Toe Timata le Ūpega – Print.

Toe Timata le Ūpega
Recasting the Net for a Living Church

By Reupena Maulolo

[NZ print edition coming 5 December 2025]

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This book offers a bold and hopeful vision for revitalising the Congregational Christian Church Samoa by reconnecting with its youth through transformative preaching, affirming cultural identity, and Spirit-led innovation.

Reading this book will help you:

• Understand the cultural tensions facing CCCS youth in Aotearoa New Zealand
• Reimagine preaching as a life-giving, relational, and bilingual act
• Integrate Samoan and New Zealand identities in worship
• Engage youth meaningfully in planning and leading services
• Reflect theologically on tradition as a dynamic and flowing river
• Foster intergenerational conversation and trust
• Equip ministers and lay leaders with practical tools for spiritual renewal. 

Soft cover, 94pp
6" x 9"
ISBN 9781991027979
Philip Garside Publishing Ltd (2025)

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Features

• 10 insightful and readable chapters based on doctoral research
• Real-life quotes from youth, ministers, and elders
• Accessible theological reflection grounded in Samoan values
• Appendices with sermon outlines, group questions, and interview insights
• Includes a glossary and bibliography.

Description

The author’s groundbreaking research invites us to faithfully reinterpret tradition, restore intergenerational trust, and reconnect the Church with the hearts and hopes of its youth.

Dr Maulolo explores the tensions between Samoan and New Zealand cultural identities, the struggles young people face in understanding and participating in worship, and the untapped potential of preaching when it becomes a relational, bilingual, Spirit-led practice.

He draws from personal interviews, theological insights from respected Pacific thinkers like Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese Efi, and real-life examples from CCCS congregations trying new approaches.

Each chapter builds toward a vision of a living church – one that listens to its youth, values its elders, and casts the net again with courage. The book blends storytelling with theological depth, cultural wisdom with practical action, and traditional values with innovation.

Whether you are a minister, youth leader, elder, or church member who longs for renewal, this book offers hope, challenge, and a faithful path forward.

This is not a call to abandon what is precious, but to reimagine the church – for the sake of the gospel, for the love of the next generation, and for the life of the CCCS to come.

From the Foreword
by  Murray Rae
Professor of Systematic Theology
University of Otago

"…I hope that the church will receive this book as a gift. It is a gift in two parts. It is the gift, first of all, of the voices of young Samoan Christians who have spoken of their faith but also of their frustrations. We ought to give thanks for their faith. And we ought to honour it by attending to their frustrations. The second part of the gift this book offers to us comes in the form of Reupena’s wise advice about how the preaching of the church must change if it is to fulfil its intended purpose…"

About the Author

Rev Dr Reupena Maulolo is a respected CCCS minister, theological educator, and researcher with decades of ministry experience in both Samoa and Aotearoa New Zealand.

His doctoral research explored youth engagement, cultural identity, and preaching within the Samoan church context.

A passionate preacher and community leader, he brings deep cultural insight and a heart for renewal to the work of ministry.

Contents 

Foreword

Introduction: Why We Must Cast the Net Again 

1.      Between Cultures: Understanding the Samoan Youth Experience

2.      The Voice from the Pulpit: Why Preaching Still Matters

3.      Why Youth Say Preaching Is Boring: And What That Tells Us

4.      Teu le Va: Tending the Sacred Space Between Us

5.      Identity and Spirituality: The Heart and Lungs of Faith

6.      Toe Timata le Ūpega: A Samoan Framework for Change

7.      Preaching That Connects: Language, Imagery, and Context

8.      Beyond the Pulpit: Youth Participation in Worship

9.      Bridging the Gap: Tools for Ministers and Lay Leaders

10.  The Future Is Now: Reimagining the Church We Love 

Conclusion: Hope, Faith, and a Net Recast 

Acknowledgements

Glossary of Samoan and theological terms

Sample Sermon Outlines

Group Discussion Questions

Key Interview Insights

Bibliography and Suggested Reading List