Talks between Fijian Methodists and the Fijian Government would be "the best Christmas present" for the Church

Methodists in Fiji are hopeful that the relationship between the Church and the Fijian Government will improve before the end of the year.

The Fijian Prime Minister Commodore Voereqe Bainimarama, who is due to fly back to Fiji this week following a visit in Britain, has been reported as saying that he is willing to talk to the Methodist Church in Fiji after relations between the Church and state deteriorated over the summer.

The Assistant General Secretary of the Methodist Church in Fiji, the Revd Tevita Nawadra, welcomed the positive turn in events. “We are indeed very glad,” he told media. “We have been seeking a time to talk and share our difficulties together because the Church believes that the only way forward is for us to talk. If this comes around before the year ends, it will be the best Christmas present for us in the Methodist Church.” The Revd Tevita Nawadra also passed his thanks through the Connexional Team for “all the solidarity letters that have come our way from all parts of the world and the promised prayers Christians around the world have been forwarding the Methodist Church in Fiji”.

Church leaders from the Methodist Church in Britain met with Foreign Office officials following a deterioration of relations between the Fijian Government and the Methodist Church in Fiji in August. Foreign Office officials told Methodist Church leaders that MPs had received letters from individuals asking the British Government to help protect the rights of Fijian Methodists to practise their faith freely. Subsequent talks between the Foreign Office and the Fijian High Commission have resulted in a renewed interest on behalf of the Fijian Prime Minister to accept the Fijian Church’s offer to resume talks.

In 2009 four senior members of the Methodist Church in Fiji and Rotuma were charged with organising and participating in a contravention of the Public Emergency Regulations in 2009. Their trial was due to take place last week after countless adjournments over the past two years, but instead a further unexpected delay was announced and the case is now not due to be heard until 14 to 16 May 2012. The court has adjourned until February 27.

COP departures?

Today I depart South Africa and join the rest of the world as an outsider looking in on the COP17 negotiations.  I wish I could have stayed longer in Durban, but my predetermined, non-changeable agenda means that I leave just as the high-level negotiations start.

I wonder how many other predetermined agendas will also remain unchanged by the end of this week?

Please continue to hold the COP negotiations in your prayers. 

Julia

Steve adds news that, ‘South African Bishop Geoff Davies today compared rich countries' behaviour at the Durban climate talks with apartheid, saying wealthy nations were trying to keep power and wealth for themselves.’

Fritful Fields

El Salvador is a very small nation but it has an excellent communication network, very good major roads and a large international airport. It is the perfect place for gathering over 50 students, all at different levels of accademic competence, from very different backgrounds, to hear lectures on Homiletics, Theology, Church History and so on without power points and other audio visual aids, in english being translated into spanish, sharing a microphone in a school next to the football stadium during a needle derby match. The cost,

£7.50 per student per day to feed and accomodate,

£30 averaged out per person present to travel to the centre.

£4.0. per person per day on administration

These very rough figures betray the reality that over this week in El Salvador a group of very committed christians are learning in an atmosphere of willing expectation.

HOWEVER, none of these people have anything that they are being asked to give up in order to achieve this creative activity in their home country. Their loyalty is to learning, serving better their communities, being better pastors and disciples of Jesus Christ.

Tom Quenet

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COP - It's getting hotter

COP Week two and it’s getting hotter

And that’s official.  On occasion leading climate scientists use COP to launch major new research.  Yesterday a panel of UK Met Office scientists launched 24 country-specific climate impact reports.  They said that this is the first time that detailed climate impacts analysis at the national level has been undertaken.  News coverage of the findings for the UK can be found at http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/dec/05/met-office-uk-climate-risks?intcmp=122.  The predictions are for increased flooding and water shortages that will affect millions more people living in southern Britain.

The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Chris Huhne gave the opening address.  “Winning hearts and minds is about linking the big [climate science] picture to everyday life,” he said.  He continued by saying:  “Mowing the suburban lawn on a Sunday afternoon is under threat”! 

The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change redeemed himself by saying:  “The UK remains a firm advocate of a global legally binding agreement within the UNFCCC.  We want major economies to commit now to a comprehensive global legal framework, and to complete negotiations by 2015 at the latest.”

Was Chris Huhne a secret We have faith protester at the Global Day of Action march on Saturday, I wonder? 

Julia

God?

COP17, what’s God got to do with it?  “Everything” said Anglican Bishop Geoff Davies.  Faith leaders have been very vocal in their call for climate action at COP, but they were outshouted by the We have faith youth at Saturday’s Global Day of Action rally.  Simon Muoki, a young Durbanite, who had accompanied the Trans-African Caravan of Hope (www.christianaid.org.uk/ActNow/climate-justice/caravan-of-hope-2011/index.aspx), said: “I want a future for my children”. 

