MALAWI: Chikwawa Dioceses lays foundation stone Shrine Construction
By Prince Henderson, ECM Communications Officer
Nsanje Parish of Chikwawa Diocese of the Catholic Church has taken an initiative to construct a Shrine at a place where the first Missionaries planted a medal of the blessed Virgin Mary at a Baobab tree upon their arrival in Malawi from Holland in 1901.
of the Episcopal Conference of Malawi Led the Occasion of
Laying of the Foundation Stone for the Shrine
Parish Priest for Nsanje Parish, Fr. Michael Hussain said the Missionaries who were the Montfort Fathers came all the way from Holland through Indian Ocean connecting to Zambezi River then Shire River on a mission to spread the word of God in Malawi.
“By planting the medal of the blessed Virgin Mary, these missionaries only wanted to symbolize that they were dedicating all their missionary work to Mother Mary, the Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is against this background that Parishioners of Nsanje Parish, would like to construct this place as a historical place,” said Fr. Hussain during a Missionary Sunday celebration, a day aimed at promoting missionary works in the Catholic Church throughout the whole world.
He said this project should not be regarded as a project for Nsanje Parishioners or Catholic faithful alone but should be regarded as a national historical project as it carries the country’s historical facts in terms of Christianity in Malawi.
“We will put up a simple structure for the mean time but our plans are that we a Chapel at the side where people would come to pray, then hostel and we may even think of constructing a school,” he said.
The National Pontifical Missionary Societies of the Episcopal Conference of Malawi, Fr. Vincent Mwakhwawa who laid the foundation stone concurred with Fr. Hussain that indeed the place is a historical one and keeping its history will be ideal.
He said the first missionaries came to Malawi to preach to us the word of God and they are still preaching to us through various means hence time has come for Malawians too to become missionaries to others.
He said it is for this reason that the Catholic Church set aside the month of October as Missionary month where Catholics world-over celebrate World Mission Sunday and as such encouraged to pray Holy Rosary daily.
The Society for the Propagation of the Faith which is under the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS) is the one mandated to promote activities within the month.
“In this month of October, the Catholic Church gives time for all the baptized to reflect on how they are fulfilling their obligation in preaching the Gospel to the whole world through prayers, Christian services and financial assistance. It is also a time for each Christian to thank God for the gift of faith and then pray for others who do not have faith or who have a weak faith to believe in the Gospel of salvation,” said Fr. Mwakhwawa.
According to Fr. Mwakhwawa, the World Mission Sunday collections which are collected in all Catholic communities in the whole world are put together and then shared to all countries in need of support for proclamation of the good news.
He said the support is called missionary subsidy and is used for various missionary developments in the Catholic Church which among others include building church, hospitals, schools, houses for Priests, Brothers and Sisters, buying religious and spiritual materials to be used by those who cannot afford because of their poor economic or social conditions.
“The collections on World Mission Sunday are a sign of faith in action, sharing the faith through monetary gifts so that the good news can be preached to those who have not heard it. This collection is a sacrifice of faith which Christians so that the world can be a better place with Gospel values,” said Fr. Mwakhwawa.
His Lordship Peter Musikuwa who led the Holy Eucharistic Mass in his message from the Holy Father “Missionary Church, Witness of Mercy” cantered on the missionary activities done by the Church as true visible signs of God’s mercy.
He said all that the Church does in taking care of the spiritual and bodily life of people on earth is a witness of Mercy. This witness comes from the joyful encounter with Jesus Christ. Thus, he calls upon all to open up their hearts to Jesus Christ and then to the needs of other people (other communities).
Bishop Musikuwa then said Pope Francis is encouraging Christians not close their hearts to the needs of the Church and the whole human race. Therefore, prayers and contributions on the World Mission Sunday should be approached with an open heart of faith-sharing with others who need salvation.
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