By: Frs. Likhutcha and Damaseke
“It is only when we do things together that we can say we and the Holy Spirit have decided”
Archbishop George Desmond Tambala of Lilongwe Archdiocese in Malawi has unveiled numerous plans which the Archdiocese shall be undertaking in the days to come. The Archbishop made the remarks on Tuesday the 29th March, 2022 during the Presbyterium meeting which took place at St. John’s Secondary School Hall, Msamba Catholic Centre.
The Archbishop informed the Clergy about the new synod of the Archdiocese, opening of the new twelve (12) parishes and venturing into serious income generating activities with the Archdiocese to boast the spirit of a self-reliant Church.
About the Synod, the Archbishop called upon all priests in the Archdiocese to uphold the spirit of collaboration and integration as the Archdiocese goes into a third Synod after Mpingo Ndife Tonse and Tiyende Limodzi Synods.
“We want to take advantage of the Synod that is happening globally so that we can as well isolate some issues that are very relevant for our local Church and then we find best ways to find possible solutions which will give a better direction for our Archdiocese.’ Said Tambala. ‘Therefore your usual cooperation, collaboration and integration will be vital for the success of this synod.’ No one should be left behind as we roll-out the process, for as you know “It is only when we do things together that we can say we and the Holy Spirit have decided”, he concluded.
Commenting on the Synod, the Chairperson for the Synod, Fr. Vincent Mwakhwawa, proposed ten major phases which will be followed during the Synod which runs from March 2022 to August 2023. Prior to him, the Judicial Vicar, Fr. Deusdedit Kanyambo gave the canonical basis for the synod and parties to be involved in the whole process of a synod.
Dr. Henry Chingaipe, another key member of the Synod Committee, outlined the methodological approach for the synod. Chingaipe emphasised on the need to involve every stakeholder in the Archdiocese and not to synthesize the data but to leave every data for the members of the Committee to do their work so that critical and real issues should be taken out from the collected data.
Commenting on the source of funds for the implementation of various projects including the synod, the Archbishop encouraged the priests to convince the lay faithful to own the synod and partially support it financially. He said that with commitment to such things God shall always be there to provide for the needs as efforts to knock on other doors will be made.
Lilongwe Archdiocese is one of the metropolitans under Episcopal Conference of Malawi situated in the central part of Malawi and has 42 parishes with the slightly over 1.5 million Catholics. It is one the dioceses in Malawi which started the journey of self-reliance through its first synod in 1972 called ‘Mpingo Ndife Tonse’ spearheaded by the first indigenous Malawian and Bishop of Lilongwe Diocese Patrick Kalilombe who was a Missionary of Africa.