CAPTION: Rev'd Lydia Cook with two Mother's Union Leaders during her visit to Melanesia
Devon Vicar Experiences Church as ‘Force for Good’ in Melanesia
A Vicar from Devon says the Anglican church in Melanesia has the potential to be a proactive ‘force for good’ in the face of the challenges the islands are facing, including rising sea-levels, pollution, political tensions and unemployment.
The Rev’d Lydia Cook, Team Rector of the Otter Vale Mission Community, spent two weeks in May in the Pacific Solomon Islands.
The trip was organised by the Devon-based charity, the Melanesian Mission UK, which supports the Church of Melanesia through money, prayer and people.
Some of the work of the charity is in helping communities adapt to the effects of climate change. There is a scheme for churches to record sea levels as part of a ‘climate observatory’ initiative.
The blue Sisters chapel took several years to complete.
During her visit, Lydia spent five days with the Melanesian Sisters, a community of woman who are trained for ministry and mission.
She stayed with them at their headquarters in Verana’aso and was able to see their brand new blue chapel, which took several years to complete and is designed to be a place of prayer and worship for the community.
The chapel was dedicated two weeks after Lydia’s trip.
She says her days consisted of early morning prayers at 5am, sitting in the Chapel, first in silence, and then singing and praying together, all of which Lydia describes as moving moments.
She said, “There were times to be serious and times to have a lot of fun, particularly as we shared hymns from across our different cultures.”
“I did find it slightly surreal during a break from teaching, to find myself singing “Father Abraham” with a group of novices and sisters.
“I also added my own contribution to their repertoire so there will now be a whole generation of Melanesian sisters singing “Our God is so Big”!”
Revd Lydia Teaching Novices at Community of the Sisters of Melanesia, Verana’aso
During the trip, Lydia said she saw how Anglican liturgy unites us, even across vast geographical distance and different cultures.
Lydia said, “Hearing the Nunc Dimittis being belted out in wonderful Melanesian harmonies by a school choir of over 100 young people is an experience that will stay with me for a long time.”
Reflecting on her experience, Lydia said, “Overall, I came away with a sense of ‘pressure cooker-ness’.
There are many stresses and strains facing the islands: a rapidly growing population, loss of land and environmental degradation, sea-level rise and a warming climate, tension with neighbouring countries, “westernisation”, under employment and urbanisation.”
She said that in Melanesia, the church is seen as a prominent place which is trusted and highly regarded because of it’s teaching.
“There is enormous potential for the church to be a force for good, for change and to model how communities can adapt and change to meet the challenges and indeed to be proactive rather than reactive,” she said.
To find out more about the work of the Melanesian Mission UK, click here.
