From August 19 to 23, 2025, the scholars of the Biblical Research Institute (BRI) gave presentations at a Bible and Research Conference at Fulton Adventist University College, located in the Pacific Island nation of Fiji. Hundreds of students, pastors, and local church elders from across Fiji, with other invitees, attended the conference on the college campus.

At the invitation of conference organizers, all members of the BRI spoke for the event. This was the first time the entire BRI team visited Fiji, including the director, Dr. Elias Brasil de Souza; associate directors Drs. Daniel Bediako, Frank Hasel, Alberto Timm, and Clinton Wahlen; and assistant director Dr. Keldie Paroschi.

The five-day conference featured presentations covering a wide range of topics requested by conference organizers, including “Theology and the Mission of the Church,” “Adventist Identity,” “Biblical Hermeneutics and Its Challenges,” “The Doctrine of the Trinity,” “Dual Allegiance and Syncretism in the Adventist Church,” “The Attraction and Danger of Conspiracy Theories,” “Independent Ministries (Offshoots) and Their Activities,” “Theological Research and the Use of AI,” and more.

Each morning featured a devotional by one of the scholars, and time was allotted for very active question-and-answer sessions following the morning and afternoon presentations. The conference culminated on Sabbath with Dr. Elias Brasil de Souza presenting the morning sermon, “Understanding Adventist Theology,” followed by an extended question-and-answer session with the entire BRI team in the afternoon.

Scripture Foundational

Throughout the conference, Scripture was emphasized as the foundation of all Seventh-day Adventist beliefs. Reflecting on the impact of Fulton’s first Bible and Research Conference, Dr. Limoni Manu O’Uiha, dean of the School of Theology, stated, “We are so privileged to have the BRI here. The presentations are good and relevant to our students, and they have touched on critical areas.” Dr. Elisha Marfo, dean of research and innovation at Fulton, who initiated and planned the invitation of the BRI, said there was a need to address issues connected with the independent ministries (there are twenty-four offshoot groups in Fiji). “We needed to find a way of dealing with that and came up with an agenda that most of the presentations would be about what the independent ministries were teaching. The topics also dealt with questions pastors, students, and members had.”

A Positive Impact

Professor Tabua Tuima, deputy vice chancellor, was pleased with the positive impact and blessing the conference was having on the wider area. “For our pastors in the field—Fiji plus other areas—these meetings have affirmed them in our worldview and interpretation, and that is why they are asking a lot of questions, which have been answered,” he said. During their visit to the campus, the BRI donated several recent BRI books to the school’s library. The BRI books will continue to be a blessing and will impact the research of students and teachers.

Fulton Adventist University College serves students from the South Pacific islands and beyond, and has a total enrollment of 1,594 students, with 665 on campus, and the remainder studying at extension campuses in Fiji, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, and Kiribati.