Jesus Is the Way
#1045 Hymns—For Home and ChurchLyrics
The Story Behind “Jesus Is the Way”
A hymn written in 1920 by one of Tonga's first Latter-day Saints, sung for a century in the islands — and now, in English, by the whole Church.
One of the First in Tonga
In 1916, a 27-year-old Tongan named Tēvita Tuliakiono became one of the first people to join the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Nuku'alofa. Each week he, his wife, and a cousin walked three miles to attend services. Four years later, when the Church published its first Tongan hymnbook in 1920, it carried six hymns by Tuliakiono — including 'Folofola mai 'a Sīsū,' the hymn we now sing as 'Jesus Is the Way.'
The Tongan title holds a beauty English can't quite carry. Tongan has three levels of speech, and 'folofola' is the highest — a word for speaking reserved for the reigning monarch and for God. The hymn's very first word announces that the King is speaking.
A Century of Song, Passed by Voice
For decades, Tongan hymnbooks contained no musical notation at all — melodies and harmonies were simply passed down by singing, congregation to congregation. Not until 1973 were the tunes written down, using Tu'ungafasi, a Tongan number-based notation that let Saints without formal training read music.
Through all of it, 'Folofola mai 'a Sīsū' remained a favorite. One Tongan member told the Church News it holds a place in Tongan hearts comparable to 'I Am a Child of God' for English speakers. Its music carries the sound of Tongan choral tradition — in the chorus, the bass part answers the other voices in an echoing call-and-response.
The hymn's home has become one of the Church's most remarkable places: more than half the population of Tonga are members — the highest proportion of any nation on earth.
To the Whole Church
On September 18, 2025, the hymn was released as #1045 in Hymns—For Home and Church, among the first hymns from the Pacific Islands to enter the Church's English hymnbook. A multicultural choir sang it in general conference the following month.
Its message is the parable of the sheepfold from John 10: the Savior is the door, and there is no other way in. As the Church's hymn resource puts it: 'We follow Him not only because He knows the way, but because He is the Way to eternal life.'
Did You Know?
- The Tongan word 'folofola' in the original title is the highest register of speech — reserved for the king and for God.
- Tuliakiono joined the Church in 1916 and had six hymns in the first Tongan hymnbook just four years later.
- For over 50 years the hymn's melody survived with no written music at all — passed voice to voice until 1973, when it was notated in a Tongan number-based system called Tu'ungafasi.
- Tonga has the highest percentage of Latter-day Saints of any nation — more than half its people.
- One Tongan member compared its place in Tongan hearts to 'I Am a Child of God' for English speakers.
Scripture Connections
- John 10:1–11 — The parable of the sheepfold — the Savior as the door — that the hymn sets to music.
- John 14:6 — 'I am the way, the truth, and the life' — the title's plain declaration.
- 2 Nephi 31:20–21 — 'There is none other way' — the Book of Mormon's witness of the same doctrine.
- 1 Nephi 8:10–12 — The path to the tree of life — the way the hymn invites us to walk.
Talk About It
Questions to spark a conversation with your family or Primary class:
- Tēvita Tuliakiono walked three miles to church every week. What effort does your faith ask of you — and what has it given back?
- In Tongan, the hymn's first word signals that the King is speaking. How would you listen differently if you remembered who is speaking in the scriptures?
- This melody survived fifty years without ever being written down. What do you think keeps a song alive that long?
- Jesus said He is the door of the sheepfold. What do you think it means that there's a door — and that He is it?
Teaching Resources
Categories
Attribution
Music by: Tēvita Tuliakiono, 1920 | FOLOFOLA MAI ‘A SĪSŪ
Text by: Tēvita Tuliakiono, 1920; English transl. 2025
Audio files from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints