The Last Heathen: Encounters with Ghosts and Ancestors in Melanesia

Lisa Rohlmann is a freelance writer in Shelburne, Ontario.

Charles Montgomery is the great-grandson of the Bishop of Tasmania,
Henry Montgomery, who in the late 19th century set out to bring the word
of God to the pagan people on the islands of the South Pacific. A good
hundred years later, his young and adventurous descendant retraces the
bishop’s footsteps in order to find out how successful the numerous
churches and their eager missionaries have been in transforming the
heathen into god-fearing Christians.

On his incredible journey, Montgomery encounters the works of the
missionaries, the leftovers of the greedy rampage of European and Asian
scum, the “wealth” left behind by the Americans after World War II,
communities of the John Frum society who believe that one day big white
ships will come back laden with riches “frum” America, and the true
martyrs of the tasiu brotherhood. The islanders are a fearful and
suspicious people, clinging to worshipping ancestors, sharks, snakes,
and rocks, while attending church on Sundays. Their lives abound with
kastom stories of the supernatural, mysterious and magical.

The Globe and Mail has named The Last Heathen one of the best 100 books
published in 2004. Had Montgomery not survived a serious bout of
malaria, his readers would have missed out on a real treasure.