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Samoan Catholic Chaplaincy
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The Samoan Chaplaincy Youth is the largest Youth group within the Wellington Archdiocese and has been going for over 30 years. Lead by Samoan Chaplains Rev Fr Maleko Api-Tufuga and Sr Pesio Iosefo smsm. The Chaplaincy Youth Organising Committee consists: Catechesis Vaueli Tolova’a FKS and his wife Mrs Veronika Tolovaa; President - Mr Ova Moananu; Vice President - Aukusitino Smith; and office. They are working together organising and planning programmes in instilling and nurturing our Catholic faith and Samoan Culture amongst the youth. The Samoan Chaplaincy Youth Ministry is made up of 12 various youth groups from as far East as Strathmore to as far North as Levin with a minimum of around 40 members per group.

A group of at least 100 Samoan youths, Catechesis and parents, came together under the leadership of Pilgrim & Group leaders – Rev Fr Maleko Api-Tufuga; Sr Pesio Iosefo smsm; Vaueli Tolova’a FKS; Melania Lui; Tava’e Mika, Maryanne Trisha Tusa, Julia Nonumalo Clausen; Ursula Muavae; Pauline Tuia; Sapatu Sola, and choreographer Myikal Asovale. Here, the Youth representatives of WSCY for WYD 08 were formed. These leaders organised and affiliated fundraising events, fellowship nights, practices and programmes for their pilgrims. For the next year and half, these leaders worked hard for their youths to attend World Youth Day 2008.

One of the questions from the preparations of WYD08 was “What will we get out of WYD?” – Our question and vision was “What can we, the Samoan Catholic Youth of Wellington, GIVE to the Youth of the World at WYD 08?” This was to be our mission – to be Christ’s Witnesses and to give.

With an abundance of talent and skill within the Youth, we applied to animate Catechesis, perform for Youth Festival and enthrone the Bible at the Final Mass – we got two out three – Animation and Youth Fest! YEAH! The Fijians beat us to the enthronement (ha). All pilgrims participated in the preparation of the programmes, sewing, teaching songs and dances, prayer and leadership fellowship.


HOME AWAY FROM HOME - SYDNEY OLYMPIC PARK!

This was to be home for the next week – and we were truly blessed! Easy access to public transport, a complex filled with recreation for our pleasure and a great pancake and ice cream stand for midnight indulgences. We got to cheer “All Blacks!” at an Australian League game at the ANZ Stadium. Our accommodation was different from all the groups from NZ, instead of being billeted to families, or going to a school hall or staying in a hostel, we were accommodated with the World in one massive complex!

We celebrated mass with 800 Samoans, conversed about Lord of the Rings with the Americans for blue rosaries, shared our 200 piece KFC with the Chileans, joked with the Canadians, swapped lava lavas and shirts with the Koreans and Italians, danced and circled with the Argentineans and Brazilians and taught a group game “Pukana” to the Australians. We met so many pilgrims from many countries and were able to share our culture and faith with the World.


OCEANIA & YOUTH FESTIVAL

Our first performance was an invitation from the Oceania Committee – a festival of celebrating Pacifica at WYD08. Held at Tulloong Park at Darling Harbour we started off the morning by first waking up Sydney CBD with our drums and chants as we made our way to Darling Harbour, we arrived three hours early so we decided to teach the crowd the game “Pukana’ and “Le Manu’. This drew in more pilgrims and we performed to a crowd that filled the park on a stage of plastic crates. Our Second performance was to open the Youth Festival at Hyde Park, in front of St Mary’s Cathedral in the City. To our surprise we came to a stage of sand, it was of aboriginal significance and was privileged to have had the opportunity to perform the Haka on it. Hyde Park was packed; crowds sprawled onto the footpath and walkways wanting to see our performance. The last and final performance was beyond our expectation – Southern Precinct at Randwick Racecourse where the Pope celebrated mass. We were lead by our Pilgrim leaders, Fr Mareko and Sr Pesio, on top of the Red stage performing to thousands and thousands of pilgrims sharing with them our culture. Performing our Samoan traditional dances, the Haka and ending with the taualuga danced by our three Taupous, Katrina Letiu, Theresa Tolova’a and Salainaola Lisa-Maree Wilson representing the three regions of the Chaplaincy Youth, dancing with such grace and singing with pride. Thank you to all the groups that stayed behind that day just to cheer and support us. After each performance we were met with a frenzy of pilgrims with cameras and TV news crews from ABC, International and NZ news. A cultural performance and experience that will always be treasured for years to come.


ANIMATING CATECHESIS – OUR LADY OF MT CARMEL, WATERLOO

A beautiful church on top of a hill was to be our base for animating catechesis. We were joined by one of the youths from the Dunedin diocese, Wainuiomata St Patrick’s’ Samoan youth, the American Samoan Archdiocese and parishioners of the parish. We had Bishop John Dew to open our Catechesis, followed by Bishop Adrian Doyle of Hobart on Thursday and concluding with Bishop Malcolm McMahon of Nottingham, UK – Spirit filled presentations. Testimonies of living faith shared by Ake Laumemea, Maryann Leota and Ressa Lealofi, accompanied with spiritual dance compositions from the our whole youth with soloist performances from Lional Taito, Nicholas ‘Nicky’ Meli and Michael Faamau. It was three days of reviving our spirituality, to understand more about our faith and encouragement to embrace our Lords Words and Works and take that step forward as Witnesses of Christ. On the last day of animation, as we were waiting for the bus, a stranger walked past, returned and asked for us to pray for her – she looked worn out and heavy burdened – the whole group came in, circled around and laid our hands in prayer over her – the miracle, was she trusted in God through Us to pray for her.

World Youth Day for the Wellington Samoan Chaplaincy Youth was a Spiritual revival, an enhancement of our faith as Witnesses of Christ. We had a “pilgrimage of a lifetime’. We are unified as a group for Christ. We were able to attend with a difference, by participating in animation and performance, we shared our culture and faith with the World, we represented not only Wellington Archdiocese but NZ and Samoa.

On behalf of our Samoan Chaplains, Rev Fr Mareko Api Tufuga and Sr Pesio Iosef smsm and the pilgrims of the Wellington Samoan Chaplaincy Youth – Faafetai, faafetai, faafetai lava.

Melania Lui
Samoan Chaplaincy WYD Co-ordinator

June 10, 2009 | 2:12 AM Comments  0 comments

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