AN OBSERVATION OF FIJIAN SOCIETY:
THE CONFLICT BETWEEN INDIVIDUALITY AND COMMUNALISM
by Apryle Pickering

Chapter 6
Religion in Fijian Society

Chapter 6

The Methodist Church

The Holiness Revival Church

First-Hand Comparison of Methodism and AOG Affiliations

Religion plays a crucial role in Fijian society. It sets boundaries and rules for the actions of the Fijian people and many times dictates the roles people are expected to play in the village. I have witnessed this in my household especially, but all throughout the village as well. Fijians believe strongly in their "God," and habits of worship come first in their lives. It would be considered shameful to openly admit that you were a non-believer and appear as though you were not a chosen follower. Often the attendance of the church services is monitored, which creates overwhelming social pressure and the feeling that it is your duty to attend church. This can create a false sense of worship and one that is criticized by members of other denominations. Most people in the village, including the children, attend a prayer service twice a day during the week and go to church at least once on Sunday (but most go twice). This is true for all religions that I observed, not just Methodism, which is dominant in Vitawa. The four main religious denominations that I found in the village were Methodism, Catholicism, Assemblies of God and The Holiness Revival Church. Methodism is the most prominent in the village, out of the 70+ households over 50 of them follow the Methodist religion. This is true for most other villages as well. Through observing Methodist and Holiness Revival Church services and through interviewing a man who had converted from Methodism to the Holiness Revival Church, I discovered that Methodism is highly associated with traditional Fiji in the way that it operates. As a result, many people who are dissatisfied with Fijian society express their discontent by leaving the Methodist church for other denominations. The Methodist church is perceived by many as not reaching out to individuals. Like Fijian society, the Methodist church is highly ranked so individual members can only participate if they have passed a series of tests and qualified to preach in church or sing in choir. As a result, many members of the congregation who have not qualified to play any particular role, feel that they are not active in the church and that they just go through the motions of worship without actively believing in them. I found that, in contrast, the structure of the Holiness Revival sermons was very egalitarian and anyone could participate regardless of their gender, age, or level of knowledge of the Bible. Interviewing someone who belonged to the church revealed that this egalitarian structure made him feel more actively involved in his faith and more satisfied with his religious experience. This person was also someone who was unhappy about Fijian society in general, and it appeared that he used his new religion to put a distance between him and the village and to create a new more egalitarian community for himself.

The Methodist Church

The Methodist church is located in the main section of the village at the top of the hill and is the only place of worship in the village. When I attended the Methodist church service it was strikingly similar to the Catholic services that I would attend back home. The service began with the beating of the lali (church drum) a half hour before the service was about to begin then again when it was starting. The choir, which consists of about fifty people, would be there beforehand to practice and greet the people with song as they entered the church. Our choir in Vitawa is well known in the Ra area and to listen to them sing was an incredible experience for me. The choir consists of men and women, and the leader is a large effeminate man with a very exuberant voice. He leads all the songs and makes sure that everyone is participating to their fullest ability. It is amazing how much pride they take in their singing and how pleasurable it is to listen to. This was one aspect of the church service that I found very enjoyable. When all the members had arrived and were seated in their designated areas, women to the right, men to the left and children in the middle, then the pastor and village minister would enter and take their places up front. Once the choir is finished the pastor then says a prayer and the church members follow. Next is the reading of a bible verse by the pastor and more songs by the choir. In the church service that I saw there were also two baptisms that took place in the middle of the service. The presentations were both extremely short with only the parents of the children present and no other family members. The reading of an oath was said by the pastor and repeated by the parents then the baptismal ceremony was finished. It is very common in the middle of the Methodist church service to hold rituals or ceremonies such a this without many family members present or much celebration. When the baptismal ceremonies are finished, the pastor announces the collection and everybody in the church contributes to the church fund by placing money in a collection basket that is passed around. When everyone has given their money, there are the announcements of upcoming events given by the minister. A member of the congregation also reads out a list of duties for the week, including who will cook for the person giving the sermon who will beat the lali for the next church service and so on. When the list has been read then the preacher takes the stand for his sermon. He preaches for a long time, evaluating the words of a selected passage from the bible, then leading a prayer to end the service. The choir sings their last songs as everyone is leaving and the people return to their homes in the village only to return for another service a few hours later.

