OBITUARY
of PASTOR JOSÉ GONÇALVES
Former President of EBF and former student of IBTS
[March 9, 1931 – November 26, 2015]

“But none of these things deter me. Nor do I count my life of value to myself, so that I may joyfully finish my course and the ministry which I have received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” (Acts 20:24)

Pastor José Leovegildo Caetano Gonçalves died after a long period of illness on the morning of November 26, 2015. The funeral was held in the Baptist Church of Cedofeita, Porto, Portugal, where he was a member.

Gonçalves was born in Lisbon on March 9, 1931. At the age of 8, he went to Brazil with his parents, where he lived for 13 years. He accepted Christ when he was 12 years old in the First Baptist Church of Vitória and was baptized by Pastor Walter Kaschel. Since then, he has been a very committed Christian, especially in the areas of evangelism and social service.

In 1947 he finished his studies as a social educator in the city of Vitória, and he became a volunteer with the Board of National Missions of the Brazilian Baptist Convention. He was an active participant in evangelistic crusades in prisons and hospitals, and he was a youth and student leader in his local church. In 1948, he moved to Rio de Janeiro, where he became member of Itacuruçá Baptist Church.

In 1952, he returned to Portugal and did the Official School of the Merchant Marine in the Escola Náutica de Lisboa. He worked in this profession until 1957.

In August 1957, he left Portugal to study theology at the International Baptist Seminary in Rüschlikon, Switzerland, where he finished his bachelor's degree.

In 1961, he married Ulla Cajsa Axelson from Sweden, whom he had met at IBTS. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 2011. They have three sons: Pedro, Miguel, and João.

After getting married, the Gonçalves moved back to Portugal. José Gonçalves was ordained to the pastoral ministry on March 25, 1962 in Cedofeita Baptist Church, where he began to pastor. In 1963, he published the book “The Baptists in Russia.”

He was elected as president of the Portuguese Baptist Convention in 1964 and served the convention until 1968. He was elected president again in 1971 and served for another three years.

In Europe, he served as vice president of the European Baptist Federation from 1972 to 1974, succeeding to the presidency in 1974-1976.

In 1974, after 13 years of pastoral ministry in the Baptist Church of Cedofeita, the Gonçalves were challenged to launch the groundwork for what would become Campus Crusade for Christ, Portugal (now Agape Portugal). Gonçalves devoted his life to the leadership of this movement. Together with his wife, they trained believers for evangelism and discipleship and mobilized churches for evangelistic crusades, such as “Here is Life, Portugal” (1981) and “Explo 85” (1985).

In the 1990s, the Gonçalves again felt God’s call to the missionary field. For approximately the next 10 years, they served the Lord in South Africa and Mozambique.

We remember Pastor José Gonçalves as a person of frank smile. His sense of humor and the way he used to communicate with the youth of all ages made the time spent with him truly memorable. We were blessed by his ministry, and we are grateful to our Lord for his life of service.