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A former diplomat who asked for his name to be withheld for “obvious reasons” says church donations burden the poor and they should be bold enough to “at least admit” that it contributes to hardship within families.
He said the church needs to stop being “ignorant” about the plight of poor people who are “slaving” to keep their “so-called heavenly masters” happy. He is fed up with the church’s denial of pressuring its members to give.
He was “disgusted” about comments from the Secretary General of the Methodist Church, Reverend Vaiao Eteuati, last week, where he defended the church against accusations that it was contributing to the growing incidents of theft in Samoa.
Speaking to the Samoa Observer, Rev Eteuati said; “People are not obligated to give to the church. It is the aiga system and the matai system or matafale where people are asked to give to the church by heads of their families.”
Rev Vaiao said the Methodist church encourages people to give only what they can. He said people feel obligated to give because they see it as a responsibility but this responsibility should be based on what they can afford.
Source:
- Samoa Observer
- Image: Dennis
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News category: Asia Pacific.
