AMECEA Episcopal Conferences on the YEAR OF FAITH

The celebration of the Year of Faith was inaugurated by the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI on 11^th October, 2012 during the Holy Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. In the AMECEA region, the National Episcopal Conferences have already initiate practical pastoral programs in order to journey with the universal Church on this pilgrimage of deepening of our faith, of conversion and of rediscovering our mandate to evangelize.

We have here below the programs and initiatives that some of the Episcopal Conferences in the AMECEA region have proposed in order to call every member of the local Church to be part of this spiritual journey of faith and renewal.

During this YEAR of Faith, the AMECEA Pastoral Department is committed to providing member countries with a web page that will promote sharing of experiences and pastoral initiatives that are going on at local levels. 

We have created a web page for the Year of Faith where you will find the simplified text of Porta Fidei as has been requested by the lay faithful.

THE EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE OF MALAWI

Chimutu Road P.O. Box 30384 Capital City Lilongwe 3 – Malawi

Phone: Lilongwe Office         : 01 772 066/079                   

Fathers Residence                   : 01 772 075                                      

Fax                                          : 01 772 019                                  

Email                                       : ecm@ecmmw.org                            

Website                                   : www.ecmmw.org

 OUR REF:                                                                                        

 YOUR REF:

27^th October, 2012

From:  Right Rev. Joseph Mukasa Zuza

To:

·         All Arch/bishops

·         All Pastoral Secretaries

·         Chairperson for:          Association of Men Religious in Malawi (AMRIM)

Association of Women Religious Institutes  in Malawi(AWRIM)

Catholic Women Organisation (CWO)

• Rectors for Minor and Major Seminaries
• Superiors for Religious Congregations
• Secretaries for Various Commissions

• The Lay Faithful
• People of goodwill

Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,

AN INVITATION TO SUPPORT ACTIVITIES OF THE YEAR OF FAITH

His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI  celebrated Mass at St Peter’s Basillica on  11^th October 2012, marking the official opening of the Year of Faith. The year is very significant because it coincides with the anniversaries of two great events which have marked the life of the Church in our days: the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, called by Blessed Pope John XXIII (11 October 1962), and the twentieth anniversary of the promulgation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, given to the Church by Blessed Pope John Paul II (11 October 1992).

The Year of Faith will end on 24^th November 2013, the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Universal King. The Holy Father's aim in promulgating this Year is to focus on, “the encounter with Jesus Christ and the beauty of having faith in Him". This is the privileged time for the Church to make, the Vatican Council II and the Catechism of the Catholic Church widely known. This will in turn lead to renewed conversion and rediscovery of faith.

In order to join the universal world in deepening the church’s intimacy with Christ, the Episcopal Conference of Malawi is proposing several activities to be undertaken by various dioceses and institutions in the country. Below are some of the proposed activities.

Theme: The guiding theme for the Year of Faith in Malawi shall be:”BEING WITNESSES OF JESUS CHRIST IN AFRICA TODAY….Salt of the earth ….light of the World (Mt5:13-14).

a.      National level

·         By January 2013, the ECM shall release the following:

o   A special prayer to be recited by all the faithful at the end of Mass or any Christian gathering. The prayer is designed to focus on several remarkable events namely: The year of faith, the meeting of the Continental Bible Coordinators next year (2013) and the AMECEA plenary scheduled for 2014.

o   Catechetical Handbook I for Catechumens will also be released ad-experimentum for one year.

·         The booklets for 2012 Bible Month(September) activities have been organised to accompany the faithful in this Year of faith on monthly basis up to the closure of the Year of Faith(Refer to the program of activities at the end of the booklet).

·         The Youth in Our Universities will be engaged in discussions of some Church documents.

·         Some Church documents on Vatican Council II, Posters and Stickers on the Year of Faith will be availed to the faithful  from Montfort Media.

·         Seminars and workshops on the Year of Faith will be organised at St John of God Spirituality Centre (Nyungwe) in Blantyre Archdiocese.

b.      Diocesan level

·         Organise retreats and prayer sessions that will deepen peoples’ faith. Take advantage of privileged Seasons of ADVENT and LENT to conduct well organised penitential services.

·         The diocese should identify Holy places/shrines, hence organize the faithful to make pilgrimages to these places.

·         Intensify Marian piety and Devotions-promote and strengthen the Legion of Mary and other related  movements.

·         Make special programs targeting families as hubs of faith.

·         Organise special programs targeting the Youth at all levels.

c.       Parish or Institutions of higher learning(Universities, Seminaries, Novitiates)

·         Promote Community Liturgy such as devotions to the Eucharist and  Mary. Revive  Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.

·         Organise pilgrimages to Holy places or shrines identified locally.

·         Promote debates on reason and faith in schools. Identify individuals (priests, religious brothers and sisters) to be available in schools to respond to faith based questions.

·         Organise sessions that will target families as hubs of faith.

·         The Youth must be taken aboard in all the programs above.

d.      Mass Media

·         All media outlets (print and electronic) are encouraged to establish programmes that will help to publicize the year and explain some issues of faith.

e.       ECM-AIRTEL Evangelization Partnership

·         In an effort to enhance evangelization in this Year of Faith and as part of advocacy for the 2014 AMECEA plenary, ECM has joined Evangelization partnership  with Airtel.

·         All the faithful and people of goodwill are encouraged to subscribe 51992 to Airtel for registration. This will enable you to start receiving daily Liturgical readings  either in English, Chichewa or Tumbuka.

·         Your subscription will contribute towards AMECEA 2014 preparations. The system is in operation. Try it.

The Episcopal Conference of Malawi would like to invite the entire church of Malawi to make this Year of Faith a success.

With this letter, I declare the Year of Faith officially opened and encourage all stake holders to ensure that their institutions have well outlined activities that will take them through out the year. You are therefore cordially invited to support the activities and efforts outlined for the year.

For more information contact the office of the National Pastoral Secretary.

May we all join hands in supporting the planned activities of the Year of Faith.

Yours in Christ,

Right Rev. Joseph Mukasa Zuza.

CHAIRMAN FOR THE EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE OF MALAWI.