Picture Rolls Make a Comeback in Papua New Guinea

By: Adventist Record staff, and Adventist Review

The picture roll — a popular discipleship tool of the past — is being re-introduced to Papua New Guinea communities with the support of the South Pacific Division church region.

On June 20, 2019, Madang Manus Mission president Garry Laukei met with the principals of Adventist schools in Madang. He demonstrated the picture roll as one of the best tools schools can use to share biblical messages without the need for a projector and a laptop. Among those attending the meeting, four of the principals said they would immediately introduce the picture rolls into their schools: Steven Masu (Akurai Primary School), Margaret Kamana (Asai Primary School), Fred Nasukra (Sama Primary School), and Joe Benjamin (Riwo Primary School).

Benjamin invited Laukei to his school to officially present the picture rolls the following day. The president encouraged both staff and students to use the new resources every Sabbath morning for their branch Sabbath school and during the week for small-group Bible studies. The teachers expressed excitement in being able to use the picture rolls to evangelize the 60 percent of students who are not Adventist and to the wider Riwo community.

“The use of the picture roll was something of the past, and many students today have not sighted one in their schools and do not know what it is,” Laukei said. “It disappeared many years ago in Papua New Guinea. For the young generation [born] after the year 2000, the introduction of the picture roll is a new development.

“I would like to see more schools in Madang and Manus involved in discipleship using the tool our church region has provided,” Laukei added. “Madang Manus Mission is pleased to receive the picture rolls from the Division and would like to thank them for re-introducing the picture rolls to make witnessing easier for those in the rural areas where technology cannot reach them.”

About the Picture Rolls

The new picture rolls carry the logo of Adventist Laymen’s Services and Industries (ASi), a lay-led organization that — in the past couple of years — has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars to develop picture rolls on biblical and health topics. The historically tried-and-true evangelistic tool has been adapted with a new look and contemporary artistic renderings, people behind the initiative said.

The picture roll set includes seven Bible pictures plus one health poster for each of the 26 presentations of the ASi New Beginning series.

“We believe these picture rolls will lead thousands of people to Christ,” said ASi vice-president for evangelism Norm Reitz when introducing the concept back in 2017. “People will come to know the God of heaven and Christ as their Savior thanks to these pictures.”

The original version of this story was posted by the Adventist Record.