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| Rt. Rev. Peter Msikuwa, Bishop of Chikwawa |
Bishop of Chikwawa Rt. Rev. Peter Musikuwa has challenged Catholic children to deepen their faith in prayer and charity by being generous with the little gifts they have in the society.
Bishop Musikuwa was speaking at St. Michael’s Cathedral in Chikwawa to thousands of children drawn from all the parishes in the diocese at a Holy Childhood Mass celebration for the diocese on Saturday (July 24, 2015).
“As a young Church, Malawi has and still receives material gifts from fellow children from others countries. It is time for you now, children of Malawi to learn and take an active role in the life and mission of the Church,” said Bishop Musikuwa during his homily.
He added that as a way of ensuring generosity, children must learn to love their friends by among others; pray for them and share the little resources just like the apostles of Jesus did.
He said that by so doing, God will reward them.“God reward those that share with others the little they have,” he said.
National Director for Pontifical Missionary Societies (PMS) of the Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM), Fr. Vincent Mwakhwawa in his remarks said that the national office has put in place plans to train more children counselors and care-giver as a way of making sure that children grow both bodily and spiritually.
Fr. Mwakhwawa commended Bishop Musikuwa and the diocesan PMS director, Fr. Ignatio Yohane for working tirelessly in making sure that children’s welfare in the diocese is well taken care of.
Meanwhile The Director for Pontifical Missionaries Society at the Episcopal Conference of Malawi, Fr. Vincent Mwakhwawa has described Early Childhood Centres (ECDs) as crucial in ensuring that children grow holistically with both body and spirit.
Fr. Mwakhwawa was speaking during a graduation ceremony of children in the kindergarten and primary classes at St. John the Baptist Convent School in area 47, Lilongwe and is run by sisters of St. John the Baptist congregation.
Fr. Mwakhwawa said children are a gift from God to us hence there is a need to ensure the integral development of them and at the same time they (children) should not be under rated.
“When God gives us children, he expects us that we will take care and love them so that they grow and become what God wants of them. Make sure that your children have good spiritual, moral, intellectual and physical development,” said Fr. Mwakhwawa.
He challenged parents, guardians and teachers to ensure that they treat children as human beings that are made of body and spirit.
“They have to develop as sense of Divine such that they have to learn how to pray and how to fear God and of course how to love and serve in their church,” said Fr. Mwakhwawa adding that “children need to develop moral and human characters; love, respect, care of creation, sympathy, generosity and other general human character”.
By Prince Henderson, ECM Communications Officer