The Christian Church of Tuvalu ( Tuvaluan: ''Te Ekalesia Kelisiano Tuvalu'', EKT), is a

Christian church In ecclesiology, the Christian Church is what different Christian denominations conceive of as being the true body of Christians or the original institution established by Jesus Christ. "Christian Church" has also been used in academia as a syn ...

and is being the single largest religious denomination in the country. This status entitles it to "the privilege of performing special services on major national events".US State Dept 2022 report
/ref> In the 2022 census, its adherents comprise about 86% of the 10,632 inhabitants of the

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands. An archipelago may be in an ocean, a sea, or a smaller body of water. Example archipelagos include the Aegean Islands (the o ...

. Theologically, it is part of the

Reformed Reform is beneficial change. Reform, reformed or reforming may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine Places * Reform, Al ...

tradition. Section 23 of the Constitution of Tuvalu guarantees freedom of belief, including the freedom of thought, religion and belief, the freedom to change religion or belief, the right not to receive religious instruction at school or to attend religious ceremonies at school, and the right not to "take an oath or make an affirmation that is contrary to ne'sreligion or beliefs".

History

Christianity first came to Tuvalu in 1861 when Elekana, a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

of a

Congregational church Congregationalism (also Congregational Churches or Congregationalist Churches) is a Reformed Christian (Calvinist) tradition of Protestant Christianity in which churches practice congregational government. Each congregation independently a ...

Manihiki 250px, Map of Manihiki Atoll Manihiki is an atoll in the northern group of the Cook Islands known informally as the "Island of Pearls". It is located in the Northern Cook Island chain, approximately north of the capital island of Rarotonga, ...

Cook Islands The Cook Islands is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands whose total land area is approximately . The Cook Islands' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covers of ocean. Avarua is its ...

became caught in a storm and drifted for eight weeks before landing at

Nukulaelae Nukulaelae is an atoll that is part of the nation of Tuvalu, and it has a population of 300 (2017 census). The largest settlement is Pepesala on Fangaua islet with a population of 341 people (2022 Census). It has the form of an oval and consist ...

.Laumua Kofe, Palagi and Pastors, ''Tuvalu: A History'', Ch. 15, U.S.P. & Tuvalu (1983) Elekana began

proselytising Proselytism () is the policy of attempting to convert people's religious or political beliefs. Carrying out attempts to instill beliefs can be called proselytization. Proselytism is illegal in some countries. Some draw distinctions between Chris ...

Christianity. He was trained at Malua Theological College, a

London Missionary Society The London Missionary Society was an interdenominational evangelical missionary society formed in England in 1795 at the instigation of Welsh Congregationalist minister Edward Williams. It was largely Reformed tradition, Reformed in outlook, with ...

school in

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

, before beginning his work in establishing the Church of Tuvalu. In 1865, the Reverend Archibald Wright Murray of the

(LMS) – a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

congregationalist missionary society – arrived as the first European missionary where he too proselytized among the inhabitants of Tuvalu. Murray was followed by the Reverend Samuel James Whitmee in 1870. The first pastors were: Ioane at

and Nanumanga (1865–88);Doug Munro, ''The Lives and Times of Resident Traders in Tuvalu: An Exercise in History from Below'', (1987) 10(2) Pacific Studies 73 Kirisome at Nui (1865–99); Tapumanaia Kitiona at

Niutao Niutao is a reef island in the northern part of Tuvalu. It is one of the nine districts (islands) of Tuvalu. It is also one of the three districts that consist of only one island — not counting the three islets inside the closed lagoon. Niuta ...

(1865); Tema at

Funafuti Funafuti is an atoll, comprising numerous islets, that serves as the capital of Tuvalu. As of the 2017 census, it has a population of 6,320 people. More people live in Funafuti than the rest of Tuvalu combined, with it containing approximately 6 ...

(1870–89); Jeremia at Vaitupu (1880–95); In 1896 the pastor on Funafuti was Simona. The ministers of what became the Church of Tuvalu were predominantly Samoans who graduated from Malua Theological College, and who influenced the development of the

Tuvaluan language Tuvaluan (), often called Tuvalu, is a Polynesian language closely related to the Ellicean group spoken in Tuvalu. It is more or less distantly related to all other Polynesian languages, such as Hawaiian, Māori, Tahitian, Samoan, Tokelau ...

and the music of Tuvalu. The LMS Church in the Ellice Islands remained part of the Samoan LMS Church’s congregational system until 1958, and was administered (together with

Tokelau Tokelau (; ; known previously as the Union Islands, and, until 1976, known officially as the Tokelau Islands) is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, an ...

and the

Gilbert Islands The Gilbert Islands (;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this name applied o ...

