Chaplains from Fiji, Tonga, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand and Australia are in Auckland this week attending the Pacific Defence Faith Network.
25 Chaplains are hosted by the NZ Defence Force at Te Taua Moana Marae at Devonport Naval Base.
The tri-service event creates an opportunity for chaplains to participate in conferencing, sharing, prayer and to learn from key-note speakers in the faith community, says NZDF Chaplain Dave Lacey, Principal Chaplain (Operations).
“This is a first. It’s a really significant event for the NZDF and chaplaincy to host an event where Pacific Defence Force chaplains have come together like this.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity to get to know each other better and to look at ways we can support each other and work closer together in the future.
“Having a faith network across the Pacific provides us with a unique opportunity to connect at a level and in a way we haven’t done before.”
Church services will be held by Fiji, Tonga and Papua New Guinea chaplains, culmintaing in a combined church service led by the Anglican Bishop to the NZDF, Bishop Te Kitohi ‘Kito’ Pikaahu, ONZM.
“The aim of the combined church service is to bring together the Pacific community in Auckland, to worship together. Chaplains in the military play a key role and are a “Force for Good”, especially in island nations that experience conflict,” Bishop Pikaahu said.
“We hold moral and ethical authority, especially in countries that experience conflict as chaplains are deployable with units to provide stability and community involvement.
“From village life, town life and church life, chaplains play a vital role in realising identity in the Pacific,” he said.
The NZDF has more than 30 chaplains serving within the Royal New Zealand Navy, New Zealand Army and Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF), who provide spiritual and pastoral care as well as religious and educational services for all NZDF personnel and their whānau.
Members of the public are able to attend the combined church service at Te Mihana Marori – Church of the Holy Sepulchre, 2 Burleigh Street, Grafton, Auckland, on Thursday 13 June, 6pm.
