Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga

Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga
Siasi Uēsiliana Tau'atāina 'o Tonga
FWCT logo
Motto: "Ko e me'a tēpū ko e 'iate kitautolu 'a e 'Otua" (The best of all is that God is with us).
ClassificationProtestant
OrientationMethodist
TheologyWesleyan, Evangelical
PolityConnexionalism
PresidentDr. Tevita Koloa'ia Havea
Secretary-GeneralRev. Mr. Alifeleti Atiola
HeadquartersNuku'alofa, Tonga
TerritoryTonga, Fiji, American Samoa, Aotearoa/New Zealand, Australia, Japan, United States of America.
Origin30 May 1924.
Merger ofFree Church of Tonga and Methodist Church of Australasia
Other name(s)Methodist Church of Tonga
Official websitewww.fwc.to

The Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga (FWCT; Tongan: Siasi Uēsiliana Tau‘atāina ‘o Tonga[1]) is a Methodist denomination in Tonga. It is the largest Christian denomination in the nation and is often mistaken to be its state church.[2] It has its roots in the arrival of the first missionaries from the London Missionary Society and the ministry of the Wesleyan Methodist Mission Society, the latter of which cemented its Methodist identity.

The Tongan Royal Family has had a close relationship with the Church ever since the advent of the Gospel in the island kingdom, with many of them as prominent members;[2] thus, with these factors, the FWCT can be considered a de facto state church.[3]

The Centenary Chapel (popularly dubbed as 'Saione', or Zion), located in the district of Kolomotu'a, Nuku'alofa. It was built to commemorate the centenary of Christianity in Tonga, and is the national seat of the Free Wesleyan Church.
  1. ^ Tonga on the 'NET - Christianity and The Kingdom of Tonga: Free Wesleyan Church Archived 2011-07-18 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ a b "Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga (Methodist Church in Tonga)". World Council of Churches. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
  3. ^ Ernst, Manfred (2012-04-01). "Changing Christianity in Oceania: a Regional Overview". Archives de sciences sociales des religions (157): 29–45. doi:10.4000/assr.23613. ISSN 0335-5985.