MALAWI: Newly Elected WUCWO President Congratulates Malawi’s Catholic Women Organization For Attaining 50 Years
Sam kalimba
Within four months into office as President General of the World Union of Catholic Women Organisation (WUCWO), Mónica Santamarina found herself in one of her maiden global duties. She sent a congratulatory message to the Catholic Women organisation (CWO) of Malawi in a letter that was read in presensence of Church authorities and congregants at the fomer’s golden jubilee in Lilongwe by Mrs. Evaline Malisa Ntenga of Tanzania and WUCWO Vice President for Africa Region.
“As newly elected President General of the World Union of Catholic Women’s Organisations (WUCWO), I want to congratulate you on this special occasion and wish you a joyful 50th anniversary with the illumination of the Holy Spirit. María Lía Zervino, our former President General and I thank you for your kind invitation but unfortunately, and with great regret, we will not able to be in Lilongwe with you to participate in the Holy Mass and activities foreseen. Nevertheless, be sure we will be with you, united in prayer, to thank our Lord for those 50 years of a fruitful life and to ask the Holy Spirit to guide you in the years to come,” as read by Evaline.
Mrs. Malisa Ntenga continued reading the message that called upon the CWO in Malawi to certainly be proud to celebrate that important milestone for their organisation which, since its beginning, had been addressed to the less privileged and the most vulnerable.
“Your determined women have carried out charity work and supportive initiatives in your country’s communities, spreading the word of God among people and always inspired by the Christian mandate of evangelisation. I encourage you to go forward with enthusiasm in your projects and activities in favour of our mission,” the message acknowledged.
Mónica Santamarina said that WUCWO is honoured to have the Catholic Women’s Organisation of Malawi among its members and Lucy Joceylin Vokhiwa as a new Board Member. She thanked them all for their continuous solidarity, support, and involvement in the projects carried out by WUCWO and by the World Women’s Observatory.
Taking advantage of her presence at the function, Mrs. Evaline Malisa Ntenga, Tanzania’s CWO President and WUCWO’s Vice President for Africa Region said Jubilee is a time of thanksgiving to the Lord, repentance, and ecological conversion. She said that it’s time to pray for grace and blessings to be able to move forward with enthusiasm and courage.
“Alongside the Jubilee, today we celebrate the Third World Day of Grandparents and Elderly. What a blessing. Pope Francis reminds us of the joyful meeting between the Blessed Virgin Mary and her Elder relative Elizabeth. Filled with the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth addressed the mother of God with words that today we continue embracing and reflecting, ‘Blessed are you among Women and Blessed is the fruit of thy womb’. As Women of WUCWO, one of our resolutions is to take with renewed conviction the joyful journey of family love – motherhood and fatherhood. Let’s follow the footsteps of our Model and Icon Blessed Virgin Mary to love and look after our elders with Joy,” she said.
She thanked the Episcopal Conference of Malawi for allowing the lay faithful and in particular, the Catholic women to participate fully in the life and mission of the Church. She argued that lay faithful are encouraged to participate in the most solemn celebration of the Sacraments of the Church and especially the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, the source and culmination of the life and mission of the Church if the Church gives them the platform.
She did not miss words when she challenged the CWO in Malawi to do more than what they were known with.
“You will agree with me that many efforts have been made but there is still a lot to be done and that this celebration marks a new beginning to reach out even further and invite all the women of Malawi to join the organization. At this time of synodal process, the women of WUCWO organizations are reaching out for a better living in the church as the family of God. This is a Christian experience of sharing, mutual respect, listening and cooperation. It should be noted that among all, the first one is the very important role of the education of children at all levels because they are the present and the future of the church and society at large. Today women must think together, act together, and pray together as messengers of the Gospel in order to succeed,” she said.
In her joyous remarks, the Jubilee President Mrs. Doreen Zimba thanked the pioneers of the group both dead and living for their visionary actions. She also called upon all the women to engage in another gear in the next jubilee and centenary.
Mrs. Zimba made an appeal to the Church in Malawi to make a deliberate effort to assist their male counterparts, Catholic Men Organization (CMO) to be at par with CWO so that together the two organizations may lead in upbringing of the children of the land.
When asked after the function as to what plans the local CWO has for the future, Mrs. Zimba said that they want Catholic women to deepen their faith much more.
“We want to promote Sacramental life among Catholic women. We also want to help the youth to grow with Catholic values through the teaching of Catholic doctrines. We dream to have an Organization that is financially self-reliant through permanent resource mobilization. We are planning to have infrastructure that will help us have funds for our operations. We want a Catholic women Organization that will be embraced by all women in Malawi regardless of the movements they belong to,” she said.
Dr. Ngeyi Ruth Kanyongolo an associate professor at the University of Malawi was the guest of honour and reminded the women and all gathered that the jubilee was in honour of the Catholic Women in general but particularly it was a celebration in honour of the founders.
“We are because they are. Let me join the previous speakers in applauding the visionary leadership CWO has had since its inception in 1972. They mobilized to create women’s space in the Catholic Church and managed to get support from the Bishops. They established the CWO we see and enjoy today, and here we are as pillars of the Church just as our theme suggests,” she said.
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