Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

Samoa Seventh Day Adventists diverge over impact of Dateline switch

Posted at 04:57 on 28 December, 2011 UTC

One Seventh Day Adventist parish in Samoa will continue observing the Sabbath day on Saturdays despite changes forced on the church by the country switching to the west of the International Dateline.

To achieve the move Samoa will this week go directly from Thursday to Saturday.

SDA Sabbath celebrations traditionally begin on Friday evening and extend into the Saturday.

This weekend and into the future most parishes will observe the Sabbath on Sunday, to maintain the unbroken seven day cycle.

But the SDA church in Samatau village has decided it will still observe the Sabbath on Saturdays.