austraLasia #2925
 
“Put your sword back in its scabbard”: Parish Priest's unwelcome surprise!

TETERE (SI): 3 October 2011 -- The Feast of the Archangels held a surprise for Fr Michael Lap SDB (aka Fr Mikael Haruyama, his Japanese name) as he was returning from the Feast day Mass in a village belonging to the Tetere Parish, Solomon Islands. He was accosted by two drunken men in front of the grotto in the parish compound where he momentarily left his vehicle.
    One of the men jumped into the truck and started to drive it away. Fr Mikael saw the vehicle head off and chased it. After some 20 minutes or so he had managed to catch the vehicle and wrestle it back under his control. There was more to come. The attackers then threw stones, one of which hit him, causing an injury to the arm, and he fainted for a short time. Some women who were nearby carried him to the parish hall, and a Sister from the Good Samaritan Hospital was called to attend to the injury - which was not serious.
    It turns out that the two assailants, members of another Christian Church group (!) were upset about a land issue, claiming that the land upon which the Parish Church stands belongs to them. It is not the first time this issue has been raised and simply reflects the often frequent complications over customary land ownership in Melanesian (and not only Melanesian) culture.  The claimants have been demanding compensation for land where the church and the school are situated.
    Naturally enough a first reaction of some parishioners was to retaliate. On Sunday, the day after the incident, Fr Mikael chose to read a brief Gospel passage to the congregation after Mass:  John 18:11, Jesus' words to Peter: "Put your sword back in its scabbard".