The Melanesian Brothers and Sisters visit Archbishop Justin
It is good to see my fellow Franciscans at work in UK bringing their Religious Vocation centred on prayer, and simple living to the UK. Well done Br. Clark Berge for playing a role in making this happen. I look forward to hearing more about this when I am in the Solomons next month.
The
Melanesian Brothers and Sisters visit Archbishop Justin
Members
of four Melanesian religious orders visited Archbishop Justin at Lambeth Palace
on Thursday last week. Amid prayer, worship and song, the Brothers and Sisters
pledged their desire to work for "peace and reconciliation in the Anglican
Communion". Scroll down to watch a video of them singing to Archbishop
Justin
Archbishop
Justin welcomed a group of Brothers and Sisters from Melanesia to Lambeth
Palace on Thursday night for an evening of prayer, conversation and Melanesian
song.
The
visit was part of the Melanesian Religious Orders' mission to the UK, in which
they visited five different diocese around the country. The theme of their
mission was ‘Simply Living’ in which they live the question ‘How do we live the
Gospel in relation to God, creation and one another?’
During
the evening with the Archbishop, the Brothers and Sisters shared their
experiences of prayerful living, peace and reconciliation, mission, outreach
and environmental issues.
The
group was composed of members of the Franciscan Brothers, the Sisters of the
Church, the Melanesian Brotherhood and the Sisters of Melanesia.
Of
these, the largest is the Melanesian Brotherhood, whose 400 members take vows
of poverty, chastity and obedience for three to seven years, after which many
return to their villages. The Brotherhood has houses in the Solomon Islands,
Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines.
Reconciliation
On
behalf of the four orders, Franciscan Brother Clark presented the Archbishop
with a cross hand-carved by Novices from the Melanesian Brotherhood.
Brother
Clark said the cross symbolised “a pledge to you of our desire and our
willingness to work for peace and reconciliation in the Anglican Communion and
to help deepen spirituality and prayer life wherever we go”.
The
Melanesian Religious Orders became internationally known after seven of Melanesian
Brothers were martyred while carrying out reconciliation work during the civil
unrest in the Solomon Islands in 2003.
The
Rev Richard Carter, who was chaplain to the Melanesian Brotherhood during that
period, recalled that learning about the Brothers’ deaths was “the saddest day
of all our lives”.
But
through the fact that each of the martyred Brothers came from a different
Melanesian island, the Rev Richard said, they “were showing the nation that we
didn’t have to divide along ethnic or tribal lines, and they became a symbol to
the whole nation that something better was possible.”
Religious
life
The
visiting Brothers and Sisters later told Archbishop Justin about their
religious life in Melanesia, which is centred on prayer, simplicity and serving
their communities. The orders share their resources with their neighbours,
offer them labour, and show care and respect for all they meet.
Many
of the Sisters work with women and children who are the victims of domestic
violence and other abuse. As with the male orders, the two orders of Sisters
are self-supporting.
Archbishop
Justin has expressed a wish to strengthen such religious communities as part of
his ministry.
Thanking
the Brothers and Sisters for coming, he said: “Renewal of the church has never
come without a renewal of prayer and praying communities. So it is
wonderful and a great privilege to have you here this evening.”
Watch the Melanesian Brothers and Sisters singing for
Archbishop Justin at Lambeth Palace: http://youtu.be/Br1TPVSfFnw
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