The Methodist church service is very serious in nature and formal in its presentation. There is no laughing or conversing, and the children must behave throughout the duration of the service. There is even an older man who sits in the back, and when he sees any children talking he approaches them with a large stick and taps them, telling them to be quiet. I myself found him very frightening. As I stated before, rank is also emphasized in the structure of the church. Only those who are qualified can participate and those who are not play a lesser role in the church community. Although the structure of Methodism is somewhat rigid and seems to exclude a lot of its members, it is still followed by many. The church service is respected by everyone in the community and the village is even closed off to cars while the service is taking place. The church and everything it stands for is very much the center of the village community.

The most interesting aspect of my research on religion was just how different the other places of worship were to this strict Methodist service. My family was actually a very interesting one to evaluate. They converted from Methodism in 1985 to join the Holiness Revival Church, but when the pastor left Rakiraki they were forced to join another Assemblies of God place of worship. I was able to attend a service that took place in town at the barracks of the Fiji Sugar Corporation which was held by a branch known as the Christian Outreach Center. This service was very different from the Methodist service. The most obvious difference to me was the incorporation of music into the service and the relaxed nature to the members. While choir singing is emphasized in Methodism, evangelical churches sing easier songs which the whole congregation can participate in.

The Holiness Revival Church

The Holiness Revival church service was held in the hall of the Fiji Sugar Corporation. There was a podium located in the front of the hall and five benches set up in front of it. There was a mat placed on the floor and some chairs scattered around. The church audience consisted of the preacher, his wife, their children, the guitarist, his wife, their children, two other women, and two men. There were two teenage boys there in the beginning but they left shortly into the service. The service was in English, as opposed to the Methodist service, and began with the singing of three songs. The people clapped and danced as they sang. After the singing a tray was passed around with little cups of juice and pieces of bread. This was to represent the body and blood of Christ, so we took them to eat and drink. After everyone was finished doing this the preacher requested that we sing one more song titled: Dance in Front of the Lord. During this song everyone seemed to get especially excited and they encouraged me to join along. When the song was finished we were instructed by the preacher give a high five to everyone else there, saying, "God is good." I participated in this activity as well, with the encouragement of my sister. After that the preacher began his sermon. It began in the book of Romans. The theme was that everyone was not born by accident, "God made you for a purpose." He went on to tell us that God knows all about us, all of our actions, faults and good deeds. He told us that people often lead their lives to satisfy their bodies and not God. This is wrong and we need to repent. He went on to say, "There is a point in everybody's life when it will come time for Divine Appointment, and each and every one of you will have to give an account of your life." What we do in our lifetime does not matter, he said, it is with God that we will be for eternity when we die. We need to find out the plan that God has made for us and fulfill it. The preacher told us the story about how before he was a "born again Christian" he laughed at God and would rather be "smoking pot and hanging out with friends" then going to church. But he soon saw the light and "when you follow the example of God, he will bless you. He made a reference to Jeremiah 29:11 to quote, "the best thing any man can do is to serve God." He said that you cannot just come to church, you have to participate and give something to God, when you are called into his kingdom he expects service of you. He then said, "There comes a time when you need to stop sucking your thumb." Whatever talent we have we must use it for God and he will bless you. After every point that the preacher made he would say, "Bless God", "Amen", or "Praise God" expecting a response from the audience. He then went on the make the point that the church community is like a body. We all have our separate functions and we are working together for the Glory of God. This was the end of the sermon and the audience then broke into song.

