ECM underscores the importance of Investing in Children
The Director for Pontifical Missionaries Society at the Episcopal Conference of Malawi, Fr. Vincent Mwakhwawa has described Early Childhood Centres (ECDs) as crucial in ensuring that children grow holistically with both body and spirit.
Fr. Mwakhwawa was speaking during a graduation ceremony of children in the kindergarten and primary classes at St. John the Baptist Convent School in area 47, Lilongwe and is run by sisters of St. John the Baptist congregation.
Fr. Mwakhwawa said children are a gift from God to us hence there is a need to ensure the integral development of them and at the same time they (children) should not be under rated.
“When God give us children, he expects us that we will care and love them so that they grow and become what God wants of them. Make sure that your children have good spiritual, moral, intellectual and physical development,” said Fr. Mwakhwawa.
He challenged parents, guardians and teachers to ensure that they treat children as human beings that are made of body and spirit.
“They have to develop as sense of Divine such that they have to learn how to pray and how to fear God and of course how to love and serve in their church,” said Fr. Mwakhwawa adding that “children need to develop moral and human characters; love, respect, care of creation, sympathy, generosity and other general human character”.
Sister Lucy Banda, Head teacher of the school said she was delighted to have such a conversion institution which apart from the academic teaching they have, children are also prepared well in terms of their spiritual life.
“They have to develop a sense of Divine such that they have to learn how to pray and how to fear God and of course how to love and serve in their church,” This is very important as nowadays we lose a number of young ones going to other churches, worse to boko haramu. They must start now to own their church through conviction built from parents and church leaders. We have very little time for children as far as spiritual upbringing is concerned.
The church needs to invest a lot in children. We should develop a friendly culture so that these young people become attracted to our church…!