By Pamela Adinda, AMECEA Online News
Rt. Rev. Maurice Muhatia, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Nakuru has applauded the formation programme on Marriage and Family Pastoral Ministry, an initiative of St. John Paul II College (Kenya), for Marriage and Families Studies, which is working in collaboration with the John Paul II Pontifical Institute (Rome) and under the patronage of AMECEA.
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Bishop Muhatia who was presiding over the closing ceremony of the first Formation Certificate Courses on Marriage and Family Pastoral Ministry recommends the programme to all Priests for that more than 70% of the issues priests handle in the parishes have got to do with marriage and family.
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Bishop Muhatia who was presiding over the closing ceremony of the first Formation Certificate Courses on Marriage and Family Pastoral Ministry recommends the programme to all Priests for that more than 70% of the issues priests handle in the parishes have got to do with marriage and family.“I am going to make sure that all priests in my diocese attend the programme because this formation is very critical and is highly needed,” he said.
The program which began on 15th May is part of the ongoing formation and training project addressed to priests, religious, couples and catechists, who in turn will be available for the ecclesial ministry of family pastoral care in Kenya and other AMECEA member countries.
The courses were organized by the Philothea Missionary Society, which is responsible for the Saint John Paul II College in Kenya.
According to Very Rev. Fr. Ferdinand Lugonzo, AMECEA Secretary General who was also present
at the closing ceremony on Friday 2nd June, Family Apostolate is one of the priorities of the AMECEA Bishops.
“Right from the 18th AMECEA Plenary Assembly in Malawi in 2014, looking at the situation in the region, the Bishops made it clear that if we don’t pay attention to family, we stand great risks in the families not just in the region but throughout the whole world. This is because family in the contemporary world is highly threatened by a number of challenges,” Fr. Lugonzo said.
He urged the participants to ensure that whatever they have gathered during the three-weeks intensive course should trickle down effectively. “Through you, let this institute reach out to as many dioceses as possible in AMECEA Region and beyond,” he said and thanked the Philothea Missionary Society for taking the initiative.
Rev. Fr. George Kocholickal, a member of Philothea Missionary Society who was also present at the function said that the future of humanity passes by the way of the family. “We are blessed in the Church to have such a great saint, St. John Paul II who initiated the institute for marriage and family and now we are having that college here in Kenya in a very humble beginning. We support the family apostolate by promoting the importance of nurturing the family because the future of humanity depends on it.”
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