At this point in the service, everyone who wanted to was asked to come up front and pray with the preacher during the song. Again this is very different from Methodism, where there is a clear differentiation by rank, and the preacher does not interact much with the individuals during the service. Four people stood up and moved up front. They stood in a row and waited for the preacher to come to them. The preacher went from one to another, holding their shoulders and speaking to them so that no one else could hear. When he was finished with the four people he then came to me and asked me if he and his wife could pray for me. He and his wife made a circle around me holding on to my shoulders and began to chant, "Thank you, Jesus" and, "You have a plan for her, lord." When they were finished chanting the preacher told me that they were going to make prophesies about me and they began to tell me of my future. They told me that I was a very strong and courageous person and that I have started my future here. After telling me of my future they then asked me if I was going to follow the word of the Lord and if I was a born again Christian. They told me to repeat this prayer that they were going to say. It was more I like an oath, but I repeated their words. When we were finished they clapped and everyone in the audience was overcome with joy. We returned to our seat and a man came around for the weekly donation. The preacher then gave the announcements, which consisted of the service next week in Nadi and the bus fare donations which marked the end of the service.

The more evangelical Protestant sects like the Holiness Revival Church and the Assemblies of God are much more relaxed in approach than are the Methodists. They encourage the participation of the members in the services; however, the fact that the service is in English may give it a very foreign atmosphere to Fijians. The children are allowed to run free during the service playing around and talking to each other. This would not be tolerated in the Methodist church service. Also the members concentrate on the togetherness of the church community and the free spirited worshipping. They are often yelling and dancing during the preaching as well as shaking hands and hugging each other. The whole service had a very uplifting way of worship and the presentation was extremely energetic. This is the opposite of the Methodist service that I attended. Also the pastor and the other members of the church focus on individual conversion to a much greater extent than the Methodists who seldom emphasize individuals in their services. It seems as though they are struggling to receive new members and this may be in part to their overwhelming manners. A key part of their belief is getting individuals to have an active faith in God; the Methodists tend to focus on this less. The Methodist members of the village were not as forceful in introducing me to their religion and accepted me for who I was, not what I believed.

First-Hand Comparison of Methodism and AOG Affiliations

In a discussion with me, a member of the Holiness Revival Fellowship emphasized some of the more prominent beliefs in his religion and the differences between the AOG affiliation and Methodism. He first discussed the pattern of prayer that he achieves daily and what it achieves for him and his family. During morning prayer, which is usually at 4:00 a.m., he thanks God for the ability to wake up from sleep. He believes that every time a person wakes up from sleeping he is rising from the dead. Also he asks God to lead him through the day without temptation to lose his way from God. This prayer is relatively short in length and is not followed by other members of the household. The evening prayer, however, occurs at about 7:00 p.m. and is attended by all family members who are available. This is when he thanks God for his life that day and all the food he was able to eat. Then he confesses to the Lord all unholy actions that he witnessed, including words, sights and thoughts. Next he prays for the good of others, this includes the other members of the family as well as neighbors and other church members. A special emphasis is placed on those in unfortunate situations and those with little faith. Lastly he prays for the coming together of the church community and his family members. These steps are repeated by all those attending prayer and during the prayers the other family members may show their support by chanting, "Alleluia, Thank you Jesus, or Praise the Lord."

The member then went on to describe his rationale for converting to this religion. In 1985 while he was working in Lautoka he suffered a stroke and was being held in the hospital for an uncertain amount of time. At this time he and his family was following the Methodist religion and requested the presence of a pastor in the hospital to help to heal his sickness. This never occurred, however, and his faith in the Methodist religion was dying. It was not until a pastor from the Holiness Revival Church entered his room in the hospital that he regained his faith in the lord. He claims that the Lord healed his sickness and he then took that as a calling to convert into the community of the Holiness Revival. From then on he "took to God" and stopped smoking, drinking and taking kava. He stated, "In the Bible it says that you are the House of God and you must keep clean." This is why he no longer does anything that would be considered impure for your body. He also spoke of many conflicts that he had with his wife, which included domestic violence, and when he "turned to God" these ceased, and they currently live in great harmony.

