Sione ʻAmanaki Havea explained

Sione Amanaki Havea
Birth Date:1922
Death Date:2000
Nationality:Tongan
Known For:Coconut theology
Church:Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga

Sione Amanaki Havea (1922–2000) was a Tongan Methodist minister and theologian, known for developing a contextual theology for the context of the Pacific Islands.

Career

Havea was a strong advocate for ecumenism amongst Christians in Oceania. He served as the first chairman of the Pacific Conference of Churches (1966–1971) and was an active participant in the World Council of Churches.[1]

Havea was an ordained Methodist minister who served for two terms as president of the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga (1971–1977 and 1982–1992).[2] Between these terms, he also served as the principal of the Pacific Theological College, in Fiji (1977–1981), an institution which trains students mainly coming from Pacific Island churches, establishing a woman's program and advancing a theological orientation which addresses the context of Oceanic culture.[3]

Theology

Havea is best known for promoting the construction of Pacific theology, one that comes from the soil and context of the Pacific Islands.[4] [5] He believed one of the most vivid images for Oceanic culture was the coconut and spoke of a coconut theology.[6]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2000: The year in review: Obituaries. World Council of Churches. 29 September 2017.
  2. Web site: Brief History. Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga. en-gb. 29 September 2017.
  3. Web site: PTC: History and Tradition. Pacific Theological College. en-US. 29 September 2017.
  4. Palu. Maafu. 2012. Dr Sione Amanaki Havea of Tonga: The Architect of Pacific Theology. Melanesian Journal of Theology. 28. 2. 67–81.
  5. Book: Havea, Sione {{fakau'a}}Amanaki . South Pacific Theology: Papers from the Consultation on Pacific Theology, Papua New Guinea, January 1986. Regnum Books . 1987 . 978-1870345019 . Havea . Sione Amanaki . Oxford . 11–15 . Christianity in the Pacific Context.
  6. Carroll. Seforosa. April 2004. Weaving New Spaces: Christological Perspectives from Oceania (Pacific) and the Oceanic Diaspora. Studies in World Christianity. 10. 1. 72–92. 10.3366/swc.2004.10.1.72. 1354-9901.