The celebration began with a mass at 7am before the march through town at 9.30am, which was led by the St Thomas High School brass band.

A soli [entertainment and money rinsing event] was held at the primary school grounds and a dinner and dance at the Northern Club in Lautoka with entertainment by popular vocalist, Georgina Ledua and Kulture band.

Lautoka has traditionally been closely associated with the Colonial Sugar refinery and is commonly known as Sugar City.

St Thomas Primary School was founded in 1925.

According to tradition St Thomas the Apostle, the doubting one, travelled to India in AD 52.

He is regarded as the patron saint of India.

The school in Lautoka was initially established as an Archdiocese school for the educational needs of Fijians of Indian descent children, and not European students, who actually joined later.

In Suva, St Thomas Indian School had been established in 1897 for Fijians of Indian descent students.

The Suva school was later known as St Columbus, and is now Marist Brothers Primary School.

St Thomas high school in Lautoka was established in 1975 with forms one, two and three.

There were four teachers and 178 students.

In 2013 its overall administration to the Montfort Brothers of Saint Gabriel.

St Thomas High School is owned by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Fiji.

It is administered by the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish Catholic community through the STHS board of governors and Father Cecil Wiilams who is the school manager.

Source

• fijitimes.com
• fijitimes.com
• fijitimes.com
• Image: fijitiems.com

The comments were part of a message of condolence offered to the Catholic Church in Fiji on the death of he late Archbishop Emeritus Petero Mataca.

The late Archbishop was a great man who gave ordinary people the strength to battle difficulties without prejudice or malice, he said.

"His contributions to Fiji as the head of the Catholic Church over the years provided strength to the ordinary. His soft but reasoned advice will continue to echo in the minds of all those who were in contact with him."

Arya Samaj (Noble Society) is a Hindu reform movement.

The Fiji Branch was was the first religious, cultural and educational Fiji Indian organisation established in Fiji.

From its inception, in 1904, it attracted the young, educated and progressive Hindus.

The modern day Arya Samaj in Fiji still speaks out on issues affecting its members and its activities are visible through the numerous educational

institutions that it manages.

THE Ecumenical Centre for Research, Education and Advocacy (ECREA) has also paid tribute to late Archbishop Emeritus Petero Mataca saying he had a clear voice of authority whose steady and consistent leadership would be sorely missed in a nation that needed it all.

The ECREA message stated that even in his old age, Archbishop Mataca remained a committed member of ECREA's Sustained Dialogue for the Heads of Christian Churches in building and rebuilding relationships in Fiji.

"In his dedication and commitment, we saw the revival of the Fiji Council of Churches," it stated.

Source

• The Fiji Times
• Wikipedia
• The Fiji Times
• Image: Columban.org.au

Born in Fiji, he is of Indian Fijian heritage. He was ordained an Anglican priest and worked in parishes in Fiji before spending 8 years as a high school teacher.

Then he moved to Anglican diocese of Christchurch. He obtained a Bachelor of theology from Auckland University, a Bachelor of Nursing from the Manukau Institute of Technology, and worked as a lab technician before returning to pastoral ministry as the chaplain at the Mission to Seafarers in Auckland.

"I think I bring a cultural mix to the Waikato Hospital chaplaincy team and may be able to help with patients and visitors who speak other languages because as well as English, I speak Fijian Indian, most of the Indian dialects, and can also communicate in Tongan and Samoan as well," says Daniel.

Source

• Pacific Scoop
• Image: AucklandSeafarersCentre.co.nz

About 350 Hindi speaking Catholics gathered at the St Joseph School hall to mark their anniversary celebrations with devotion and socialising.

Dharma Sammelan (religious gathering) secretary Doreen Francis said the event was an annual get-together for Hindi speaking Catholics.

"The Dharma Sammelan gives opportunity to Hindi speaking Catholics around the country to gather at a particular place and discuss issues affecting them," she said.

Source

• The Fiji Times
• Image: Columban Fathers