2002.11.20

First Day Cover:

4 stamps

Printing: Offset Lithography
Paper: 110 gsm stamp grade paper
Watermark: unwatermarked
Gum: PVA
Stamp size: 38 x 48 mm
Perforation: 13 per 2cm
Values: 17c, 89c, $1, $3
Graphic Designer: George Bennett
Artist: George Bennett
Text:Kim Gravelle & George Bennett
Printers: Cartor Security Printer, France

CHRISTMAS 2002 - GOODWILL TOWARDS ALL MANKIND

In very fine print, each of all the four stamps commemorating the Christmas 2002 stamps has the words “Goodwill towards all mankind”. This is the central theme of this year’s issue in which the artist has portrayed various religious edifices as they are seen in Fiji today.

A Muslim mosque some place between Ba and Yaqara; a Hindu temple in Suva; a tiny Methodist church on Wakaya Island; and a grand Methodist church in Suva.

The message this year is simple. Here in Fiji Christmas is when we all put aside our different backgrounds and experience a time of goodwill toward each other; a time of peace and brotherhood.

In these times we live in a world of conflict and religious differences. Although we in Fiji cannot boast a total oasis of harmony, it can be said that here perhaps more than most places, we enjoy a degree of harmony particularly at Christmas. In Fiji, during this season, Christians, Muslims, Hindus and other religions rise above our differences in life and beliefs to realise that we are brothers regardless of where we worship.

Christmas here is a pretty time of the year. It’s the mark of the start of our warm season. The flambouyant trees with their bright red blossoms are in their full glory, bushes and trees are alive with the brilliant colour of bloom. Choral voices floating from our churches, chants from the temples and the call to prayer from the mosques all seem to mingle in harmony. The sky and the guiding stars seem unusually clear and bright in our tropical sky. It is a time when all of us give thanks, a time when family and friends gather together to feast from the “lovo”, special dishes of curries and “palau” or to just sit together in the evening around the kava bowl under a mango tree. The feeling of brotherhood is everywhere, evident not just in houses of worship but on the streets of towns and in the villages and farming communities.

Some people, both local and visitor alike, take the time to visit a different house of worship than the one they are most familiar with. It is perhaps wisest to seek advice from someone at the selected spot, since Hindu temples and Moslem mosques have different rules of respect and protocol. For example, shoes must be left at the door when visiting a Hindu temple or mosque; a “tupi” or cap must be worn in a mosque. But wherever the location, there is an overriding feeling of welcome, especially at Christmas but most importantly, the one common denominator of this blessed season is the brotherhood and goodwill that is shown toward all. In Fiji, we live quiet lives of which our churches, temples and mosques play a guiding role.

Christmas is also a time for giving and receiving gifts but most importantly, it is a time when we put our differences aside to celebrate peace and brotherhood among all our different races and religions.
For this reason, we have chosen to recognise our people - in harmony, as a brotherhood, and motivated toward reconciliation during this season. Perhaps Fiji can be a beacon to the rest of the world that “goodwill towards all mankind” is an achievable aspiration.

May God bless Fiji and the world this Christmas.

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