The Education Ministry last month obtained a court order to prevent the church from taking over Vatuvonu College in Cakaudrove.

The church's general secretary, Joe Talemaitoga, said students returned to the school this week for the second term under the interim management of the ministry.

"We are going to court because of the court injunction. All we know is that the school has started yesterday (Monday) and I'm sure the result of that - it's going to be the first hearing about the government and the church." Read more

New data from market researcher Nielsen indicate that Hope Channel New Zealand has an average monthly viewership of 200,000 people, more than local Christian broadcasters SonLife, Firstlight, and even Shine TV (Rhema Media), which has been in operation for 10 years and is expanding its broadcasts, said Brad Kemp, manager of Hope Channel New Zealand. Continue reading

Taleni Asuega said he had just arrived at the church when he heard a loud bang and saw that his uncle had been shot near a second-floor classroom at the Samoa Tokelau Seventh-Day Adventist Church on Banyan Street in Kalihi. Read more

The new deep yellowish church building in Tuafusi is very distinctive and it stand out in Apia's townscape.

The church is part of complex that will become the main centre for SISDAC in Samoa.

It replaces a building that was destroyed by fire in 2012.

The cost of the building was originally set down to $10 million, and donations from various parishes with 8 of them donating more than a million tala each, contributed to the overall cost which of SAT$12,154,764.00.

The celebration was attended by His Highness the Head of State, Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese Efi and Masiofo Filifilia, Cabinet Ministers, Parliamentarians and friends.

His Highness the Head of State and Masiofo were guests at the opening.

The opening celebration started with Masiofo Filifilia and Tiana Papu, SISDAC President's wife cutting the ribbon, before retired Pastor Polataivao Va'alele Te'o opened the church doors to allow everyone inside for the official service.

The work was meant to be done within a year with work starting in September 2013 and for it to be christened in September 2014," said Pastor Vaotu'ua.

The delay was due to bad weather and the delayed arrival of building materials from overseas.

As the delay was further extended, the building contractor, Quin Dao was reminded of the construction policies where funds could be deducted from their service if work does not meet the deadline.

According to Pastor Vaotu'ua, when the work was delayed for the second time, the SISDAC leaders told Quin Dao that a penalty of $10,000 would be deducted from their payment to which Quin Dao agreed to.

However, that did not happen as SISDAC leaders wanted to pay Quin Dao for their full service.

Source

• talamua.com
• Image: talamua.com

He had refused to work on Saturdays because it was against his faith.

Mark Meulenbroek had worked since 2004 at an Invercargill company that installed TV and audio systems, and was considered a model employee.

In 2011, he rejoined the Seventh Day Adventist Church which he'd attended until he was 16, and wanted to have Saturday off so he could observe the Sabbath.

Meulenbroek's boss gave him some Saturdays off, but not all, and in September 2012 fired him when he refused to work on the Sabbath.

The Human Rights Review Tribunal found his employer had discriminated against Meulenbroek and had no appreciation of his obligations under the Human Rights Act.

Director of the Office of Human Rights Proceedings Robert Kee, who represented Meulenbroek, says the case is an important warning for small-to-medium businesses which - like Vision - might not be aware of their Human Rights Act obligations.

If someone believes they are discriminated against in their employment, they have the choice of taking proceedings before the Human Rights Review Tribunal or the Employment Relations Authority.

It is not unusual for people to claim discrimination on grounds of age or race. Proceedings based on religious belief are much less common.

Source

• Yahoo News
• Stuff.co.nz
• Image: Advicenow.com

On 6 February the local Seventh Day Adventist church administration instructed the law office of Schuster-Betham-Annandale to write to the Leauva'a-uta SDA members who are worshipping on Saturday telling them to refrain from using the church facility there.

This situation arose because the Samoan Government decided to align its time zone with key trading partners in the Asia-Pacific region by shifting west of the international date line.

When the clock struck midnight Thursday 29 December 2011, the country skipped over Friday and moved 24 hours ahead — straight into Saturday, Dec. 31.

SDA Pastor Uili Solofa says, "You have to know that all the other Christian religions in Samoa have publicly testified that they have moved to keep the seventh-day Sabbath of the Bible."

Catholic Chancellor Ioane Ono does not appear to share that view.

"For Catholics or any Christian for that matter, Sunday is a day of rest, a day of giving thanks and praise to the Lord. It is also a day of joy and celebration because for the Catholic Church, Sunday is the day of resurrection of Jesus." (Samoa Observer, March 12, 2013)

Such statement by SDA leaders in Samoa and the Pacific that Sunday is the ‘seventh-day' in Samoa today contradicts why Christian churches worship on Sunday being the first day of the week to commemorate the day of Jesus' resurrection.

Last month, leaders of the SDA church in the South Pacific Division (SPD) met again in Australia with pastors from Samoa and Samoan pastors representing Samoan churches in New Zealand and Australia.

The Bible conference discussed the impasse in Samoa, which is detrimental to a fundamental doctrine of the SDA church.

The matter has been referred to the Biblical Research Committee of the South Pacific Division for further research.

Source

• NBCNews.com
• Talamua
• Image: Samoa Observer

Fire fighters were unable to save the multimillion dollar building in Apia. However they were able to contain the fire from spreading to nearby businesses in town and family homes.

Local reports say the fire may have started from a mosquito coil used by a night guard man.

However a fire senior officer says the real cause should be found after their inquiries.

Source

• Radio New Zealand International
• Image: Bebo

Also agreed at the Australia meet was the need for a meeting of ‘reconciliation' between Samoan pastors in New Zealand, Australia, America and those in Samoa to mend a split which seems to have developed among Samoan pastors with opposing views. The propose reconciliation meeting later this year in Samoa will include a open discussion of the seventh-day Sabbath issue in Samoa where Adventists are now worshipping on two separate days but still belong to the same church administration.
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The Seventh Day Adventist administrators in Samoa decided to keep an unbroken cycle of seven days with the seventh day being Sabbath.

The first week after the nation changed to the other side of the dateline led to a six day week. The church leaders judged that the following Sunday was, therefore the seventh day and so they decided keep the Sabbath on Sunday in the future.

However not everyone agrees with keeping the Sabbath on Sunday. More and more members in Samoa are now returning to keeping the Sabbath on Saturday. They say it is a theological issue, not an anthropological or sociological one and the change brought about by the issue of the dateline does not affect the theology.

Elder Ted Wilson, General Conference President of the Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) church, has confirmed receiving a submission from members in Samoa against the the local church administrators' decision to keep the Sabbath on Sunday.

The submission, including letters from Fasitootai, Leauva'a, Saleimoa, Kosena in Matatufu and Solaua, are all requesting the head office of the SDA church in the world to thoroughly study the Sabbath situation in Samoa, and reverse the action of the local administration so that members in Samoa continue to observe the seventh-day Sabbath on Saturday together with the rest of the Church globally.

Source

• Voxy.co.nz
• Scoop.co.nz
• Image: Record