{"id":22956,"date":"2025-08-22T16:16:54","date_gmt":"2025-08-22T16:16:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/?p=22956"},"modified":"2025-08-22T16:16:54","modified_gmt":"2025-08-22T16:16:54","slug":"tanzania-tanzania-catholic-national-youth-congress-attracts-over-4200-participants-in-mbeya","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/2025\/08\/22\/tanzania-tanzania-catholic-national-youth-congress-attracts-over-4200-participants-in-mbeya\/","title":{"rendered":"TANZANIA: Tanzania Catholic National Youth Congress Attracts Over 4,200 Participants in Mbeya\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sarah Pelaji, Tanzania\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

The 6th National Congress of Catholic Young Workers, popularly known by the name\u2019s Swahili acronym VIWAWA, organized by the Youth National Office of the Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC), is taking place at the Catholic University of Mbeya (CUoM). It is hosted by the Catholic Archdiocese of Mbeya and has brought together over 4,200 young people from 37 Catholic dioceses across the country.<\/p>\n

During the opening Mass, Archbishop Gervas Nyaisonga the Metropolitan of the Archdiocese of Mbeya urged the youth to reject all forms of violence and immorality. He condemned murder, abduction, torture, and other social injustices. The Archbishop emphasized that these crimes are often committed by young people who are influenced or directed by others. He warned against blindly following orders and reminded the youth of their duty to uphold moral integrity, no matter the external pressures.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo not be part of murder or abductions. No one has the right to take another person\u2019s life,\u201d Archbishop Nyaisonga said. \u201cIt is disheartening to see innocent people being killed. Most of these acts are not committed by the elderly, but by the youth. Even if you are told to do so, you are personally responsible for the crime. That is blind obedience, and it is not wise.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Call to Reject Corruption Ahead of the 2025 General Election\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

With Tanzania\u2019s General Election set for October 29, 2025, Archbishop Nyaisonga cautioned the youth against engaging in bribery, fraud, theft, and discrimination. He stressed the important role young people have in creating a fair society and warned against becoming tools for political corruption.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a year filled with important events, especially the elections. Corruption will try to find its way. Do not be messengers of bribery or engage in voter manipulation,\u201d he stressed. \u201cAvoid laziness in both work and thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Value of Life and Moral Responsibility\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

Archbishop Nyaisonga challenged the youth to live with spiritual awareness and to be wise in making moral choices in their daily lives. He encouraged them to uphold the dignity of life and to be mindful of their own conscience and that of others.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlways ask yourself where you are, what you are doing, and who you are with. These are signs that you are walking the path of wisdom,\u201d he said. \u201cEducate and shape your own conscience, but don\u2019t stop there; help others shape theirs too. It takes courage to tell someone that what they are doing is wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

Condemns Drug Abuse, Prostitution, and Moral Decay\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

Addressing rising concerns about youth involvement in drug trafficking, prostitution, and other immoral acts, Archbishop Nyaisonga urged the youth to avoid such behavior and not support moral decline in society.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must not entertain or promote acts of homosexuality, lesbianism, or any form of immorality that contradicts God\u2019s plan for humanity,\u201d he stated. \u201cIt breaks a parent\u2019s heart to discover their child is involved in such things. What was once a gift from God now becomes a source of sorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

He pointed out that \u2018Bodaboda\u2019 (motorbike taxi) operators often violate road safety rules due to negligence, leading to unnecessary accidents and deaths, frequently affecting the youth.<\/p>\n

Wisdom, Prayer, and Purposeful Living\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

Archbishop Nyaisonga urged the youth to seek wisdom through prayer, reflection, and following God\u2019s commandments. He used the biblical example of King Solomon to remind them that those who seek wisdom gain far more.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t pray for pointless things. Solomon prayed for wisdom and received everything else. Let us strive to hear and follow God’s word, which has the power to save,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He concluded by calling on the youth to be intellectually and spiritually active, using their talents to educate others and spread awareness about God\u2019s love and expectations for His people.<\/p>\n

\u201cIgnorance causes many evils. Some young people sin simply because they haven\u2019t had the chance to learn or understand God\u2019s will,\u201d he said. \u201cWe must rely not on worldly wisdom but on divine wisdom, the power that saves.\u201d<\/p>\n

About the VIWAWA National Congress\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

The VIWAWA National Congress is an annual event that gathers young Catholic workers from all dioceses across Tanzania for spiritual growth, education, and community building. This year’s congress, held in the Archdiocese of Mbeya, will run until its conclusion on August 23, 2025. The event includes liturgical celebrations, workshops, talks, and cultural exchanges focused on empowering youth to become morally grounded and socially responsible citizens.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sarah Pelaji, Tanzania\u00a0 The 6th National Congress of Catholic Young Workers, popularly known by the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":22957,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22956","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-amecea-news","category-tanzania"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22956","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22956"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22956\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22958,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22956\/revisions\/22958"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22957"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22956"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22956"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/communications.amecea.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22956"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}