THE PENTECOSTAL MOVEMENT OF SAMOA: REACHING THE UTTERMOST'

Abstract

Nearly a century ago there was an outbreak of the Spirit known as the Azusa Street revival. This outpouring occurred between 1906 and 1913.^ It is also referred to as the "third force of Christendom."^ The year 1914 was the birth year of the Assemblies of God church.* This Pentecostal movement was an instrument used by God to introduce the Pentecostal message as far as the Pacific islands. Because of the location of these islands, some refer to them as the uttermost part of the earth. Thus some feel that the arrival of the Pentecostal movement in the islands has fulfilled Jesus' command to his disciples that they ought to be witnesses unto him "even to the uttermost part of the earth" (Acts 1:8). It is to the glory of God that Pentecostal power has impacted a great harvest of souls in the islands. Recent statistics show the number of Assemblies of God churches in Fiji to be over 300. The Samoan Assemblies of God has 98 local churches, with another 180 in overseaslike USA, New Zealand and Australia. Vanuatu has about 85 local churches, and the Solomon Islands have about 20.' Each island group in the South Pacific has its own unique Pentecostal story. To write an adequate account of the Pentecostal movement in each island group would cover many volumes, and deserve much time and concentration. This article is limited to and concentrates on the Pentecostal movement in Samoa:' how it arrived on Samoan shores, its impact and growth and some of the challenges it now faces.