Village plan new church for K1mil

 By MOUA OMOA

THE Tatana Araira United church will build a new church for the Araira Ekalesia costing more than K1 million.

The initiative to have two separate churches comes after 45 years of operating as one congregation. 

The Tatana United church was formed after the amalgamation of the Papua Ekalesia and the Methodist church in 1968.

Speaking at a ground-breaking ceremony last Saturday, Tatana Araira United church finance and property chairman Opao Udia said with its growing numbers, the construction of a new church was inevitable.

“Our congregation was always referred to as Tatana United church. It was renamed Tatana Araira United church with the opening of the Hosana No.2 in 1998.

“By then our ekalesia numbers had increased from 500 to 1000 and it was not until 2011 that we perceived that the number was too many to be under one pastoral care.

“So we requested the United church synod to have two pastors to carry out pastoral duties in the village to properly cater for the spiritual needs for the people.

“The request was granted and commencing last year we had two pastors – one carrying out pastoral duties for the Araira section and the other for the main village section in Tatana,” Udia said.

He said the new Araira church was not only a symbol of spiritual growth in the village but also a drive to draw more people to the word of God.

Chairman of the new Araira church project committee Nick Allen said it had been a long anticipated project and encouraged everyone to assist in the construction of the new church.

Meanwhile United church urban region bishop Veburi Dabada encouraged the Tatana Araira Ekalesiat to assist with the fund-raising and construction of the new church.