Return to Melanesia
Rev. Preb. Cate Edmonds (Exeter Diocese) and Canon Daphne Jordon (Blackburn Diocese) accompanied by technician Graham Jordon, travelled to Melanesia in July 2018 for three weeks to undertake Christian Distinctiveness Training for the Anglican Church of Melanesia Schools.
Where is Melanesia? A bit of geography
Melanesia is one of the three major cultural areas in the Pacific Ocean and covers the area north-east of Australia. The region includes the four independent countries of Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Fiji, and Papua New Guinea. The Anglican Church of Melanesia (ACOM) is based on the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
Where is Melanesia? A bit of geography
Melanesia is one of the three major cultural areas in the Pacific Ocean and covers the area north-east of Australia. The region includes the four independent countries of Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Fiji, and Papua New Guinea. The Anglican Church of Melanesia (ACOM) is based on the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
Cate writes:
Daphne had visited schools on Vanuatu in 2013 and 2014, introducing the concept of a Christian Distinctiveness and Character and made recommendations to the ACOM Board of Education about further developments. Cate had been on a fact finding mission in 2016 and was concerned about the lack of real understanding of the distinctiveness of Anglican Schools.
Daphne’s recommendations were eventually acted upon and a volunteer from New Zealand was commissioned to develop these recommendations into ACOM Education Authority Standards:
However, at a similar time funding was available from Melanesian Mission UK to continue the work Daphne and team had started in 2014.
Cate and Daphne were therefore commissioned to deliver two Conferences, in Honiara (Guadalcanal Island, Solomon Islands) and Luganville (Santo, Vanuatu) for Principals, Teachers and Chaplains of Anglican Schools and members of the Diocesan Education Team, exploring and developing Christian Distinctiveness and Christian Character of Church Schools.
Each conference followed the same pattern, with a brief catch up in Luganville as a few of those present had been at the initial training in 2013/14. Some progress had been made e.g. all Principals had mobile phones in order to keep in contact, but with changes in personnel progress had been limited.
Daphne had visited schools on Vanuatu in 2013 and 2014, introducing the concept of a Christian Distinctiveness and Character and made recommendations to the ACOM Board of Education about further developments. Cate had been on a fact finding mission in 2016 and was concerned about the lack of real understanding of the distinctiveness of Anglican Schools.
Daphne’s recommendations were eventually acted upon and a volunteer from New Zealand was commissioned to develop these recommendations into ACOM Education Authority Standards:
- Quality Education and Assessment
- Access and Student Services
- Integrate Christina Values and Holistic Development
- Management Systems.
However, at a similar time funding was available from Melanesian Mission UK to continue the work Daphne and team had started in 2014.
Cate and Daphne were therefore commissioned to deliver two Conferences, in Honiara (Guadalcanal Island, Solomon Islands) and Luganville (Santo, Vanuatu) for Principals, Teachers and Chaplains of Anglican Schools and members of the Diocesan Education Team, exploring and developing Christian Distinctiveness and Christian Character of Church Schools.
Each conference followed the same pattern, with a brief catch up in Luganville as a few of those present had been at the initial training in 2013/14. Some progress had been made e.g. all Principals had mobile phones in order to keep in contact, but with changes in personnel progress had been limited.
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The conference day began with themed Worship:
Attendees were asked to be children and young people and to participate in order to experience a range of ways of worshipping. They experienced different music, Bible reading and prayer and were encouraged to interact with the worship rather than observe, which was new to them but they grew in confidence. |
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Following worship the hard work began and with 4 sessions per day over 3 days. There was much to cover. We presented each school with a jigsaw puzzle which was completed over the days of the conference when each element had been introduced.
Where ever possible participants worked in their school groups and drew up new Vision and Mission Statements for their schools as well as developing Action Plans for the future. |
Throughout the training there was an emphasis on a Church School being a place where God was working already but where we needed to work with Him to be the best that we could in all areas of school/ college life. On reflection and debate we felt that the ACOM Standards needed to be reordered and that the first should be about Christian Values and that everything else flows from this.
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We encouraged participants to look at their schools and colleges with new eyes, there was some hesitancy in doing this but gradually participants saw the value of this approach as well as finding it amusing. All our sessions were well received and participants appeared to enjoy the approaches as well as developing their skills particularly in looking at more creative ways of delivering the curriculum and of prayer.
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There was much more we could have developed and although we managed to visit 6 schools in the Solomon’s and 4 in Vanuatu it was felt that further training would be useful based in a school or college.
As well as preparing for and running the conferences we were able to make additional visits. Daphne and Graham visited Tetete ni Kolivuti (TNK) near Honiara (S.I), and St Patrick’s School in Vanuatu, which had been relocated due to volcano ash on Ambae island. They were deeply saddened by the conditions that the school was enduring whilst awaiting a more permanent site. We also met with Melanesian Brothers who were suffering accommodation problems as well, due to their Main House being destroyed in the same way on Ambae.
As well as preparing for and running the conferences we were able to make additional visits. Daphne and Graham visited Tetete ni Kolivuti (TNK) near Honiara (S.I), and St Patrick’s School in Vanuatu, which had been relocated due to volcano ash on Ambae island. They were deeply saddened by the conditions that the school was enduring whilst awaiting a more permanent site. We also met with Melanesian Brothers who were suffering accommodation problems as well, due to their Main House being destroyed in the same way on Ambae.
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Cate visited Ysabel island (S.I) and met with Bishop Ellison and his team and also spent some time at Veranso, west of Honiara, working with the Novices of the Melanesian Sisterhood.
More stories could be told by both; including Daphne and Graham experiencing two earthquakes in Vanuatu and Cate just one. A fulfilling and worthwhile trip which we would like to repeat to continue the work in the future. |
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