Church Talk
US trip something to really celebrate
Friday 17 July 2015 | Published in Church Talk
A contingent of 36 Apostolic Church members will travel to the United States this weekend to attend their 25th South Pacific District Council.
Service celebrates 50th anniversary programme
Friday 17 July 2015 | Published in Church Talk
Akairo o te basileia akameitakiia’
Shining a light on leadership
Friday 10 July 2015 | Published in Church Talk
Kare e rauka I te au Arataki I te akakite I te Mataara, mari ua e kua kite ratou I te Mataara’ “Thy Word is a lamp under my feet and a light unto my path…E lamepa Taau Tuatua I toku nei vaevae, e turama no toku nei arataa” – Psalm/Salamo 119: 105
Questions demand answers
Friday 5 June 2015 | Published in Church Talk
Matthew 16:25, 26. “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
Mothers deserve highest tribute
Friday 8 May 2015 | Published in Church Talk
As we celebrate Mothers Day this weekend I felt to share some thoughts on our mothers.
Cyclone Pam's impact food for thought
Friday 20 March 2015 | Published in Church Talk
Just last week, the Religious Advisory Council set the date for our thanksgiving service for the end of the cyclone season.
Political correctness has no place in church
Friday 13 March 2015 | Published in Church Talk
We are living in a ‘politically correct’ world today.
Creating intimacy with Jesus
Friday 6 March 2015 | Published in Church Talk
‘Pirianga mou tikai kia Iesu’ “Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known Me, Philip? Ko Toku nei nooanga roa kio kotou nei e, e kare akerai koe i kite iaku e Philipa?” – John 14: 9. These words were not spoken as a rebuke, nor even with surprise. Jesus was leading Philip on to a whole new level and dimension of experience in order for him to see and recognise who He really and truly is. After several years he had spent with his disciples, interacted with them almost anywhere and everywhere, kept no secret from them and done great and wonderful things beyond the natural and ordinary things in life. Yet, they failed to see and acknowledge who he really was. We can live a long and lasting relationship, be in marriage, at home with our children and family, at work with our bosses and employees yet still fail to fully know and understand who they really are. Jesus challenged his disciples in Matthew 16:15 when he said, ‘But whom say ye that I the Son of Man am’? It was Simon Peter who answered and said, ‘Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God’. But in John 14:8, it was Philip who posed another question when he said unto him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth (satisfy) us’. Hence, Jesus’ reply at verses 9 - 11, ‘Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me?’. Jesus continued and said, ‘he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father. Believest thou not that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works sake. Verse 14: If ye ask any thing in my name, I will do it’. Philip raised the question to clear every path of misunderstanding and to help us look no further for clarification as to who God the Father truly is, but the one Lord Jesus Christ himself. The Apostle John, Gospel writer and all the Epistles of John including the Book of Revelation, sums it all up in John 10:30: ‘I and my Father are one’. Not two or three, but wholly and holistically one. This takes us back to the first and greatest of all commandments, as found in Deuteronomy 6:4, ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord: and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might’. Jesus himself concluded and added in Mark 12: 30, ‘...and with all thy mind’. He is the One with whom we should get intimate, the Lord Jesus Christ himself. Not our wives, nor our husbands, not our fathers nor mothers, not our children nor family, not our bosses nor employees at work. Not anybody or anything alive on earth, but the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the secret of all intimacies in life. To fail our intimacy with Jesus Christ is to fail all other relationships and intimacies with anybody else. Marriage is only possible when Jesus becomes the glue that bonds the relationship. The same thing applies to all other human relationships there are in this earthly life. Being intimate with somebody means knowing that person in a very familiar and personal way. It involves knowing their likes and dislikes, their attitudes, behaviour, conduct, habits, the pros and cons, ups and downs and twists and turns about them in order to really be intimate with them. Husbands and wives can never get to really love each other until they get to fully understand, respect and accept each other as they really are (1st John 4: 7 – 12). God (Jesus) is love. We love each other because he first loved us (1st John 4: 7 – 12, 18). Loving him with all our hearts, our soul, our mind and strength enables us to love anybody there is, in all aspects of life. Many marriages fail. Businesses, governments, families and all kinds of human relationships also fail, simply because we fail our relationship and intimacy with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who created and made in his image and after his likeness. Paul in Acts 17: 28 declares that life is in Jesus Christ alone, ‘For in him we live, and move, and have our being...’ In Colossians 1: 18, our allegiance must be to him alone, ‘...that in all things he might have the pre-eminence’. Topmost priority, first placing of anything in our lives must be to him. All responsibilities and accountability should be accorded to him. When our intimacy is right with him, then our sincerity, honesty, dignity and integrity in our family, marriage, job and whatever commitment in life will all fall into their right place – in earth as well as in the heaven. Jesus calls his disciples and us the believers and followers of all times, generations and agse not as servants but friends. ‘Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you’. Fix our relationship and intimacy with our Creator God Jesus Christ and he will fix all of ours. A true friend watches and doesn’t stab a friend in the back with gossip, accusations, anger, jealousy, bitterness and unforgiveness. Judas Iscariot was not a good and true friend. He had some hidden agendas and ulterior motives against Jesus Christ and suffered as a consequence of his own sin. Try not to be a Judas Iscariot in whatever relationships you have. Instead, be a true friend of the Lord Jesus Christ, willing always to serve and die for him. As Christ was raised from the dead, we shall also be raised from death to eternal life. The whole discipline of life is to enable us to enter into this closest relationship and intimacy with the Lord Jesus Christ. The greatest love that anyone can show and demonstrate is this: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you” (John 15: 13 & 14). Love and befriend Jesus and he will maximize, re-align, renew and refresh all our relationships - not in man’s way but in God’s. Jesus will save and bless all our relationship with Him. Kia Manuia rava i teia openga epetoma..Te Atua te Aroa! Bishop Tutai Pere
Thinking clearly about relationships
Friday 27 February 2015 | Published in Church Talk
What about the times when you just don’t feel anything but apathy about your relationship? What when a husband no longer loves a wife or a wife no longer loves a husband? What do you do then?
Christ's return topic of much speculation
Friday 20 February 2015 | Published in Church Talk
The Bible is full of promises concerning the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. These promises have long been a topic of debate and much speculation.
Spiritual strength through service
Friday 13 February 2015 | Published in Church Talk
Honey is one of nature’s most beneficial foods. In fact, nutritionists tell us it is one of the foods that includes all the substances: enzymes, vitamins, minerals, and water, necessary to sustain life.
Integrity and why it matters
Friday 6 February 2015 | Published in Church Talk
Recently I had to give some spiritual input to the teachers of Nukutere College and St Joseph’s.
Two new Cardinals for Pacific
Friday 6 February 2015 | Published in Church Talk
In January, Pope Francis named new cardinals in order to keep the number of current Cardinals at 120. The pleasant surprise was that two of the new cardinals come from Oceania.
Recognising the one true faith
Friday 30 January 2015 | Published in Church Talk
Most people do not take kindly to the claims of Christians that there is only one true faith.
Church Talk 'Without Jesus Christ all is permissible'
Friday 23 January 2015 | Published in Church Talk
Naringa Kare Iesu Mesia Rave Akaope tatou i to tatou anoano’
How to deal with relationships
Friday 16 January 2015 | Published in Church Talk
Relationships are an area of life where we all struggle with the greatest highs and the greatest lows.
Interesting year starts and ends on a high note
Friday 9 January 2015 | Published in Church Talk
‘Our isolation in the middle of the Pacific Ocean no longer protects our unique identity’.
Remember the spirit of giving this year
Monday 5 January 2015 | Published in Church Talk
As we celebrate this festive season, our thoughts turn to that sacred event long ago when the Prince of Peace and the Light of the World was born,
Peace on Earth to those of goodwill
Saturday 27 December 2014 | Published in Church Talk
If you look into the Scriptures, you will find that angels encircled the entire life of Jesus. From the angel’s invitation asking Mary to welcome Jesus into her womb (Luke 1: 26) to the blessed moment of an angel announcing his being raised from the dead (Luke 24:4). In between there was the angel that appeared to Joseph in his dreams telling him not to divorce Mary. (Matthew 1: 20). Then there were the angels at his birth (Luke 2:8), calling forth wonder, awe, and gratitude. The angel that appeared to Joseph informing him that Herod would kill Jesus if he found him and that he should take his family and flee to Egypt (Matthew 2: 13). I want to focus on the song of the angels who appeared to the shepherds in Bethlehem on the night when Jesus was born. It was the custom that when a child was born, the local musicians would gather at the house to greet the child with simple music. As Jesus was born in a stable outside of Bethlehem, this ceremony would not have been carried out. So the music came from angels. Scripture even gives us the words of the song they sang. “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favours. (Luke 2: 14) It is a song which unites heaven and earth, giving praise and glory to heaven, and the promise of peace to earth and all its people. In choosing a message for Christmas, one message stands out for me over all others and that is Christmas calls us “to give glory to God, for He is good, He is faithful, He is merciful.” I hope we can all come to know the true face of God the Father, who has given us Jesus. And if we do discover this, our response will be to glorify God by spending our lives for love of him and of all our brothers and sisters. Starting on Christmas Eve, and again Christmas Day itself, our churches here in the Cook Islands would have reflected our giving this glory and honour to God by our attendance at church services. Like the Shepherds on hearing the angels’ message, we