, under the title, the Northwest Outstations of the Samoan Mission. In 1958, the LMS Church in the Ellice Islands became self-governing. Ellice Islander ministers were trained at Mälua, the LMS College in Western Samoa. The Samoan language Bible was used until 1978 when a Tuvaluan-language New Testament was published. In 1969, the ETK acquired its independence from the LMS, since which time it has sent some missionaries to serve Tuvaluan migrants in

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, and the

Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands, officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands, is an island country west of the International Date Line and north of the equator in the Micronesia region of the Northwestern Pacific Ocean. The territory consists of 29 c ...

. The former Governor-General of Tuvalu, Rev Sir Filoimea Telito, presided over the Church until his death in July 2011. The Reverend Kalahati Kilei, President of the ETK and Pastor for the island community of Funafuti, died on 10 September 2019 at Princess Margaret Hospital. The most prominent building on

is the ''Fētu'ao Lima'' (Morning Star Church) of the Church of Tuvalu. The Church currently publishes a

bulletin Bulletin or The Bulletin may refer to: Periodicals (newspapers, magazines, journals) * ''Bulletin'' (online newspaper), a Swedish online newspaper * ''The Bulletin'' (Australian periodical), an Australian magazine (1880–2008) ** Bulletin De ...

in the Tuvaluan and English languages.

Beliefs

As the church is an offshoot of the

, it is

Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...

in doctrine and

congregational Congregationalism (also Congregational Churches or Congregationalist Churches) is a Reformed Christianity, Reformed Christian (Calvinist) tradition of Protestant Christianity in which churches practice Congregationalist polity, congregational ...

in organisation. There is an ordination for women which occurred on July 16, 2022, with the first two women, Rev Oliula Kalahati and Rev. Sulufaiga Uota (EKT Head Office, 2022). The Apostles' Creed and the

Nicene Creed The Nicene Creed, also called the Creed of Constantinople, is the defining statement of belief of Nicene Christianity and in those Christian denominations that adhere to it. The original Nicene Creed was first adopted at the First Council of N ...

are generally accepted. Being the ''de facto'' state church, the Church of Tuvalu dominates most aspects of social, cultural and political life in the country.

Fetuvalu Secondary School

The Church operates Fetuvalu Secondary School, a

day school A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children are given instruction during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when compared to a regular s ...

which is located on

Relations

The Church is a member of the World Association for Christian Communication, the Boys' Brigade International Fellowship, the

World Communion of Reformed Churches The World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) is the largest association of Reformed (Calvinist) churches in the world. It has 230 member denominations (227 members and three associate or affiliate members) in 108 countries, together claiming ...

Council for World Mission The Council for World Mission (CWM) is a worldwide community of mainly Protestant Christian churches. The organisation works to spread the knowledge of Christ throughout the world and to strengthen their 32 members in their mission work by shar ...

, the

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, most jurisdictions of the Eastern Orthodo ...

, and the Pacific Conference of Churches. It also has ties with the Methodist Church in Fiji, the Congregational Christian Church in Samoa, the Kiribati Uniting Church, the

Uniting Church in Australia The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) is a united church in Australia. The church was founded on 22 June 1977 when most Wiktionary:congregation, congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church o ...

, and the

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

and

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

churches in New Zealand.

Emigration

During the early years of the 21st century, urbanization and environmental issues have led to many citizens leaving Tuvalu to start new lives in other countries. Many people have taken their beliefs with them and there are now EKT churches in New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii, Marshall Island, and Fiji.Council For World Missions website
/ref> The Tuvalu Community Church congregation of Henderson, Auckland, New Zealand, was established in 1992. In 2021 the congregation opened a new church, which was designed by South Pacific Architecture, which won a Public Architecture Award at the 2021 Auckland Architecture Awards.

References

{{reflist, 33em Churches in Tuvalu

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( ) is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands (which belong to the Solomon Islands), northeast of Van ...

Congregationalism