“You are the voice of God to His people; you are to look after and abide by His calling into your lives.”

Head of the Catholic Church in Fiji, Archbishop Peter Loy Chong, shared this with Stephen Lui Filipo during his ordination yesterday at the Sacred Heart Cathedral in Suva.

Deacon Filipo is of Samoan descent but was born and bred in New Zealand. He was a principal at a Catholic School in Samoa and a trained counsellor before taking up his calling in Fiji.

“I have served as a Marist Brother for 40 years, and it is absolutely a privilege and honour to be asked by the Archbishop to serve in the Archdiocese of Suva,” Deacon Filipo said.

He will be serving in the development of education in Catholic schools. Deacon Filipo is tasked to look at the curriculum development in religious education and training of teachers in primary and secondary schools around the country.

“When given the calling, we have to accept it with a thanksgiving attitude so we see the blessing and the opportunity and simply put our faith in God knowing it is His will,” he said.

Archbishop Loy Chong shared his happiness with the new inclusion of Deacon Filipo as he comes with skills and experience in the field of education.

“He will certainly be an asset to the church, to the area of formations and to the seminary with the background that he possesses,” the Archbishop said.

“There are three specific ministries that he is called to serve and there are the service to the Word of God, service at the altar and service to charity,” he added.

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