In this covenant, Somare invoked the ancient prophetic covenant between God and the people of Israel found in Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) Chapter 31.

This describes God’s promises to install His Torah (His Law) in the hearts and minds of the people.

In this way, everyone knows God in a direct and personal way without the need for any intermediary -  teachers, rabbis, pastors, etc.

I encourage you to read Jeremiah 31 and see what these words mean for you.

The possibility of living in such a way is open to every human being, as affirmed by many righteous individuals including Yeshua ben Yosef of Nazareth and my own personal experience with God.

Every human being can access a space within his or her soul which is pure, holy and divine, where The Creator's law and will are revealed and then realised and followed.

This is a purely individual and spiritual thing which goes beyond any religious dogma, scripture or tradition. It's the intimate spiritual relationship one develops with God, something that no other human being has power over.

Somare asked The Creator to make this covenant applicable to the people of Papua New Guinea. So it is not just words on paper or a promise or belief, but a living experience and a reality that the people know and share.

In the first few years after 2007, the event of the signing of the new covenant was celebrated as Covenant Day.

Then it was changed to Repentance Day, the name by which it is widely known today.

This created confusion and distorted the original meaning of 26 August.

Today, people repent to God, however most of them not even aware of the covenant that this nation has with God upon which this day is based.

The new covenant should be remembered by the people and the 26 August should be celebrated as Covenant Day.

Otherwise the day becomes a tradition without substance and meaning.

It should be a day of spiritual celebration and upliftment for having a covenant with God and learning how to uphold it.

Some of the people still live up to this covenant by realising and following this unwritten divine law of peace and benevolence found at the innermost and purest part of your soul.

I can tell you, as a person of Israelite-Jewish descent, that making a covenant with God is something to be taken very seriously.

I and the people to whom I was born know that the people may forget or distort a covenant, however God always remembers and will hold people responsible for their promises, even many generations after.

We have been experiencing and witnessing to that for more than 3,000 years.

May you find the strength and faith, as well as lightness and joy, to stand up to the new covenant, even if it takes some learning, and experience the blessing of having a direct and personal relationship with The Creator and the mercy and light of the God of Israel being shine upon you.

Shalom שלום, Peace!

Sahar Shalom is a lawyer of Jewish origin. His studied law at the University of Papua New Guinea