On the second day of his pastoral visit to the Solomon Islands, Pastor Jan Paulsen, president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church worldwide, said that the church should play a role in convincing and influencing those who are still in possession of arms and stolen properties to return them to the authorities.

“I appeal to all Christians and participants in the conflict, please don’t lift a gun against another human being,” he said.

Speaking at a press conference on February 19, Paulsen asked that arms be handed in. “Do not keep them in your possession. They are a means and a symbol of destruction.” His comments were made in the context of the October 15, 2000, Peace Agreement between warring factions in the Solomon Islands that aims to bring an end to ethnic tension and fighting in the country.  Parties to the agreement are the Malaita Eagle Force (MEF), and the Isatabu Freedom Movement (IFM), together with the Solomon Islands Government, the Malaita Provincial Government and the Guadalcanal Provincial Government.

The Adventist Church president said that “often members of a Christian church are viewed only for their spiritual contribution to the society. However, may I suggest that we, as Christians, are not only creatures of a spiritual environment. We also have an interest in all the issues and all the elements that deal with quality of life. We are actively interested in everything that shapes the way we live. We not only owe it to ourselves but also to making a brighter future for our children.”

In a press statement Paulsen said that “even the tranquility of the peaceful Pacific has not been spared from hostilities, injustices and therefore pain. In many parts of the world, history is full of examples of tribal conflicts, conquests, wars, occupations, and political divisions which often leave many peoples dispossessed of their land and displaced.”

“We can make a list even longer,” he continued, “to include AIDS, issues of law and order, drugs, the breakdown of the family, and global warming. As Christians we must continue to be concerned about the well-being of our planet and the communities in which we live.”

Also on February 19, Paulsen was received by Governor General, the Reverend Sir John Ini Lapli. Referring to the country’s volatile situation, the Governor General said that “now is not the time to stress grievances, but to pull together.” Paulsen commented on the responsibility of the Christian church for the well-being of the society. “Christians should not allow themselves to be involved with acts that undermine the society,” he said. 

In recent weeks there have been signs that tensions are easing in the Solomon Islands, according to the Honorable Manasseh Songavare, the country’s prime minister, who is a member of the Adventist Church. The Adventist Church president was told of the tasks confronting the government in restoring law and order and improving the economic situation of the country. “Your visit was important not only to the Adventist Church, but to all of our people,” Songavare said.

Paulsen commented that this was a “family visit,” saying that he was here to visit with “members of my family, my brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ.”

“I am pleased to find that the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the Solomon Islands is growing and is happily serving humanity,” he said.  “The Christian faith and the influence of the Seventh-day Adventist lifestyle is to be felt in the communities where we all live, work and worship.”

Seventh-day Adventists are among the largest Christian churches on the islands. The 1999 government census says that 95 percent of the country’s population professes Christianity. Among the 35,000 Adventists, some 90 percent are below the age of 30.

“The Adventist Church here is a growing church,” explains Pastor Lawrence Tanabose, secretary of the Transpacific Union region of the Adventist Church, who served as mediator between the warring factions in the country’s recent ethnic and political conflict. “People are attracted to Adventism because of the hope we have to offer to them. It has to do with hope in the second coming of Jesus Christ, but also because they can live longer lives and have a better sense of temporal security.”

Tanabose credits Adventist education as an important factor in providing the country with values that offer a better future. “We teach and train people to think, he says. “We offer a broader concept.” He notes that in the recent conflict, some leaders on both sides were educated in Adventist schools. But this did not necessarily mean that the task of negotiating between the parties was made easier, adds Tanabose, who was one of the Adventist leaders involved in negotiations with militants on both sides of the conflict.

As part of his stay in the Solomon Islands, Paulsen visited several Adventist institutions and offices in Honiara including Betikama School, the administrative offices of the Adventist Church in the Transpacific region, and the Eastern Solomon Islands compound.

The three-day visit to Solomon Islands was the second stop in a two-week pastoral visit of Pastor Paulsen to the South Pacific region. On Wednesday, February 21, he continues to Papua New Guinea.  []

For photos that accompany this report, go to www.adventist.org.