 | Christian Politics in Oceania The phrase "Christian politics" evokes two meanings: political relations between denominations in one direction, and the contributions of Christian churches to debates about the governing of society. The contributors to this volume address Christian politics in both senses and argue that Christianity is always and inevitably political in the Pacific Islands. Drawing on ethnographic and historical research in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and Fiji, the authors argue that Christianity and politics have redefined each other in much of Oceania in ways that make the two categories inseparable at any level of analysis. The individual chapters vividly illuminate the ways in which Christian politics operate across a wide scale, from interpersonal relations to national and global interconnections. Matt Tomlinson is currently an ARC Future Fellow in the Department of Anthropology at Australian National University's College of Asia and the Pacific. Debra McDougall is Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Sociology at the University of Western Australia. Matt Tomlinson is currently an ARC Future Fellow in the Department of Anthropology at Australian National University's College of Asia and the Pacific. |
