Embrace education: Pastor

YOUNG people today should embrace education and make use of it as it will make their lives more productive in this fast changing era.
This was the message given by a Lutheran church pastor in Mt Hagen, Western Highlands province, who is one of the few Papua New Guinean missionaries to graduate from a university after receiving no formal education. 
Pr Ku Jack Teine, from Yowai village in the Karamui district of Simbu province, said getting educated was very vital and should never be misused. 
He told The National that speaking from his own experience, living in remote areas should not be an excuse for not getting an education. 
Pr Teine recently graduated from the Divine Word University in Madang with a diploma in educational leadership. 
He also applied at the same university to study for bachelor’s degree on the same course.
Pr Teine, who has been serving the Lutheran church for more than 20 years now, said he aimed to achieve what he always dreamt of with the help of God. 
He said in education, you could attain any level if you put your mind and effort into making it a reallity. 
Pr Teine was born in 1958 and received most of his formal education in Tok Pisin and later trained to become a pastor. 
His first role was being the Gumine High School chaplain in 1988 up until 1995. 
From there, he was sent in 1996 to Kuwomai Lutheran circuit in Simbu, as a pastor there. 
In 1998, he got his breakthrough as the evangelism secretary for ELC in Simbu and worked there for two years. 
Then in 2001 to 2005, he trained to become a teacher at the National Evangelist Training College in Amron, Madang province. 
After graduating there, he was selected to teach in 2006 at the Ogelbeng Seminary Teachers College in Mt Hagen, where he is currently teaching third and final year students. 
While there, he went for further studies at DWU. 
Pr Teine said it was only through prayer and faith in the Lord that he had gone this far. 
He also thanked the ELC human resource office and the Lutheran Highlands Seminary for enabling him to achieve his dream.