many of us, an encouragement to pursue ours. We lost a giant of faith.
On this occasion, on behalf of the Adventist Educational Center of Sagunto, we would like to express our most sincere condolences to all the relatives and friends of our beloved professor Raúl Posse, who, in his early years, was the unforgettable pioneer director of this center.
Here is our recognition, and our heartfelt homage, to a long life dedicated to teaching, and especially to all the years dedicated to the ministry of Adventist education in this institution.
Thanks to his dedication and commitment, hundreds of students and a whole generation of educators were able to benefit from his leadership and exceptional pedagogical talent, which combined preparation for life with the principles of faith.
With admirable perseverance, effort and dedication, the great teacher who was Raúl Posse did great things in our school, here in Sagunto: laying the foundations of this great educational project, promoting the development of this institution, and definitively marking the guidelines and trajectory of the Adventist Educational Center of Sagunto.
For all of us who had the privilege of working with him, the leadership of Professor Posse, accompanied by the exceptional support of his beloved wife, Inés, marked a turning point in our lives and that of Adventist education in Spain. For all of us, the team formed by Professor Posse and his wife was a constant inspiration because of their competence, their deep commitment to the work of education, their consecration to the ministry of Adventist education, their disposition as educators, their intimate sense of family, their spirit of service, their dedication to the mission of the church and their tireless generosity....
Much of what the Sagunto Adventist Education Center has become today, it owes to Professor Posse, and to the educational work carried out by our beloved teacher. "Blessed are those who die in the Lord...to rest from their labors, for their works with them continue" (Revelation 14:13).