33. The new Bible School, Mendi 1962

John Rees’ Bible School began yesterday and John is thrilled as a kid about it. It is very exciting. Margaret Higman, letter to parents May 1962 The men asked me, ‘Can we go and talk to our people about the things we have learned?’ John Rees, Missionary Review, August 1962 When John and Gwenda ReesContinue reading “33. The new Bible School, Mendi 1962”

32. Trouble in Mendi Mission School 1962

Sometimes I feel we are getting somewhere, sometimes not. They can do excellent work if they want to do it, but sometimes their behaviour is very bad. Margaret Higman, letter to parents It started with complaints. Someone was stealing from the rooms of some of the mission workers at Tende. Sometimes it was money andContinue reading “32. Trouble in Mendi Mission School 1962”

31. Education in Mendi, 1962

I have had the feeling for a long time that we are spending too much time and energy on schoolwork and not enough on spiritual work and pastoral work. John Rees April 1961 The annual report of the Methodist Highlands District told one story about education. Perhaps it was true for education in Tari. InContinue reading “31. Education in Mendi, 1962”

30. The church begins to grow in 1962

The year has seen a remarkable increase in the number of our people coming forward to acknowledge Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. This is due largely to the witness and personal evangelism of the converts themselves… sometimes we are perplexed by what may happen if the number increases very much faster. Highlands DistrictContinue reading “30. The church begins to grow in 1962”

27. First baptisms, 1961

‘This was the day. It was the climax of months of preparation by many people and the fulfillment of years of work by others.’ Joyce Rosser, writing of the first baptisms at the Methodist Church in Tari, 1961. ‘The preaching has led to no hasty decisions of belief in God, but rather to a gradualContinue reading “27. First baptisms, 1961”

23 Hope, disappointment and new hope, 1960

Our missionaries are doing a great job but, if their numbers were doubled, they would only be touching the fringe of this field.  Rev Harry Bartlett, visitor to Highlands on behalf of MOM 1960 The cutting edge of the church’s advance is the witness and work of the island missionaries. Missionary Review March 1958 TheContinue reading “23 Hope, disappointment and new hope, 1960”

Highlands Baptisms

The first baptism service in Mendi was in May 1961. After that there were many baptisms as more and more people became Christians. This photo collections shows groups of people who were baptised from the 1960s onwards. Click on the arrows to move forward and back to see the slides.