The Congregational Christian Church in Samoa or Ekalesia Faapotopotoga Kerisiano Samoa is a Reformed and congregational denomination in Samoa.
The Congregational Christian Church in Samoa (CCCS) was established by the London Missionary Society in 1830. The arrival of the LMS missionary John Williams played an especially important role in the birth of the denomination, accompanied by missionaries from Tahiti, the Cook Islands and Tonga. Substantial institutions and village churches were established. In 1839, ten years after the arrival of the LMS missionaries, the first Samoan missionaries left the island to do mission in Melanesia. In 1844, the establishment of Malua Theological College on Upolu island, missionaries were trained and sent to Tuvalu, Niue, Tokelau, Kiribati, the New Hebrides now Vanuatu , Papua New Guinea and other Pacific Islands. By 1855, the Bible was translated into the Samoan language. The church grew rapidly. The church adopted its own constitution in 1928. It was called LMS - Ekalesia Samoa until 1962, when it took the current name. In 1980, the American Samoa District left the CCCS, and established the Congregational Christian Church in American Samoa. [1] [2]
The church has over 75,000 members and 327 congregations and 300 house fellowships in Samoa alone. [1] It has congregations in the United States, New Zealand, Australia, Savaii, Upolu, Manono, Apolima, Tutuila and Fiji. [3] The central office is located in Tamaligi, Apia. [4]
It is a member of the World Communion of Reformed Churches, [5] the Pacific Conference of Churches, the World Council of Churches, Council for World Missions. [2]
This article is about the demographics of American Samoa, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population. American Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean.
Congregational churches are Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition practising congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs.
The Presbyterian Church of Australia (PCA) is the largest Presbyterian denomination in Australia.
The London Missionary Society was an interdenominational Evangelical missionary society formed in England in 1795 at the instigation of Welsh Congregationalist minister Dr Edward Williams working. It was largely Reformed in outlook, with Congregational missions in Oceania, Africa, and the Americas, although there were also Presbyterians, Methodists, Baptists and various other Protestants involved. It now forms part of the Council for World Mission (CWM).
Protestants in Tuvalu- Tuvalu is one of the most heavily Protestant nations in the world. The Congregational Christian Church of Tuvalu,, is the de facto state church of Tuvalu, the only established church in the Reformed tradition in the world. Its adherents comprise about 97% of the 12,000 inhabitants of the archipelago, and theologicly it is part of the Reformed tradition.
The Congregational Christian Church of Tuvalu, commonly the Church of Tuvalu, is the state church of Tuvalu, although this status merely entitles it to "the privilege of performing special services on major national events". Its adherents comprise about 97% of the ~11,000 inhabitants of the archipelago, and theologically, it is part of the Calvinist tradition.
The United Congregational Church in Southern Africa began with the work of the London Missionary Society, who sent missionaries like Dr. Theodorus van der Kemp to the Cape colony in 1799. He was established the first Congregational church in Cape Town in 1801. LMS missionaries like David Livingstone spread the Gospel among the Batswana and Amandbele peoples. After 1820 English and Welsh settlers established their own congregational congregations. Congregationalist missionaries from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions began work in KwaZulu-Natal in 1830, and several congregations of white settlers formed the Congregational Union of South Africa. These three bodies united to form the United Congregational Church of Southern Africa in 1967.
Vaiee is a small village on the Samoan island of Upolu. It is located on the central south coast of the island. The village has a population of 565.
The Congregational Christian Church of Niue is a Christian denomination in Niue and New Zealand. It is rooted in the Congregationalist part of the Reformed tradition. It is the largest religious denomination in Niue, claiming approximately 75% of Niue's population as members.
The Cook Islands Christian Church (CICC) is the largest religious denomination in the Cook Islands. It belongs to the Reformed family of churches. The CICC is a Christian Congregationalist church and has approximately 18,000 members, including around half of the residents of the Cook Islands. The church also has congregations in New Zealand and Australia.
The Catholic Church in Samoa is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, which, initiated by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and Roman curia in the Vatican City is the largest Christian church in the world. Catholic missionaries arrived in Samoa in 1845 and today Catholics account for around 20% of the overall population. Archbishop Alapati Lui Mataeliga was ordained as head of the Archdiocese of Samoa-Apia in 2003.
The Congregational Christian Church Samoa (CCCS) is an international evangelical Christian Church originally established in Samoa by missionaries of the London Missionary Society.
The Presbyterian Church of the Philippines (PCP), officially The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of the Philippines, is a growing evangelical, Bible-based Reformed church in the Philippines. It was officially founded in 1987 and the General Assembly was organized in September 1996.
The Christian Reformed Church in Sierra Leone is a Protestant Reformed denomination in Sierra Leone. It was founded by American missionaries in the 1960s.
The Christian Reformed Church in the Philippines is a Calvinist denomination in the Philippines, founded by American missionaries in the mid-1900.
The Gereja-Gereja Reformasi Calvinis di Indonesia (GGRCI) is a Reformed denomination in Indonesia. This denomination is a member of International Conference of Reformed Churches (ICRC). GGRCI has churches and mission works all around Indonesia, including in: Rote island, Sabu island, Timor island Java island, Sumba island, and Celebes island. GGRCI holds the Reformed confessions (Heidelberg Catechism, Belgic Confession, and Canons of Dort.
The Congregational Christian Church of American Samoa (CCCAS) or the "Ekalesia Faapotopotoga Kerisiano i Amerika Samoa" (EFKAS) is a theologically Calvinist and congregational denomination in American Samoa.
The Reformed Congregational L.M.S. Samoan Church traces its beginnings to the Congregational Christian Church in Samoa (EFKS). It is a group of Congregational Samoan Churches who are adherents of the EFKS Mother Church in Samoa. Because of minor disagreements with doctrine the church had, the founder of the church Rev. Elder Tepa Faleto'ese engaged in forming a newer church that worked to support the spiritual needs of its congregants in a more modern approach. The Reformed Congregational L.M.S Samoan Church share the same doctrines, rules and rituals as the mother church EFKS, however, do not hold the annual Fa'amati, Faiga Me or any other monetary events aside from the Aso Sa o le Talalelei Taulaga. The Church maintains the use of the Samoan Bible and the EFKS Tusi Pese, and its Constitution is similar to that of the EFKS. The Motto of the Church is "Fa'afaigofie, Fa'ataugofie, Fa'asa'oloto" which translates to "Simple, Humble, Free Worship".