MALAWI: Forest Supervisor Commends Catholic Church In Engaging Youths And Children On Tree Planting
As rain season continues, the Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Blantyre last week engaged the youths and children in tree planting exercise as a way of teaching them love and care for nature.
With over 2000 trees being planted by children in Ntenje, Mwanza and Lunzu parishes, the Deputy Pastoral Secretary Father Peter Kantembe, said the exercise is to help the future leaders to take care of the environment.
“When we talk about deforestation, it is us who are old who, maybe, we didn’t understand much how important nature is to us. As a Church we want to teach these children to take their responsibility in taking care and loving nature,” said Fr Kantembe.
Adding to the sentiments, Archdiocesan Pontifical Missionary Society (PMS) director, Father Mathias Thawani said that the exercise is to help in having a generation that is fulfilling God’s command on human being to have a sense of responsibility over nature.
Similarly, the youths under Blantyre and Limbe deaneries in the Archdiocese dressed Michiru Hill in Blantyre City with over 3000 trees.
The diocesan Chaplain for the Youth, Father Frank Mwinganyama said that the Church wants to teach the youths to understand their role as present and future leaders.
“We want them to learn how they can take good care of nature, not only through tree planting but also protecting them from bush fires and other activities,” said Father Mwinganyama.
Michiru Hill forest supervisor, Ida M’bang’ombe commended the Catholic Church for coming forth to help in being part of solution of bringing back the lost glory of Mother Nature.
The Youths in these two deaneries planted the trees with financial support from Catholic Development Commission (CADECOM) of the Archdiocese of Blantyre, which also aims to provide support towards taking care of the trees through making fire breaks.
Through Pope Francis’s teaching in the encyclical Laudato Si in Latin, Catholics are being encouraged to have the responsibility of taking care of nature.
By Luke Bisani
Archdiocese of Blantyre Communications Department
