The church has been a driving force of “extraordinary transformation” in the Solomon Islands, Prime Minister Hon. Jeremiah Manele said during the opening of an evangelistic crusade in the capital this month.
Manele delivered the keynote address at Australian evangelist Tim Hall’s crusade at Lawson Tama Stadium on Aug. 6, according to a government press release. The four-day event concluded Aug. 10.
“First night Honiara, Solomon Islands, opened by the Prime Minister. Hundreds saved and lots of miracles,” Tim Hall International Ministries posted Aug. 6 on X, formerly Twitter.
The gathering drew Christians from different churches under the theme “The Great Awakening.”
In his remarks, Manele highlighted the church’s impact since the gospel arrived more than 200 years ago, crediting both foreign and local missionaries for shaping the nation’s identity and values. He noted that their commitment and sacrifice helped foster unity, governance and purpose in the country’s diverse communities.
“The church has been a force of extraordinary transformation, contributing to development through printing presses, schools, shipbuilding, community initiatives, and reconciliation work that has supported stability and unity,” Manele said.
The prime minister added that his coalition government, the Government of National Unity and Transformation, values the church as “an important partner in implementing government policy and working for the good of all Solomon Islanders.”
Manele also announced plans for collaboration between the government and church bodies, including the Solomon Islands Christian Association and the Solomon Islands Full Gospel Association, through an annual symposium focused on spiritual growth and development initiatives.
He thanked Hall, Rev. David MacDonald and the ministry team from Australia for choosing to hold the crusade shortly after the country’s 47th independence anniversary.
“The Prime Minister encouraged people to embrace the Word of God, emphasizing unity in faith, society, and the economy, as reflected in the national anthem’s call for national strength and unity,” the release stated.
Hall, a leading evangelist in Australia, has ministered with his wife Jacque around the world. According to his website, he was once a “heavy drinking bohemian artist and high school teacher” before becoming a Christian in 1974 at the age of 26. A year later, he pioneered a church in Murray Bridge, South Australia, and went on to establish several more in Victoria.
From the 1980s onward, Hall focused on evangelism, holding meetings across Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. His ministry’s website claims that “their forthright and anointed preaching, coupled with a great manifestation of the power of God has seen over 1 million saved, thousands healed, drastically changed, baptised in the Holy Spirit and filled with a fresh touch of revival power.”
