Missionary Day () is an official holiday in

French Polynesia French Polynesia ( ; ; ) is an overseas collectivity of France and its sole #Governance, overseas country. It comprises 121 geographically dispersed islands and atolls stretching over more than in the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. The t ...

, an overseas collectivity of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. It is celebrated annually on 5 March, to mark the arrival of the

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 ...

(LMS) missionaries in 1797 when their ship '' Duff'' landed at

Matavai Bay Matavai Bay is a bay on the north coast of Tahiti, the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia. It is in the commune of Mahina, approximately 8 km east of the capital Pape'ete. Early European voyages The bay was visited by E ...

. It is a non-working holiday.

History

On 5 March 1797, British Protestant missionaries from the

, led by

John Jefferson John Jefferson may refer to: * John Jefferson (missionary) (1760–1807), English missionary * Joseph John Jefferson (1795–1882), English Congregationalist minister and Christian pacifist * John Wayles Jefferson (1835–1892), American busine ...

, landed at

, in Mahina, Tahiti, on board '' Duff''. Despite early setbacks in the mission, the LMS missionaries were able to convert the reigning king

Pōmare II Pōmare II (c. 1782 – 7 December 1821) (fully Tu Tunuieaiteatua Pōmare II or in modern orthography Tū Tū-nui-ʻēʻa-i-te-atua Pōmare II; historically misspelled as Tu Tunuiea'aite-a-tua), was the second king of Tahiti between 1782 and 182 ...

, who sought to use the new religion to consolidate his own power over the other chiefs of the island. The king was formally baptized on 16 May 1819, and the rest of the

kingdom of Tahiti The Kingdom of Tahiti or the Tahitian Kingdom was a Polynesian monarchy founded by paramount chief Pōmare I, who, with the aid of British missionaries and traders, and European weaponry, unified the islands of Tahiti, Moʻorea, Teti‘aroa, ...

followed. Protestantism gained a strong following with the Tahitian people through the patronage of the

Pōmare Dynasty Pōmare or Pomare may refer to: Tahiti * Pōmare dynasty, the dynasty of the Tahitian monarchs * Pōmare I (c. 1742–1803), first king of the Kingdom of Tahiti * Pōmare II (c. 1774–1821), second king of Tahiti * Pōmare III (1820–1827), third ...

and other chiefly families of the neighboring

Society Islands The Society Islands ( , officially ; ) are an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean that includes the major islands of Tahiti, Mo'orea, Moorea, Raiatea, Bora Bora and Huahine. Politically, they are part of French Polynesia, an overseas country ...

. Even when Tahiti became a French protectorate in 1843 and was annexed in 1880, Protestantism remained the dominant religion among the natives. The holiday was established on 1 February 1978.

Celebrations

The parishes of the

Maohi Protestant Church The Maohi Protestant Church (; ) is a Reformed church in French Polynesia. It is a member of the World Communion of Reformed Churches. The first missionaries arrived in 1797. After 1815 the majority of the population identified themselves with ...

hold organized celebrations and worship services. The holiday is also marked by cultural shows, public concerts and other events of cultural significance. Traditionally, the arrival of the first missionaries in 1797 is re-enacted at the Willy Bambridge Stadium complex in

Papeete Papeete (Tahitian language, Tahitian: ''Papeʻetē'', pronounced ; old name: ''Vaiʻetē''Personal communication with Michael Koch in ) is the capital city of French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of the France, French Republic in the Pacific ...

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian language, Tahitian , ; ) is the largest island of the Windward Islands (Society Islands), Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France. It is located in the central part of t ...

, as well as on Afareaitu, Moorea. The commune of Arue commemorates the festival by laying wreaths at the graves of the first Christian king Pōmare II and

Henry Nott Henry Nott (1774–1844) was a British Protestant Christian missionary who lived and worked in Tahiti, in the Society Islands in Polynesia. Life Henry Nott was born in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire in 1774. He was one of the first missionaries sent o ...

, a member of the first company of missionaries who translated the Bible into the

Tahitian language Tahitian (autonym: , , part of , , languages of French Polynesia) correspond to "languages of natives from French Polynesia", and may in principle designate any of the seven indigenous languages spoken in French Polynesia. The Tahitian language s ...

References

Annual events in France March observances Culture of Tahiti Culture of French Polynesia 1970s establishments in French Polynesia 1978 establishments in Oceania {{FrenchPolynesia-stub

History

Celebrations

See also

References