Samoa

The first Adventists arrived in Samoa on the Pitcairn in 1891. The missionaries hired a house for three weeks and delivered religious books.

The Pitcairn stopped again in Samoa four years later on October 22, 1895. It carried a doctor and his family. Apia needed a resident doctor. The German administration in charge of the area accepted Dr Braucht's application to work as doctor and dentist.

The missionaries rented a building at Matautu-tai, on the eastern end of Apia harbour. They restored the ground level for use as a medical centre and lived on the second floor. Patients soon flocked to the centre. The missionaries needed to build their own medical centre. They called it the Sanitarium. It housed the Brauchts, the nurses' living quarters, the office, a pharmacy and hospital rooms.

Delos Lake and his wife arrived from America to start a school for Samoans in 1899. Lake eventually established a school of 60 students on 40 hectares three kilometres east of Apia. The schoolwork came to an end when Lake returned to America in 1903.

In 1904, the Australian blacksmith in Apia, Bill Landells, stayed at the Sanitarium to recover from an accident. He became an Adventist during his stay. His was the first Adventist baptism in Samoa, performed in 1905.

Several missionary families came to the island but stayed for short periods of time due to health problems. They distributed tracts in Samoan and produced, in early 1911, a monthly magazine in the Samoan language.

Later, missionaries sold the Sanitarium property and moved to Saluafatua Bay, where they had greater contact with the local people. The move changed the course of events. Samoans began to take an interest in the Adventist message. A small group began worshipping on Sabbath, or Saturday. The European members in Apia decided to build a church. The church building was dedicated in 1915. This coincided with the first baptism of two Samoan men and three Samoan women.

A slowly declining membership and more comings and goings of missionaries characterised the years after the war.

The first generation of Samoan Adventists was largely formed in the 1930s. It multiplied tenfold in the second generation. By 1935, the church established further mission outposts at Vailele and at Satomai. It also opened a primary school in Satomai.

The war years did not deter evangelism. In fact, the American presence opened opportunities to extend the Adventist mission into Tutuilla Island and later Manua Island. Literature was periodically sent to American Samoa.

The years following World War II have seen many new missionaries come and go, but the educational and evangelistic work continued. Scores of Samoans have become missionaries themselves. New headquarters and mission stations have been established.

The Adventist Church in Samoa continues to grow steadily.