Adventists
a sect in the United States, founded by William Miller, and sometimes called Millerites, which believed that Christ's second coming would occur in October, 1843. When their hopes were not realized, the number of believers decreased. The Adventists still look with certainty for the coming of Christ, but not at a fixed time. They are now divided into the following bodies:
Evangelical, Advent Christian, Seventh Day, Church of God, Life and Advent Union, and Churches of God in Jesus Christ. The largest of these is the Seventh Day Adventists, with (in 1919) 4,181 churches, 162,667 members, 1,102 ordained ministers, 5,610 Sabbath schools, 1,446 young people's societies, 41 publishing houses printing 142 periodicals, 32 sanitariums, and total contributions amounting to over $6,985,000. Of the 77 The educational institutions connected with the church 16 have college courses. other four branches had a total membership (1919) of about 45,000, with 850 churches and 970 ministers.