It is an honor for me to write a few lines about St. Agnes Parish, Samabula. I do so on behalf of the Columbans and myself. When I arrived in Fiji in 1972, my first appointment was to be the Assistant Priest with Fr. Gerry McNicholas at St. Agnes. The saying goes that one’s first parish as a priest is also one’s first love. This was true for me with St. Agnes Parish.
First and foremost, congratulations to Fr. Augustine Kim MSC, present parish priest, to Sakimi Saverio chairperson of the PPC, heads of Commissions, community leaders, leaders of the various parish organisations and faithful parishioners of St Agnes Parish, Samabula on the 70th Anniversary of the foundation of the parish.
Fr. Rod Hoult founded the parish and built that first small church over the then presbytery which was carved out of soap stone with an adjacent carport to the right side of the church which doubled up as a place for meetings, socializing, sing-a-longs and grog drinking. St. Agnes was the first parish in Suva to be developed after the Sacred Heart Cathedral. It was the first parish in Fiji to be established by the Columbans in 1952-53, and it was the first parish to be handed back to the Archdiocese by the Columbans in 1976.
St. Agnes, Samabula, is also the mother Church of Nausori, Tamavua and later Our Lady of Fatima Nadera. And indeed, opposite the church on Grantham Road two more parishes sprang up in the late 1960s, St. Pius X, Raiwaqa, and Holy Eucharist, Laucala Bay.
The contribution that Columban Fr. Dermot Hurley made in the early development of the parish cannot be ignored. He invited the Home of Compassion Sisters from New Zealand to start and staff St. Agnes Primary School. While building the two new school blocks, classes were conducted in the church for some time. Education was all important and the Home of Compassion Sisters surely played their part in the developing of the parish. Fr. Hurley went on to become chairman of the Housing Authority in Suva and started HART (housing assistance relief trust). Many of the HART villages and houses are in St. Agnes Parish.
Although it has been over 50 years since I was a priest in St. Agnes, I have most vivid memories of my years there, the faces, and names of parishioners from all sectors of the parish, Nabua, Riffle Range, Jittua Estate, Meade Road, Kinoya, Filafou, Manikoso and beyond. It was in St. James Church, Manikoso, that I said my first Fijian Mass. At that time little did I imagine that these areas would become areas of dense population and become part of the greater Suva, known now as the Suva-Nausori corridor. Fr. Gerry McNicholas foresaw that this would happen and talked about it often.
I found the parish an amazing multi-racial, multi-cultural parish. It was lively and thriving. Back then in the early 1970s there was a Parish Constitution and an active Parish Pastoral Council in place.
I have outstanding memories of parish events. I recall a few weeks after I arrived in St. Agnes, that we had Baptisms of fourteen children. At my first Easter Saturday night ceremonies there were seven adults admitted to the church. The Legion of Mary, St. Vincent de Paul Society, Catholic Women’s League and the YCW (Young Christian Workers) were active and vibrant. The army camp in Nabua was a part of our parish responsibility (a standing army then of just 300). The Catholic lads could be called on to do anything in the parish, like painting, minor repairs or clearing falling trees from the nearby Irish crossing across the nearby creek — which they did willingly and delightedly to be of help.
St. Agnes’s School Bazaars were a time of excitement and well-supported by parents and parishioners. How about the Altar Boys soccer tournament that was contested on the grounds St. Agnes School on Sunday afternoons for a few years, much to the dislike to Sr. Walburga, the then- Principal of the school! And my starting, perhaps the first ever Youth Folk Group in the Archdiocese, caused a bit of a stir — guitars and other such instruments were not regarded suitable for church liturgies at the time.
But things were changing in liturgy at that time. With the appointment of Fr. Petero Mataca as the first indigenous Bishop in Fiji in 1974, cultural adaptations were gradually being introduced into the liturgy. Fr. McNicholas and I were very sad leaving St. Agnes, but we were glad to be able to hand over a growing parish back to the Archdiocese. Fr. Peter Hsu became the new parish priest when we left. He went on to develop from St .Agnes the Parish of Our Lady of Fatima in Nadera.
It is said that “from small acorns great oaks grow,” and that was the case with St. Agnes Parish for the past 70 years. Congratulations again to the MSCs and parishioners of St. Agnes on the 70th Anniversary of the Parish. Pope Francis said, “that this is not just an era of change, but a changed era.” We know that the world and the church is changing. A new reality of secularization in Fiji is growing rapidly especially among young people brought about by the technological evolution. But may the Holy Spirit continue to guide you all into the future and may you become a truly Synodical Parish and a parish that will be even more missionary minded. God Bless your forthcoming celebrations.
At this celebration, I met a few of the very old parishioners of that time. I met many ex-students of St. Agnes School during my years there as well as couples whose wedding I officiated and celebrated during the years 1972 – 1975. It was wonderful meeting these people again.
Under the banner and the theme entitled “A Ripple of Faith” the celebration was well prepared by the parishioners and the MSCs priests. Nothing was spared on the day by way of liturgy preparation, traditional ceremonies, the usual feast provided for all present, cultural entertainment and presentation of gifts to many of the invited guests.
I felt grateful and blessed to be present at this celebration on the school grounds of St. Agnes again where, as a young priest I trained and played soccer with the students 50 years ago.
Columban Fr. John McEvoy lives and works in Fiji.