A consultation of Fiji Indian Methodists

photo taken at the last Consultation of some of the delegates:
from w
It's good to hear that the Consultation is taking place in Suva at Dudley Church this week. The last time this international group met was in Dandenong, Melbourne and was a very fine meeting of old and new friends and we really enjoyed meeting friends there. Very best wishes to the delegates from Canada, New Zealand, Australia and Fiji.

Hindi-speaking Methodists meet in Suva

writer : JAMES BHAGWAN

8/25/2011
One hundred local and international members of a Hindi-speaking Methodist Fellowship will converge at Dudley Church in Suva for three days of worship, sharing and discussion on the topic “The Roots and Fruits of Mission: Revisiting the Legacy of Indian Mission” from tomorrow.

The fellowship meets every two years, providing a forum for members to evaluate and focus on situations in different Hindi-speaking congregations.

The consultations are hosted alternately by the Indian Division in Fiji and member fellowships in Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Founder of Hindi-speaking Fellowship Consultations and former president of the Methodist Church in Fiji, Reverend Dr Daniel Mastapha said each consultation was unique and had its own identity.

“These consultations are the celebrations of our faith, in an atmosphere and an environment of worship service, Bible study and fellowship with one another and around the meal table in a cordial and friendly atmosphere,” he said.

He said the gathering was a consultation and not a conference because there was no executive power.

“Minutes are not kept, only reports. There is no Constitution because delegates are the centre of the consultation and celebration.”

Fourteen years after its last gathering at Dudley Church, named after the woman whose legacy of compassion and boldness in mission marked the beginning of a caring mission to the children of the “Girmit,” her spiritual descendants of this mission will meet and catch up. They will join in fellowship and ask themselves the questions “Where to from here?” and “What is the future mission of the Indian Division as the winds of change blow in Fiji?”

The Consultation will also include a Bhajan Festival and welcome dinner, combined worship services and the dedication of “Pauline Campbell House”, named in honour of the founder of the Fiji Methodist Church’s Deaconess Order and champion of the cause for women to be allowed to be ordained ministers.