MALAWI: Catholics Urged to Do the Will of God through Reading, Meditating and Acting on the Word of God
Right Rev Montfort Stima during last year's Launch of Bible Month, Credit: Malawi Communications office
Stella Zulu
The first Sunday of September is a Bible Sunday and the whole month of September a Bible month for the Catholic Church in Malawi and Bishops have encouraged the faithful to develop culture of reading and meditating on the Word of God in order to get spiritual insights which will help them act according to the will of God for their lives.
This was said on the declaration of the month of September as a Bible Month in the Catholic Church, meant to help Catholics understand the importance of the Bible in their lives and encourage them to make it a habit to read, meditate, and understand the teaching of the Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
In their message, the Bishops through the Chairman for the Pastoral Commission Rt. Rev. Peter Musikuwa said Christians need to constantly and consistently read the Bible to acquire spiritual insights.
The message reads: “God’s Word is a source of nourishment and spiritual growth. Its importance in our daily lives obliges us to know and fully appreciate it. The Bible month, therefore, gives Catholics the opportunity to continue deepening their relationship with God by listening attentively to His word.”
The Bible Month theme is “Obedience is better than Sacrifice” from 1 Samuel 15:22. The Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM) through the Pastoral Commission therefore, encourages all Catholics to own a Bible, read, meditate and act on the Word of God.
This year’s Bible Month reflection falls within a period when the Universal Church is celebrating the Year of Saint. Joseph, one of the Bible figures who obeyed God’s will in their lives. The Bishops, therefore, invite the whole Catholic family to seriously meditate, on the life of this saint.
They explain: “The year of St. Joseph has to be fruitful for all of us, an obedient Father, who protected Mary and Jesus and taught his Son to do the will of God. We have to fully understand that the Bible is the Word of God qualified by St. Gregory as a letter from God, the fountain of all truths. The existence of the Bible is the greatest blessing which humanity ever experienced”.
The Bible Coordinator for Lilongwe Archdiocese Rev Fr. Henry Zulu said the Church has lined up a number of activities to guide Christians in dioceses, parishes and small Christian Communities (SCCs) during the whole month.
He said: “families are encouraged to recite the prayer for family using the Bible; all Christians are encouraged to listen to for Bible programs on Catholic radio stations; parishes and pastoral agents are being asked to organize recollections for the youth during holidays; and to observe Bible enthronement.”
He has encouraged all the faithful to buy a bible and exchange gifts of the Holy bible just to mention a few.
The Church started celebrating the Bible Month after the Holy Father’s declaration made in 2019, a year that marked the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Bible apostolate established to promote the Word of God among Catholics.