He is actually very critical of Methodism and does not believe its followers "practice what they preach." Unlike the members of the AOG churches the Methodists are able to smoke, drink, swear and take kava. They do not see this as defying their religion and participate in these activities daily. He sees this as somewhat hypocritical and does not believe they can call themselves good Christians. It is often stated that the people in the Methodist religion just attend church due to the social pressure and the role it plays in Fijian society. Also he brought up the point of baptizing the children when they are still small. He recognizes that in the Bible Jesus was baptized as a man and believes that this is the correct time to perform such a ceremony, when the person is able to realize what it all means. Another point was made that the people in the Holiness Revival Church stress the ability to change and turn to God later in your life. They can be more forgiving in the eyes of God and are able to work for the good of others. He does not believe this is the case with the Methodist followers and states that time and time again they have turned people away from their homes and are not able to accept the downfalls of others. Tata mentioned the statistics that 85% of people in prison are Methodist (whether this is true is unknown) and stated that "these people think that they will go to heaven, but they are not devoted they just call themselves Christians."

Basically both religions are proud of who they are and both say they "believe in God," but their methods of worship are unattractive to each other. The member of the Holiness Revival Church that I was able to interview enjoys his form of worship and has devoted his life to it. He states that "everything is in the hands of God, when he comes to you... you must do it." He also emphasized the fact that the Bible states that those who follow the word of the Lord are going to be poor and may be ridiculed by others. He believes that this has happened to him in his village as well. Other people look at how he lives with so many restrictions and no real source of income and look down upon him for that. He is seen as somewhat of an outcast for not adhering to the norms of the village and to this day does not openly socializes with other members of the village. The fact that he embraced another form of worship so openly may also be a symbol of his dissatisfaction with the village society and may often alienate him from that society by barring him from doing things like drinking kava, which is central to village social interaction. This method of worship may appeal to those who feel somewhat constrained by Fijian society. He is also dissatisfied with the village life due to recent conflicts with other village members and the fear of being cursed. His rationale is that if you socialize with the people in the village too much then conflict cannot be avoided and curses will be cast. He believes that God will always provide for him, however, and that you must look at Jesus and the way he lived his life for reassurance. People with lots of money can never realize the power of God, and that is why his way of life is ideal for him.

I consider my family to be one of the more religious households in the village. They follow strict rules that were made from the words of the Bible and live by them. They tolerate no defiance and are not afraid to tell others how they are failing in the eyes of the Lord. This may be why they are looked down upon by other members of the village. I have heard many stories told by Tata about his reason for believing in God and all have to do with a "miracle" that he himself either experienced or witnessed. He was involved in four tragic life threatening accidents when he was working, and all four times, by some "miracle of God," he survived. He also claims that he witnessed a man rise from the dead with the help of another church member, and because of these occurrences he can never doubt God's powers. I find these stories to be somewhat amusing because I myself have not witnessed them; however, from living with a Fijian family and attending these services I have a better understanding of the powerful role that it plays in their lives. Religion to most Fijians is more then just a way of life; it is a manner of thinking. They look to God for support and guidance and use religion as a way to fulfill their roles in the community.

Through out this chapter I have discussed the importance of religion in a Fijian community, the structure of the Methodist church versus other denominations such as the Holiness Revival Fellowship, and the conversion and opinions from one man about the two. I have seen the power of religion in the village and the struggle against pressures to conform to Fijian tradition. Often it is when members of the Methodist church become dissatisfied with the conformity and high ranking structure of the community that they choose to follow a different faith. The pressure to conform to the strict Methodist religion is great in Fijian culture. As in the case of my informant, however, many people are choosing to follow a new method of worship that is right for them and not necessarily for the village community.

On to Conclusion...