23 June 2008 

New Pacific Bible program a hit
Wahroonga, New South Wales
Melody Tan

Principals and teachers from Seventh-day Adventist schools in the Solomon Islands, the Cook Islands, Fiji and Vanuatu are now equipped to teach their students from a new Pacific Bible program that was introduced late last year.

Training for these educators to use the new textbooks concluded last month (May), with teachers rearing to start on the program as soon as possible.

“It’s the first week of term two and there is already excitement in the schools about the new Bible program,” Ms Lusiana Vuniwa, one of the authors of the program, wrote in an email. “The children don’t want the lessons to end and some teachers have had tears rolling down their cheeks because [the children they taught] all raised their hands to show that they want to give their heart to Jesus.”

Six Adventist educators from the Pacific Islands helped design the program that is based on the popular Uncle Arthur’s Bible stories.

“The new program is dynamic enough to not just lead children to Christ but that they will lead others to Christ as well,” says Ken Weslake, associate director of Adventist Education in the South Pacific. “It’s a totally new way of teaching the Bible and we will have to do several more training events over the next few years.”

^{Ms Lusiana Vuniwa equipping educators on how to use the new Bible program.}

According to Mr Weslake, a letter by a grade seven student in Papua New Guinea “captured the whole essence of the program”.

In the letter, Foi Suke says, “I chose to do one thing that my Bible teacher taught me [on] how to help the poor.” Suke proceeds to do a case study on a girl living in the Eastern Highlands Province.

“I invited her several times to have dinner with my family and shared clothes with her. I also invited her to attend worship on Sabbath and now she regularly comes to church,” writes Suke. “I love [the] service activity that my teacher gave me to do…everyone has to do the work of soul winning.”

Every Adventist primary school in the Papua New Guinea and Trans Pacific regions will receive at least one set of Uncle Arthur’s Bible stories in conjunction with the new Bible program.

The Bible program is also being used in an Adventist school in Taiwan and Thailand, and about to commence in Madagascar once translation into French is completed. Training for educators in Papua New Guinea will commence later this year.