BISHOPS OF MALAWI RECEIVED AT END OF "AD LIMINA"

VATICAN CITY, SEP 6, 1999 (VIS) - Pope John Paul received the bishops of Malawi today, as they concluded their "ad limina" visit, and recalled that they are preparing not only for the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000, but also for the centenary of the founding, in 1901, of the first Catholic mission at Nzama.

Since that time, he said, "the Church herself is increasingly involved in the life of the nation, insisting upon the need for solidarity and civic responsibility and urging dialogue and reconciliation as the way to solve tensions. ... It is also widely recognized that the Church has played an important role in Malawi's transition to democratic government."

The Holy Father added that "the one basis for a democratic society is a right vision of the human person and of the common good. Unless a society builds upon this truth, then it is like a house built upon sand: It cannot stand."
"The challenges to Christian life and service are many and demanding in a situation of widespread poverty, ... and where there is a weakening of moral and ethical conviction, giving rise to many social ills, including corruption and attacks upon the sanctity of human life itself.

"In light of this," he went on, "there is a need to provide the faithful with solid programs of evangelization and catechesis. aimed at deepening their Christian faith and understanding."

The Holy Father affirmed that proper catechesis, supported by Bible study and "a clear exposition of doctrine as found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, ... will ensure that lay men and women are secure in their faith and prepared to fulfill its demands in all circumstances, ... especially Christian marriage and family life. ... Catholics will also be able to respond to the objections raised with increasing frequency by the followers of sects and new religious movements" and to better their "dialogue with the followers of African traditional religion and Islam."

"I encourage your efforts to ensure a more effective formation for your seminarians and priests. ... No less important than the training of future priests is the permanent formation of those already in Holy Orders." He exhorted them to nurture in priests "pastoral dedication and zeal for ministry, moral discipline and upright behavior, detachment from worldly possessions and attitudes (and) readiness to give themselves completely in service to others."

"The need for lifelong formation also applies to men and women religions," he concluded. "The witness offered by consecrated men and women can transform society and its ways of thinking and acting."

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