By President Rev Charissa Suli

All the Scriptures for this week have resonated with us differently today. As the Uniting Church in Australia, we mourn the passing of Jione Havea—a husband, father, brother, colleague, mentor, theologian, and faithful servant of the Church. There’s something about this moment that feels both heavy and sacred.

In Acts, we hear of Stephen, who entrusts his spirit to God even in the face of death. In the Psalm, we pray, “Into your hands I commit my spirit… my times are in your hands.” In John’s Gospel, Jesus speaks gently: “Do not let your hearts be troubled… in my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.”

These are not distant words today.
They are words we hold onto.

Because we are holding grief.

Jione was a son of the Pacific, a servant of the Church, and a theological voice who helped many across our Church read Scripture more honestly—through culture, story, and the lived realities of our peoples. He challenged us—at times gently, at other times prophetically—to listen more deeply, think more critically, and take seriously voices too often pushed to the margins, even when it was uncomfortable, calling the Church to deeper honesty and faithfulness. There was a depth and distinctiveness to Jione’s voice that will be deeply missed.

He also gave voice to those who did not always know they had one—encouraging students, leaders, and communities to think critically, write, publish, and trust that their stories and perspectives matter in the life of the Church. He was also a mentor to many—walking alongside students, emerging leaders, and colleagues with generosity, wisdom, and care.

We give thanks for his deep relationships throughout the life of the Church, including with the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress, where he was a trusted friend and companion, walking alongside communities with humility, respect, and a commitment to listening.

We also give thanks for the deep relationship we share with the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga, from which Jione was seconded to ministry with us. This reminds us that we are one body across oceans and nations, shaped by relationships of trust, mutuality, and shared calling. We acknowledge with gratitude his ministry in the NSW/ACT Synod, particularly through Uniting Mission and Education, where he served with generosity, insight, and a deep commitment to the life of the Church.

Jione’s theological work also engaged deeply with life on this land. Through his scholarship and writing, he called the Church to reckon with the unfinished business of theology in Australia—listening to and learning from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and taking seriously the impact of colonisation on land and people. He helped the Church confront the realities of colonisation and invited us into deeper listening, truth-telling, and theological transformation.

His influence extended far beyond our own Church. Through his contributions to the World Council of Churches, the World Communion of Reformed Churches, and wider ecumenical and regional bodies across the Pacific and Asia, Jione helped bring a Pacific voice to the global Church. Through his teaching, scholarship, and presence across theological colleges, churches, and universities in America, Aotearoa, Australia, and beyond, he shaped generations of leaders and helped the Church think more deeply, more honestly, and more faithfully.

He was also deeply committed to the care of creation. His passion for climate justice, especially for the peoples of the Pacific, called the Church to respond not with distance but with urgency, responsibility, and hope.

And so, this loss is felt deeply.

We hold in prayer his wife, Monica; his daughter, Diya Lakai; and their family, as well as all who mourn him most closely.

We hold in prayer our partner Church, the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga; the Tongan community; and the wider Pacific family.

We hold in prayer ministers, colleagues, students, and communities across the Uniting Church, as well as many around the world who have been shaped by his life and work.

There is a grief here that is personal, cultural, and theological.

In our Pacific understanding, when one of our own is called home, they are not lost—they are returned. Returned to God, to the ancestors, and to the great cloud of witnesses who have gone before us.

Yet in Christ, we hold this grief with hope.

The hope that life is not ended but held in God.
The hope that love does not cease.
The hope that what has been entrusted to the Church continues.

In 1 Peter, we are reminded that we are being built together as living stones. Jione’s life is now part of that foundation—his voice, courage, and witness woven into the life of the Church.

And perhaps the question before us now is not only what we have lost,
but what has been entrusted to us because of his life.

As a national Church, we give thanks for his faith, scholarship, and witness, and for the way he helped shape the Church we are still becoming—here in Australia, across the Pacific, and within the global body of Christ.

May we honour him not only in words but also in the way we continue the work he gave his life to—becoming a Church that listens deeply, loves widely, and walks faithfully with all people.

Today, we entrust him into the hands of God—with gratitude, sorrow, and hope in Christ.

Folau ā, sevāniti tōnunga ‘a e ‘Otua, pea ke mālōlō ‘i he nonga mo e fiemālie ‘a e ‘Otua.

‘Ofa lahi atu mo e lotu.

On behalf of the National Assembly of the Uniting Church in Australia,
Rev. Charissa Suli, President