Welcome to OBSA
His Highness Tui Atua Tamasese delivering the opening address of OBSA 2015 at Piula Theological College, Samoa (Photo taken by Nasili Vaka'uta)
OBSA holds biennial meetings on Pasifika islands to talanoa on realities and concerns deemed critical for the tasks of biblical studies in the region, and beyond. These realities and concerns are addressed in several streams, attentive to the theoretical, hermeneutical and communal impacts of biblical studies on Oceania’s sea of islands:
Pacific ways: On methodologies
This stream locates the journey and dreams of OBSA in relation to developments in biblical studies, with openness to islander, gender and postcolonial criticisms
Sea of readings: On scriptures
This stream is a platform for participants to present their readings of scriptural and native texts
Grounding islands: On practices
This stream attends to public conversations and activities in and around villages, churches, politics, and inter-islands
OBSA GATHERINGS
2010, July 9-10: Trinity Methodist Theological College, College of the Diocese of Polynesia, and School of Theology, University of Auckland (Aotearoa)
Climate Change in Oceania: Biblical and Theological Responses
2011, July 1-2: Malua Theological College (Samoa)
Empire, Migration, and Oceanic Biblical Interpretation
2012, August 28-30: University of the South Pacific Tonga Campus, Pacific Council of Churches and Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga (Tonga)
Pacific Hermeneutics
2013, Aug 01-03: Pacific Theological College (Fiji)
Oceania Biblical Interpretation
2015, Sept 10-12: Piula Theological College (Samoa)
Bible, Oratory and Oceania Literature
2017, Apr 20-22: Trinity Methodist Theological College (Aotearoa)
reCharge, reChart and reChance
2019, Apr 18-20: Davuilevu Theological College (Fiji)
Bible and Vanua
2020 (date to be confirmed): Piula Theological College (Samoa)
2021 (date to be confirmed): Sia'atoutai Theological College (Tonga)
2023 (date to be confirmed): Kanana Fou Theological College (American Samoa)