As Malawi joined the rest of the world in celebrating the World Mission Sunday, a celebration that is often commemorated on the fourth Sunday of Easter, National Director for the Pontifical Missionary Societies (PMS) of the Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM), Fr. Vincent Mwakhwawa urged the clergy and all laity movements to help PMS in fulfilling the mission of the Church by providing necessary support for others to hear and respond to God’s call.
ECM celebrated the occasion under the Theme “The Church, Mother of Vocations“. Fr. Mwakhwawa explained that the theme was derived from the understanding that vocations are born within the Church, grow within the Church and of cause, sustained by the Church.
“God calls us to become part of the Church, and after we have reached a certain maturity within it, he bestows on us a specific vocation. Every baptized person needs to respond to this call. However, there is need for prayers and guidance from parents, priests and other good members of the Church,” advised Fr. Mwakhwawa.
He said the Church in Malawi, through the PMS, has the duty to safeguard and promote vocations and it is through this mandate that PMS recently took advantage of the gathering of the National Movement of Catholic Students at Salima Technical College in Salima, to talk and guide the students on vocations hence challenged them to play their role to pray in promoting and supporting various vocations that exist in the Church.
Many Catholic youths have heard about priesthood and religious life as the main vocations in the Church, but less has been talked about on marriage as a vocation. The youths that attended the NMCS conference had a chance to hear more on the calling to Christian marriage and how to respond to it.
The National Celebration in Malawi of Vocation Sunday took place at Ntcheu Catholic Parish in the Diocese of Dedza, where His Lordship Bishop Emmanuel Kanyama presided over the celebration.
By Alinafe Beata Kondwani, ECM Correspondent
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