The flow of things, in the popular expression, divine providence in reality, led our steps to the beautiful Savu-Savu of Vanua Levu, Fiji’s second largest island. The schedule called for this trip to take place the following month. But a sudden, great ordeal of one of our Orthodox brothers, Pantelis Baravillala, forced us to leave all urgent work on Viti Levu, the first large island, and to find ourselves in the natural harbour of Savu-Savu on Vanua Levu. We were hosted in his beautiful hotel with great kindness by our Russian Orthodox brother Paul Savenkov. The next day we took the road to the village of Pantelis. Up to a point the car managed to carry us. But from there it was not easy, at least for me, to walk along the rough jungle road. Pantelis and his children and the other jungle group took me in their hands, like my compatriot Diagoras and his children at the Olympia stadium, and with their help we managed, I and my companions Archimandrite Fr. Meletios and Priest Fr. George, to reach the village without any problems.
A beautiful little village, literally in the heart of the jungle, in which the process will begin, starting today, to build, with wood and sheet metal at the beginning, the church, which will be named St. Paul, in honor of the great Apostle of the Gentiles, but also of the Russian brother Paul, who will play a role in the spiritual life of the small parish, which is now being organized in this earthly paradise and which will literally be a children’s church, since most of the forty members, with whom it is beginning, are children. And how is it possible to describe the spontaneity and love of these children, but also of the adults, who for years now have been struggling “until Christ is formed in them”! Dear Christian brothers and sisters, all over Greece and everywhere, it is very difficult, if not impossible, to describe what happens in the soul of a missionary when he meets his spiritual children after a long time, whom he has taught and baptized, or even crowned, like last night when Sophronia, one of our first children, was waiting for us in her poor house with her husband Sotiris and their two cute little children. She did not know what to do to thank us, offering us the best she could prepare, to welcome and treat her spiritual Father and his entourage – those who have inspired them for Him and for His true Church, the Orthodox. As true children of obedience, they immediately agreed to leave their poor house and to carry the wood and the sheets of wood, in order to build another one in the village of Pantelis, next to the Church of St. Paul, which will be built there, first of all by God. It must be said here that Sophronia is the first and the best priestess and, being more educated than the others, she will become a key member of the spiritual life of the new parish.
The first thing that needs to be done is a bulldozer to clear the road, so that the materials needed for the building can be transported. To a certain extent, Mr. Paul will help with his hotel machinery, as he promised us. For the rest, God has the rest. Our tour of Vanua Levu doesn’t end here. After the Sabbath Mass, which we had to do in a courtyard of Mr. Paul’s hotel, so that all our jungle Christians could receive communion, we went to Lampasa, the capital of the island. Another feast there, at the church of Saints Athanasius and Nicholas! Our zealous and beloved parish priest, Fr. Barnabas, of Indian origin, is widening the circle of the guests. At least twenty persons are anxiously waiting to receive the bath of the old age in the beautiful baptistery of their Church. And while the number of believers is growing, the size of the Church is shrinking. It is obvious that something must be done. And that is to build another larger church in the garden of Saints Nicholas and Athanasius. The decision was made under the cool mango tree, where Sr. Maria lovingly offered us a simple lunch. Again, knowing very well that there is no money, we took this great decision to build here the Apostle Barnabas, as well as in Savu-Savu the Apostle Paul. These two great apostles who together began the preaching of the Gospel in Antioch, Cyprus and southern Asia Minor.
These are the “follies” of the Missionaries. Faith on the one hand, and necessity on the other, make them reckless. “We are fools for Christ.” May the name of the Lord be praised for all this. † New Zealand Amphilochius