There are mixed reports on the actual numbers who marched through the Durban streets on Saturday.  The local Sunday Tribune newspaper said there were 5,000 protesters, the local radio station said 8-10,000, and other sources put the figure closer to 20,000.  Whatever the number (it was described as a “biggish”?! march by local environmentalist, Patrick Bond) we, in the faith group, made our presence felt.

At Sunday’s Interfaith Service, held at the Durban University of Technology, Steve Biko campus, we made the following commitment: “We commit ourselves to pray for COP this week”.  Please join us.

Julia

Guard Parrot

Meet "Once" (It means 11 and its the name of the local football team - he has no name, except the one I have just given him, but his character I feel deserves world wide recognition). Though 11’s flight feathers have been trimmed so that he is not able to fly away and though he is the size of a blackbird, 11 is a "guard parrot". Though 11 is not able to fly he and his partner 12 ( I was not able to get such a good shot of her - she would not let me - naming on the same basis but +) move pretty swiftly between the branches of the bushes in the compound of families we visited to bring relief to over the weekend. As soon as we entered the compound of family homes, 11 & 12 started making such a racket that no one in the neighbourhood could help but notice our presence - "aaahhh so cute" was the initial reaction to 11 as I tried to get a good photo of him. His quick lunge at the camera - almost breaking the lens guards, showed me that though yes he was very cute, he had a sharp and quick and powerful beak that was ready to swing into action. In some places I have travelled to there have been geese, here there is 11 and 12, whose loyalty, faithfulness and commitment to their home, reflects the character of the Salvadorans that I have met so far.

COP

Rural women lead the way Rural women were the first to make their cry for climate justice heard at COP17.

  On Friday afternoon at Speakers' Corner, 500 women from across rural southern Africa gathered to share the realities of climate change for their communities.  Loudly, they demanded climate-change action: “We are rural women, we don’t live in cities, we can’t move to cities, we want action now,” they said.  They then set off to march on the Conference.

Part way the protest was halted, thankfully to remind opportunist activists that the rural women were to lead their demonstration; others were to hang back.

 As one of the women’s banners said:

  “There’s no climate justice without gender justice”.

Julia

Women of Central America

A woman prays alone in a chu[[posterous-content:pid___0]]

Travelling with St. Paul

In a shopping mall in Honduras in search of clerical shirts to give to local pastors, I found this shop next to the chemists' where I bought a talcum powder called Amens. The image I invite you to spend a while with and reflect on. There is Jesus, Mary, Christmas, Credit, Cross, Christianity, St.Paul, Society and so much more. Let me know through your response to this post if you see any others.

A few hours later, I found myself "travelling" - An hour's travel by air to El Salvador (The Saviour) became a whole days' journey, part of which was to trust that someone I had never met before would be there waiting for me at a stage in the journey. The new friend, took me on a remarkable journey of frightening tailgating for two hours. At which point I received an email from a friend in the UK who was celebrating a special family event in a place that I had introduced him to. Almost instantly we exchanged this information and photos of where we were in different time zones. After which I called my wife and said I had safely!!!! arrived at my destination.

The next day I woke up to the sound of a cockcrow, read the bible (1 Corinthians 13 & 14), listened live to Radio 4 and thanked God for the JOURNEY thus far.  

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Rural Methodism - Honduras

After two hour drive you come to a form in the road and you don't know which way to go. What do you do? Having used the mobile phone to ask which one to take you soon find yourself amazed at how far into the world Methodism has taken the gospel and what love and committment it takes to build such a good church that is well attended,. Enjoy the pictures of rural Honduran Methodists. Our final act was to save a tortoise that had decided to take a very slow walk accross a very wide road on our way back home. A case of why did the tortoise cross the road?

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COP social movement unmoved?

The vulnerable and marginalized in society will be most affected by climate change, but no one should consider themselves immune to the effects.  At each Conference of the Parties climate-change negotiations an alternative COP venue is established as a location where the people of the world can make their climate-justice voices heard.  This year, the University of KwaZulu Natal (KZN) is the alternative civil-society space, known as The People’s Space.  It is the focal point for all activists and other like-minded people from all over the world or, more accurately, it should be.

The campus was pretty sleepy earlier this week when I visited, except for the odd press person / film crew looking for action.  Unfortunately they found only inaction. 

It is a similar story in the streets surrounding the International Convention Centre where the negotiations are taking place.  For instance, ‘Occupy COP17’ activists are here but they only brought the one tent!  Two years ago in Copenhagen 100,000 people marched through the capital on the Global Day of Action.  This Saturday a similar Global Day of Action is planned for Durban.  Let’s pray that the people of Durban, accompanied by the rest of the world, can shake themselves from apathy, the health of our planet is at stake.  We must not allow the mass spread of a new disease: climate-change fatigue.  You can count on my attendance on Saturday.  Can our planet count on a future?     

Julia