Humberto Mario Rasi

“Then I heard a voice from heaven say, ‘Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’ ‘Yes,’ says the Spirit, ‘they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them’” (Revelation 14:13, NIV).*

It is with great sadness that we share news of the passing of Dr. Humberto Mario Rasi, 88. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1935, the trajectory of his life and service impacted the global Seventh-day Adventist Church, evidenced by the many roles he held in his lifetime: editor, translator, educator, educational administrator, author, and ordained minister of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

A skilled, experienced educational administrator, Dr. Rasi served at the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists as an associate director of education (1986-1990) and director of education (1990-2002). With these roles came membership on The Journal of Adventist Education® Advisory Board, and in this capacity, Dr. Rasi was instrumental in shaping the tone and direction of professional development for Adventist educators, pre-K-higher education. Between 1987 and 2005, he wrote 20 articles and editorials for the Journal on topics ranging from helping educators to train students to think critically to assessing trends in education to what makes a school Adventist (see Sidebar 1).

In addition to his contributions to the Journal, Dr. Rasi launched College and University Dialogue (https://dialogue.adventist.org/home) in 1989. Known informally as Dialogue, this magazine was the first publication to publish content targeted directly to Adventist college and university students and faculty studying and working in public institutions. Dr. Rasi also initiated the Institute for Christian Teaching and, from 1987 to 2014, organized international seminars on the Integration of Faith and Learning (IFL) for Adventist educators. Through these seminars, Adventist educators in higher education received professional training on the “how” of IFL and conducted and presented their own research on integrating faith in the classroom. Their work, a collection of approximately 1,500 monographs, is currently available in the 40-volume Christ in the Classroom collection, which can be accessed through the Institute of Christian Teaching website (https://christintheclassroom.org/search_volume.html). The Handbook of Integration of Faith and Learning (Berrien Springs, Michigan: Andrews University Press, in press), a forthcoming publication sponsored by the General Conference Education Department, will be dedicated to Dr. Rasi.

More than just an outstanding leader, Dr. Humberto Rasi was a valued colleague, trusted friend, and dynamic mentor to many (see Sidebar 2). We will miss him. “Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20, KJV).

By The Journal of Adventist Education® Staff