Girard0223

10 November 1842 - Letter from the Christians of Ouvea; Motesito, Apolonio, Ieleneo, Niahetali and Filipo, to the Christians of Lyons.

Sheet. Text arranged in two columns, Wallisian on the left, French on the right; final note across the full width of the page. The Wallisian text, in an unknown hand, is followed by five autograph signatures; the French text is in Bataillon's handwriting; the signatures of Viard and Bataillon are autographs. A faithful copy of the French text is found in the same file. The date of the present document has been taken from the following one (doc. 224); both seem to have been written at the same time.

[1]	Ko te tohi eni ate hahai kilisitiono o Uvea kia koutou kaiga kilisitiono fuape i luku tuno.	Letter from the Christians of Ouvea to all of you, Christian relatives in Lyons
[2]	Ko sia matou tohi ofa atu kia koutou kaiga e matou fakafetai atu i tautou ofa mai fokafetai lahi ki te Afio o Sesu Kilisito pea matou fakafetai atu leva kia koutou ne tupupe siomatou manuia ko koutou i toutou hufia matou nee koutou iloi mua ko tou siotatou Atua ka nee matou nofo matou i te kovi pea kua tupupe tomatou mauli mai te kovi ko koutou na manatu mai kia matou kaiga malaia nee nofo ite fenua nei pea kua matou manuia pea fokafetai lahi atu isi autou tapuaki mo tokoni ma tou pea motautou tuku mai te pelepitelo tapu kua matou manuia pe ko koutou i siautou tapuaki i matou pea kua lahi fau siautou mea fakamalama e tuku mai kia matou kua matou kahoa losalio pe ko koutou pea kua koutou tuku mai foki mote koloa fakamalama kae molemo tatau mo te sino o te pelepitelo kua hau mai a koutou ki toimatou koloa lahi pe ia he kote matou mauliaga aia pea kua ina fakafanau matou maite kovi ki te Atua pea kua talu mai tomatou nofo lelei kite kolo a Sesu Kilisito pea ke koutou hufaki mau aipe matou i te aho katoape hee matou hufaki ia koutou ite aho katoape pea ke tou hufia fakatahi e koutou i Lukutuno mo matou i Uvea nei te faahigatapu ke manuia tonatou faifekau pea ke manuia tonatou tufaki te finegalo ote Atua i te koga malamanei heekei ioi ihi fenua kei nofo i te kovi pea ke tou hufia faki matou kite Atua ke faka vave kia te finegalo ote Atua ke natou ilo ai te Tamai mooni kote tupuaga ia ote to gata mo te mea kehekehe o te malamanei	This is our letter of friendship to you, dear relatives. We thank you for all your kindness to us. May endless thanks first be given to the infinite majesty of Jesus Christ then to you, whence comes to us our happiness. Because it’s to your prayers that we owe it. You were the first to know our God, while we were still deep in wretchedness, and if we were freed from wretchedness, it’s because you remembered your unfortunate brethren, dwelling in these islands. Since then, we have been happy. So thanksgivings should be given to you for praying for us, and you have helped us by sending us holy priests. Our happiness comes from you and your prayers. Your goodness is already too great, without mentioning the rosaries which we all wear around our necks, and how many material gifts have you not made? But no gift is comparable to that of having sent us priests. There you have our great treasure, because they are our life. They have freed us from evil and have begotten us in God, and since then we have happily remained in the fort of Jesus Christ. Keep on praying for us every day because we are praying for you every day as well. Let us pray all together, you in Lyons and we in Ouvea, for the missionaries, so that the works of their ministry may be happy and that they succeed in swaying divine justice towards the peoples of this part of the universe, some of whom are still deep in wretchedness. Let us pray for them to the true God, that He will bring them very soon the knowledge of Himself, so that they at last adore their true Father, the creator of men and of everything in this universe.