Malawi’s Catholic Bishops to Launch Laity Day to Boost Evangelization Efforts among Lay People

Set to be launched under the theme, “Christians; Missionaries of Hope: Be converted and live,” the initiative will also be celebrated annually on October 22. 

The initiative was approved by MCCB members during their January 2025 Plenary, Fr. Madeya told ACI Africa.

The member of the Clergy of the Catholic Diocese of Dedza explained that October 22 was chosen because it’s the day that the Catholic Church celebrates the feast of St. John Paul II, the Patron Saint of Laity in Malawi.

He clarified that this year’s event is expected to bring together more than 5,000 Christian from all the eight Dioceses and parishes of the Catholic church in Malawi.

Fr. Madeya explained that this year’s theme aligns with both the ongoing Church Jubilee Year and the Mission Month of October.

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He said the theme draws inspiration from Pope Francis’ message for the 99th World Mission Sunday, “Missionaries of Hope among All People,” as well as from St. John Paul II’s 1989 message to the Church in Malawi, “Be Converted and Live”.

“This theme is very meaningful to the Church of Malawi because a call to conversation of the lay faithful is an ongoing theme. This will help the lay faithful to know that they are in need of repentance in their work of evangelization and also help them in their missionary work,” he said.

Fr. Madeya emphasized that the celebration will help the Laity in the country to know that they have a role of preaching the good news.

He explained that through evangelization, the Laity will have an opportunity to share their faith through personal testimony and good works as it is reflected in the Gospel of St. Matthew.

He said the celebration will enable the Lay faithful to promote social justice by living out Gospel values in society, applying Christian principles in their professional and economic lives, and offering dedicated service to the poor, the sick, and the marginalized.

Through the celebration, he said the Laity “will also provide support of the temporal good of the church and charitable works fulfilling the obligation to support the poor and vulnerable through their resources and talents.”

In the October 15 interview, Fr. Madeya also shared with ACI Africa the activities during the launch which will include a presentation on the role or vocation of the Laity in the Catholic Church.

Fr. Madeya said that following the launch, the Dioceses in the country “will start celebrating this event so that through this celebration the Christians can encourage each other on the role of the laity in the Church.”

Silas Mwale Isenjia is a Kenyan journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communication from Moi University in Kenya. Silas has vast experience in the Media production industry. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.