| Reverend Tuikilakila Waqairatu new Methodist Church President | |
| Publish date/time: 29/08/2012 [13:11] The Methodist Church of Fiji has elected a new President, Reverend Tuikilakila Waqairatu in the last hour with 56% of the total votes cast. A total of 300 ordained ministers also vied for the top post. Waqairatu was the former general secretary for the Methodist Church of Fiji. More later this afternoon. |
Fiji stories, Labasa, South Pacific culture, family, migration, Australia/Fiji relationship
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Congratulations Tui
A surprise, or perhaps not, Rev Tuikilakila has been elected as the new President of the Methodist Church in Fiji. The conference started this morning after a lapse of four years after being banned from meeting. Politics and church? Where do you draw the line?
Dear Wendy and Peceli,
ReplyDeleteWaqairatu's appointment was not a major surprise, especially following the decision by Ratabacaca and Lasaro to withdraw their names from the list of those eligible for appointment. I believe it is a good decision and Waqairatu will serve the church with dignity, a sense of justice and fearlessness where necessary - a quality that may be needed in the next three years.
He has a great sense of history and the church's traditions and this will be valuable as the church prepares for the jubilee of its independence in 2014.
Yes, it is protocol for the Secretary to become President, but these days you don't know what's going to happen. We got to know Tui well when he was studying in Melbourne.
ReplyDeleteOne thing, Dr Thornley, on a quite different topic - we have been looking up the internet for references to the Macuata chief Ritova and finding a lot of stories in Seeman, Wallis, and some of your writing. Even an excellent photo. Where else should we look?
Greetings Wendy and Peceli - Good to hear from you. Seeman and Wallis are both good books on Fiji in the 1850s and 1860s. You will have seen what I wrote in "Exodus of the ITaukei". I tried to distill the missionary letters in the Mitchell Library for the period 1848-74 but of course not all detail can be included so if you want to get the nitty-gritty on Ritova you have to go back to the original sources.
ReplyDeleteDr Wood has some references to Ritova in his Fiji Missionary History. Margaret Knox also refers to Macuata briefly in her history of Catholicism in Fiji but Ritova vascillated in his dealings with the Catholic priets and a mission station was not established there till 1901.
Maybe we could talk together when I come to Melbourne at the end of September. My wife and I are travelling down and Rev. Iliesa Naivalu is bringing the Melbourne Fijians together on Sunday 30 September, where I will talk about the John Hunt New Testament and I will have copies for sale. I will also have a few copies of my three books on Fiji Methodist History - A Shaking of the Land, Inheritance of Hope and Exodus.
I hope that I can see you at that occasion. Andrew Thornley.
Thank you Dr Thornley. We'll put that in our diary. From Peceli
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