SDA Mission Holds

Conference in Suva

FIFTY delegates from seven island groups of the South Pacific were present when the Quadrennial Ses sion of the Central Pacific Union Mission of Seventh-day Adventists convened at the Masonic Hall, Suva, February 12-17.

A feature of the conference was the presence of 13 native delegates from New Hebrides, Fiji, Gilbert and Ellice Islands, Tonga, Samoa, and Cook Islands. Owing to transport difficulties, French Oceania was unable to send a native delegation.

Also present were Pastor A. V. Olson, senior vice-president of the General Con ference of SDA, and Pastors N. C. Wilson, W. L. Pascoe, and G. Butler, president, treasurer, and departmental secretary, re spectively, of the Australasian Division.

The session was under the chairmanship of Pastor G. Branster, president of the Central Pacific Union Mission.

Sir Alport Barker, in his capacity as Mayor of Suva, welcomed the conference and paid tribute to the contribution of Seventh-day Adventists to the cause of Christian missions in the Pacific. He recalled his first contact with the Adven tist Mission. He said, “I can still re member 60 years ago when, as a cub re porter, I watched a little vessel sail into Suva Harbour and was asked by my chief to go out and see what the boat was. The vessel turned out to be the Pitcairn —a Seventh-day Adventist Mission ship. It was the first we had ever heard of the Seventh-day Mission.”

In his opening address, Pastor Branster said that since the mission vessel Pitcairn brought the first resident missionaries to the area the work of the Advent Mission had spread from island to island until to day it had representative members in every main group from Pitcairn, in the East, to the New Hebrides, in the west.

From other speakers it was learned that senior church membership now stands at 2,713, while 5,407 adherents meet each week in Sabbath school classes. Seventh day Adventists are conducting 51 schools with an enrolment of 2,257 pupils through out the territory of the Pacific Union Mis sion. The schools range from the primary grades through secondary and district schools to Fulton College, situated at Tail evu, Fiji.

Pastor L. S. Wood, BA, principal of Fulton College, said that the school

opened in i9si with an enrolment ol 314 Fijians, Tongans, Samoans, and Cook Islanders. The secondary section carries work to the level of tke New Zealand School Certificate examination; the Training Department offers courses in theology, teacher-training, business, and building construction. A course in Island Agriculture is envisaged.

One of the native delegates who spoke was Pastor Sam Dick, a convert from the notorious Big Nambus tribe on the West Coast of Malekula, New Hebrides. He

"told how the first convert to Christianity in his village had been shot in the leg because of the tribe’s and though medical aid was given he died because pf the wound, thus giving his life for his new found faith. To-day, as a fitting me morial to him a strong Christian village has been established, complete with teacher, school and church.

PLANS were made at the Conference for an evangelical, educational and medi cal programme for 1951. The operating budget passed for the year amounted to £50,630.

At the conclusion of the conference Mr.

G. R. Miller (Gilbert and Ellice Islands) Mr. R. L. Aveling (Suva) and Manase Niuafe (Tonga) were ordained to the ministry.