Vice President TeRito Peyroux-Semu and Mrs Luseane Fisi’iahi, with the late Rev Dr ‘Alifeleti Mone, at the 99th Annual Conference of the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga, Nuku’alofa, July 2023. — Rev Kuli and Mrs Luseane Fisi’iahi very graciously accompanied the Vice President to Tonga for this conference. They were also close relatives of the late Rev Dr ‘Alifeleti Mone, who was the Father of Conference, and is remembered as a highly accomplished, humble, modern-day navigator for the church. Moe mai rā, e te Rangatira, moe mai, moe mai.   by Image supplied.

Celebrating Connexion and Diversity

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Vice-President’s Report

One of the privileges and absolute pleasures of being Vice-President of our hāhi, is having the opportunity to experience the best of the plethora of diversity that is our church.

For sure, there are many strong commonalities between all of us, and there are many similarities shared in the issues, experiences, or circumstances of some groups or clusters throughout the Connexion; but no two parishes, rohe, synods, or parts of our church are completely identical. Each has a makeup, a background and a journey that is uniquely their own.

Being able to meet, worship, pray, celebrate, and engage with people from various and diverse parts of our church has been inspiring, and is certainly a highlight that I will cherish and appreciate long after my term in this role is finished.

Whether it’s internationally, nationally, ecumenically, at a regional, or a more localised congregational level, there are theological, social, generational, geographic, ethnic, linguistic, economic, and historic facets which shape the cultures in different parts of our church, and who we are as a whole church.

Being immersed in unfamiliar situations and engaging with people from parts of the church that are structured and operate differently, isn’t always easy. It means stepping out of one’s own comfort zone, away from what is familiar, and sometimes risking offending someone along the way. However, those are never good enough reasons to refrain from engaging with the unfamiliar parts of our own living and growing church.

We are blessed to have many of the most gracious, insightful, and culturally-competent people in our midst, who are the best conduits - the “modern-day navigators”- that help guide us through unfamiliar situations, and help develop our own capacities for cultural competence.

By cultural competence, I mean the ability to effectively interact and communicate with people from diverse cultural backgrounds. This encompasses the knowledge, understanding and skills necessary to navigate the customs, beliefs, values, and practices of different cultures.

Being culturally competent also involves recognising and challenging our own biases and assumptions, as well as developing a genuine curiosity and openness towards learning about others.

In doing this, we foster positive relationships, enhance collaboration, and create environments that value and respect diversity, allowing people to see themselves, feel valued, and have opportunities to further develop and grow in various parts or levels of our church.

Basic examples of cultural competency can be through connecting with people, by intently listening to learn how to properly pronounce their name, understand where they may have come from, or how it might be appropriate to ensure that they feel welcome.

At best, cultural competency upholds spaces where people feel safe to consider or explore new ideas and ways of collectively being and thriving, whilst also feeling safe to evaluate or even challenge the relevance of the way we currently do things.