Congregational LMS Samoan Church (Ekalesia LMS Toefuataina Samoa)
The Reformed Congregational L.M.S. Samoan Church (Ekalesia L.M.S. Toefuataina Samoa) traces its beginnings to the Congregational Christian Church in Samoa (EFKS). It is a group of Congregational Samoan Churches who are adherents of the EFKS Mother Church in Samoa. Because of minor disagreements with doctrine the church had, the founder of the church Rev. Elder Tepa Faleto'ese engaged in forming a newer church that worked to support the spiritual needs of its congregants in a more modern approach. The Reformed Congregational L.M.S Samoan Church share the same doctrines, rules and rituals as  the mother church EFKS, however, do not hold the annual "Fa'amati, Faiga Me" or any other monetary events aside from the "Aso Sa o le Talalelei Taulaga." The Church maintains the use of the Samoan Bible and the EFKS Tusi Pese, and its Constitution is similar to that of the EFKS. The Motto of the Church is "Fa'afaigofie, Fa'ataugofie, Fa'asa'oloto" which translates to "Simple, Humble, Free Worship". The Reformed Congregational L.M.S. Samoan Church name derives from the original name of the first Christian Church of Samoa. The London Missionary Society (L.M.S.) although no longer an active society has been used  by the Church as a name to signify the importance of maintaining its roots traced back to the arrival of the first missionaries to Samoa. It has taken a Reformed Congregationalist approach, and has added to the testimony of the Church and its people. History. The Reformed Congregational LMS Samoan Church (Ekalesia LMS Toefuata'iina Samoa) was established and founded by the Rev. Elder Tepa Faleto'ese in Balmain, Sydney Australia in 1992. Faleto'ese was an Elder Minister of the "Congregational Christian Church of Samoa (EFKS)" and part of the Committee of Elders (Komiti o le 'Au Toea'iina). He served for many  years in the EFKS church as Pastor for EFKS Fagaloa (1955), Director of Boys Brigade (1959), PIC Christchurch (1970), EFKS Christchurch (1975), EFKS Aolo'au then moved to Australia in 1980. In 1985, Faleto'ese along with others established and founded the first EFKS congregation in Australia (Balmain later renamed Rooty Hill). As an Elder, he campaigned in the Committee of Elders to effect reforms within the church, to be in line with developing the spiritual rather than the physical side of the church members. As the most influential body that decides on the future of the church, Reverend Faleto'ese said his  views were not acceptable to the majority of the Elders.He pushed the main EFKS church to establish itself in Australia, something which materialised in 1985 with himself in the lead. Because of this, Faleto'ese decided to resign from the EFKS Church upon retirement and heeded to establish a new and more contemporary church that catered to the spiritual needs of new migrants arriving from Samoa. The mission was to establish a denomination that focussed on three main principles: "Fa'ataugofie, Fa'afaigofie, Fa'asa'oloto" In 1992, Faleto'ese established his new church in Balmain Australia. The establishment of this new congregation paved a  way for more congregations to be established across Australia. The second church was founded in Christchurch New Zealand in 1993 with Rev. Tuiataga Siataga. The Church was originally given the name Ekalesia Samoa Tuto'atasi but revoked in 1996, when the Annual General Meeting decided to rename the church Ekalesia LMS Toefuata'iina Samoa (The Reformed LMS Samoan Church). The LMS Toefuata'iina movement became a trailblazer that saw more that 30 congregations established across Australia and New Zealand. It became one of the fastest growing Christian denominations particularly in Australia and Auckland, New Zealand with over 30,000 worshippers. Church's Focus. The  Samoan church during the missionary period engaged itself in the "social redemption of humanity". This vision was based on the church's understanding of God's sovereignty. It saw the divine purpose of redemption not in individual terms only but also in corporate, social and political terms. The newly acquired faith had its focus on the transformation of life and society. That legacy remains a motivating force in the nation's idealism as well as in the church's commitment to active social efforts. The church emphasises the idea of "Fa'afaigofie, Fa'ataugofie, Fa'asa'oloto" or "Simple, Humble, Free Worship" Membership. In  the last census conducted by the Church in 2007, it noted that membership was over 30,000 across Australia, New Zealand and the United States. However, with the controversies and ecumenical splits the church faced, membership of those who remain has dropped significantly to around 2,000. Early Years. The Reformed Congregational LMS Samoan Church is a world-wide church which is based in Samoa, Australia, New Zealand and the United States of America. In its early years, the newly established church gained members at a very fast momentum which surprised many denominations particularly in Australia and New Zealand. Many think the  reasoning behind this 'boom' in numbers was that many families who joined were adherents of the EFKS Church who did not want to bear the burden of financial commitment in the EFKS Church. Many were merely adjusting to new lives in New Zealand and Australia and many were new migrants to new countries. The Diasporic Churches "(Sinapi)" The Diasporic Churches refer to the Parishes that were established in the early years of the LMS Toefuata'iina Movement, between 1992 and 1998. These Churches took on the role to gather, nurture and cater for the spiritual needs of its Samoan communities. The  Diasporic Churches are often referred to as the "Sinapi" (A Samoan figurative plant) that bloomed new congregations. It was from these churches that other Parishes were established, creating a wave of new congregations in both Australia and New Zealand. The Transferral and Missionary Churches "(Fua o le Sinapi)" The Transferral and Missionary churches are Parishes that either formed from the Diasporic Churches or churches that transferred from other denominations such as the EFKS, Methodist, Presbyterian, AOG etc. All of these churches were established or transferred from the year 1999 onwards and became pivotal parishes that helped the development and oversight  of the LMS Toefuata'iina Denomination. The Parish Pastors and wives noted were pioneers in the movement and led their consecutive congregations respectively. We refer to these churches as the "Fua o le Sinapi" - The sprout of the Sinapi plant, the churches that bloomed from the original seed. It is important to note that more Congregations were established following the 2003 Census (Tusiga Igoa Fono Tele 2003) where the above information was sourced from. Some parishes are not included in this as they were established after the said time. Controversies. New Zealand Case Constitution Case Financial Case Taulagi and those who  remained subsequently continued the Church to the best of their ability. In 2013, the Church applied to the National Council of Churches in Samoa for membership. However, they were declined based on the notion that they were using the name 'LMS', a legal copyright in Samoa of the EFKS, whom were previously known as the LMS Church. On advice of the National Council of Churches, Taulagi and the Church renamed themselves to the 'First Revival Church of Samoa - Ekalesia Fa'afouina Samoa' abdicating their rights of the Reformed Congregational LMS Samoan Church to Tautaiolevao and their church. The Church Today. Today , there are only seven churches that remain under the Reformed Congregational LMS Samoan Church denomination. The Church ensued a Court Case to claim its eligibility and rights to the name of the Church. A Court ruling in Australia deemed this group as the adherents of the original Church founded by Rev. Elder Tepa Faleto'ese. All other denominations using the same name were deemed invalid and unlawful. It is currently headed by Rev. Apolimatai Tautaiolevao as Chairperson (Ta'ita'ifono). Its membership currently stands at 2,000 adherents. As of 2015, the memberships are as follows: Congregational LMS Samoan Church (Ekalesia LMS Toefuataina Samoa