Catholic Women in Malawi have been urged to embrace the spirit of bringing hope to the vulnerable, their families, communities, workplaces and the wider society as a whole.
Speaking at the official opening of the 36th Annual General Conference for Catholic Women Organization at Mary Mount Girls Secondary School in Mzuzu, the Member of Parliament for Mzimba North, Agnes NyaLonje said many ways of sowing hope among others is through preaching and living the Word of God.
"As Catholic Women, we sow hope on many platforms. For instance the home; it is through the many roles we play that sow hope in our families; the Church; through our faith that sow hope in our community; the work place; either as business women or workers in formal and informal economy, we sow hope to our colleagues, our pupils and even our customers,” she said adding that “Likewise in a wider society, be it as politicians and leaders in many other areas, we can sow hope in society at large through our collective actions. Therefore, we can sow hope even in those people whom we have never met and will never meet either."
NyaLonje, who is also a member for Catholic Women Organization (CWO) in Mzuzu diocese said the annual gathering which runs from17th to 21st December gives an opportunity for Catholic Women to celebrate the many roles that Catholic Women play in a society hence strive to play roles that sustain society, roles that bring hope and sow hope in others.
She said, as mothers, their role goes beyond the biological one of giving birth to society but they
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also sow seeds of hope through ensuring continuity of human heritage, continuity of village life, and of community life; hence they are custodians of culture.
"My fellow Catholic Women let us realize that we are key economic producers at household, village and community level. In sickness and in health we tirelessly care for our families in all their extended glory. We prevent and resolve conflicts, we are peace-makers and peace-keepers in our communities’” she said adding that “Not only that, we are active servants of the community, mobilizing collective efforts to address challenges that face our communities like helping those that are less fortunate, raising funds for various initiatives, selflessly giving our time so that someone somewhere may live a better life."
NyaLonje also said that the situation of the Youth, including a girl child, HIV/AIDS, plight of the growing numbers of the very poor and destitute amongst women and growing manifestation of intolerance amongst Malawians are some of the biggest challenges besetting Malawi which the conference ought to address them seriously.
During the opening Mass for the Conference, the Bishop Chairman for the Episcopal Conference of Malawi, His Lordship Joseph Mukasa Zuza urged the Catholic women to embrace the virtue of Love amongst themselves and in the nation at large.
Bishop Zuza said women are very crucial in the socio-economic development of the society and when they love one another and their country, the progress of both the Church and state is achieved.
Delegates from all the dioceses in Malawi are expected to present reports of their activities for the year 2014 and deliberate on cross-cutting issues such as human trafficking, child labour, family in connection with the problem of homosexuality, just to mention but a few.
The next conference, (37th Catholic Women Organization's Conference) that is in 2015, will be held in the diocese of Karonga.
SOURCE: Prince Henderson, ECM Communications Officer