WHERE WE WORSHIP
Tongan church was chartered in 1978
By Mary Kaye Ritz
Advertiser Faith Editor
Name of church: The Constitutional Free Church of Tonga, Hawai'i.
Our denomination: Independent congregational.
Where we are: 1110 Kailua Road. (The congregation has shared facilities with the Kailua United Methodist Church for the past 22 years.)
Our numbers: 78 members.
Our pastor: The Rev. Tevita Latu Tupouniua.
What's special about us: They were the first Constitutional Free Church of Tonga in Hawai'i. Also, worship services are conducted exclusively in Tongan.
Our history: A four-member board of directors signed a charter on Sept. 18, 1978, creating a Church of Tonga. It met at schools before settling about two years later into the Kailua United Methodist space. Initially, there were about 40 to 50 members, said Tupouniua.
In the beginning, there was no resident pastor, so retired and lay pastors took turns preaching on Sundays. That went on for several years, said Tupouniua, who became an ordained minister after completing his master's of divinity just two years ago.
"It's never too late!" said the 66-year-old pastor with a laugh. "As a matter of fact, I'm thinking of doing my doctorate."
What we believe: The independent church is not affiliated with any mainline denomination.
"We primarily depend on the Bible to be our guidance," Tupouniua said. "This is the word of God."
Children are baptized in their first three months after birth.
Members celebrate communion on special occasions, such as Easter and Christmas, but are considering increasing the frequency of communion celebrations.
They use a Tongan-language Bible, but at times will have guest speakers do their sermons in English.
What we're excited about: This year, the church is celebrating its 25th anniversary.
There will a special service from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Sept. 21, with James Cook as the guest speaker. A fellowship reception will follow.
As part of the celebration, there will a choir festival among the Tongan Christian churches at 6 p.m. next Saturday at Kailua United Methodist.
Contact: The Rev. Tevita Latu Tupouniua at 234-6168.
If you would like to recommend a faith organization for a Where We Worship profile, e-mail faith@honoluluadvertiser.com, call 525-8035 or write: Where We Worship, Faith Page, The Honolulu Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802.
