_WORLD WATCH______________________________
________________Malawi_______________
100 years of Christianity
Vatican official presides at celebration
Cardinal Francis
Arinze, acting as the personal envoy of Pope John Paul II, presided at the 100th anniversary of the evangelization of Malawi with a Mass at an outdoor stadium in Lilongwe, the nation’s capital.
Cardinal Arinze, the president of the Pontifical Council for Inter-Religious Dialogue, offered thanks “to God for the gift of faith,” to the missionaries who brought the faith to Malawi, and to the people of that country “who embraced faith in Christ, especially in the early days.” Acknowledging the difficulties that Africa faces today, he recalled the exhortation of Pope John Paul to young Africans: “Do not see the present problems as the end of hope and the death of enthusiasm. Rather see the whole of life as an opportunity for conversion.”
Malawi’s President Bakili Muluzi, who took part in the centennial celebration, took note of the Catholic contributions to education and health care in the country, and praised the country’s bishops for their commitment to democracy. Muluzi pointed to the fact that he, a Muslim, had been educated in a Catholic school.
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