"In Our Language Lau Means Mine, It Also Means Yours": Liberation Theology - A Samoan Dialogue

Abstract

For the Samoan, all human interaction is meaningful. No one and no thing is coincidental to the process of human development. Every Samoan from the new born to the aged, is taught and teaches that the recognition of, and the gift to meaningful existence lies in the reciprocal honouring of boundaries which respects the sanctity of human life. Genealogy and Stories of human relationships, the intimate interaction between the human and divine, these are the touchstones which give context to the meaning of this Samoan journey. Western theology and history however, have been the dominant mediums of definition which have rooted the traditional journey in the context of Western biases and prejudice. Through the decades of Western influence in its many forms, Samoa's traditional history has been wrenched from its own roots and co-opted by Western analysis and interpretation. This research project attempts to 're-see' the journey one hundred and sixty five years later, following the arrival of the first trader, missionary, soldier, and academic to Samoan shores. Its purpose is to locate a theologically based socio-political paradigm of change which is relevant and useful to the lives of Samoan communities in New Zealand. The line of argument leads to the conclusion that change is not mutually exclusive; that within the 'untouched' spheres of Samoan tradition, lies the potential for dynamic exchange within the Samoan communities of identity.