too need to “Go up to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has told us.” (Luke 2: 15) The special hymns of the night – those solemn Christmas carols, the various decorations according to our traditions, all bring home to us that God has been faithful to his promises. That God is with us as the word Emmanuel implies. Peace to Mankind Equally, powerful in the Christmas message is that God has come to bring “Peace to Mankind”. In the words of scripture, “And peace to men who enjoy his favour”. Luke 2: 14 The lead up to Christmas for me in 2014 has not been particularly peaceful as I watch the news each night on television: The new threat of Isis in Iraq and Syria. A large number of schoolgirls still missing in Nigeria who will not be able to celebrate Christmas with their families. Another group of schoolchildren missing in Mexico. The slaying of 132 school children and ten of their teachers in Pakistan. These events happening in parts of the world relatively remote from the Cook Islands are easy to ignore. But then the siege in central Sydney, where hostages were held by an armed gunman, is not a world away from us. His eventual slaying of two innocent hostages brings the issue into our part of the world where it starts to register. This is the backyard of some Cook Islanders. If it can happen in Sydney it can happen anywhere. Even America with the shooting or taking of lives of African-American citizens by police and the subsequent negative response by the authorities means that what is considered the civilised world has it problems too in maintaining peace. We are used to living in a peaceful, tolerant, secure society, free to go about our daily business as we choose, without fear. Further darkness in the pre-Christmas season was the mother who killed seven of her own children and a niece outside of Cairns in Queensland. And not all this violence is the work of terrorists. The harmful effect of drugs darkens normal life. Perhaps the incident in Otara in Auckland last weekend when someone lost their life as a result of a disagreement over music being played at a party talks loudest of the chaos darkness brings about. Our main street, Te Ara Maire Nui, is beautifully decorated with Christmas lights for Christmas. Outside our Catholic cathedral is a Christmas crib and a well-lit Christmas tree. On the Sunday night before Christmas, our youth entertained us for three hours with carols and acting out the Christmas story. Various ethnic groups making up our community participated, reflecting how Christmas is celebrated in other countries. And I am sure it would have been the same or better in other churches around the country. We did prepare for the arrival of the Light of Christ. The Mixture of Darkness and Light There is a mixture of darkness and light. That is though true to reality, as it often is, true also to the Gospel. In the middle of all the romance of Christmas, the astonishing good news of God made man for us, the angels, shepherds and wise men adoring, the Gospels report that all was not quite as it ought to be. There is suspicion about the pregnancy. The husband considers divorcing his wife. A mother nearing labour is required to travel a great distance and there is no room for them at the inn. The child is delivered in the squalor of a cave for animals. In the temple, the proud parents are warned of trouble ahead and the family must flee as refugees to a strange land. Meanwhile Herod’s henchmen kill the rest of the little children born at the same time as Jesus. So I should not be surprised that the backdrop to the light which dawned for us at Christmas is in fact darkness. The Way, the Truth and the Life come to people who often lose their way, to a civilisation sometimes more comfortable with lies than truth, to what is a culture of death more than a culture of life. The Christ is threatened from the moment of his birth until the violence of the world finally catches up with him on the cross. And our world today is every bit as mixed up as it was at the first Christmas. There is plenty of talk of human rights, the dignity of the person, equal respect and care. We have all the modern day resources and technologies and know how to help people through troubled times. Even here in the Cook Islands I am aware of people falling through the cracks despite the good resources available. We Christians do believe that the Babe of Bethlehem is the Prince of peace, the God who is with us, that God is one of us, God is saving us. So why, if the Prince of Peace has come, do these terrible things keep happening? My colleague the archbishop of Sydney, Archbishop Fisher put it this way after the siege in Sydney. Perhaps the answer is in the first Christmas carol; when the angels sang ‘Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth to those of good will.’ The God who saves still leaves men and women free. We choose whether to be of good will or not. The Christ child proposes peace, again and again. He gives us the wherewithal to be reconciled and live peacefully with our neighbours; but in the end we choose whether to live in his kingdom, by his values. There is something greater than hatred and violence. There is love, that humble self-giving love that comes in the shape of the Christmas Babe, the Prince of Peace. He can soften the hardest of hearts. He can convert the most hardened of sinners. Come Prince of Peace, Come, O Come Emmanuel. Bishop Paul Donoghue. (Catholic Church.)
Selfless missionary paid with his life
Saturday 20 December 2014 | Published in Church Talk
In this week’s church talk column, Rev Iana Aitau shares more about the early Cook Islands missionaries who served in Papua New Guinea.
