Representatives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints met with Hon Laisenia Tuitubou, Minister for Youth and Sports, and other senior officials from the Ministry today to discuss ways to assist the nation’s youth.
In a separate meeting the Church representatives met with Dr Josefa Koroivueta, Permanent Secretary for Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation, and other senior officials from the Ministry.
The Latter-day Saints were led by Elder Adolf Johansson, Area Seventy. Also in attendance were Richard Hunter, Pacific Area director of public affairs for the Church; Sulueti Kama, Fiji director of public affairs; Elder Ron Williams and Sister Kathy Williams, missionaries for the Church; JoAnne Wadsworth, student from Brigham Young University; and Apimeleki Ravouvou Tuitubou, a local Church member.
During the meetings the Church representatives shared with government officials a new booklet called “My Standards,” which is based on the Latter-day Saint booklet for youth called, “For the Strength of Youth.”
The new “My Standards” resource includes brief descriptions of basic standards of decency, but is meant for teenagers of any faith tradition. It does not include Latter-day Saint scripture references or terminology, as does “For the Strength of Youth.”
“The Church was asked in other parts of the world by governments for a generic version of “For the Strength of Youth” that could be used by young people from other churches,” Elder Johansson said.
“So the Church wrote it and we are now offering the electronic file of the resource as a gift to governments and other churches around the world. If it can be helpful and others wish to translate, print and distribute it, well, we would be delighted. We want to support the many good parents in Fiji who are striving to raise their children with a foundation of goodness and decency.”
“We all love our children and youth, and we want them to grow up with a good understanding of who they are, and what they want to stand for in life,” Richard Hunter said.
“Becoming familiar with good values and standards regarding honesty, language, dress and appearance, entertainment and media, and other aspects of life, will help many more young people make better choices, especially in the tough teen-age years,” Hunter said.
Mrs Sulueti Kama said that the Church representatives were honoured to meet with Minister Tuitubou, Permanent Secretary Dr Koroivueta and other senior government officials today.
“We were warmly welcomed and our discussions were very positive. We are very grateful for all they and many others are doing to serve the young people of our nation,” she said.