Catholic Church tells rebels to leave

The Blantyre Archdiocese of the Catholic Church said on Monday people who do not agree with the church’s sermons on politics, justice and peace are free to leave the church and stop calling themselves Catholics.

Reacting to a protest by some Catholics from Limbe Cathedral, calling themselves The Voice, against sermons that are delivered by priests at their church because they carry political messages, spokesman for the archdiocese Monsignor Boniface Tamani, said the Catholic Doctrine is about justice and peace and that the church will keep on preaching on this.

He said the church does not recognise the group since, he said, it has been organised by politicians who want to bring division in the Catholic Church.

“These people should not call themselves Catholics. They should go somewhere else. We preach that people should be converted and not condone corruption but this group is supporting the ills that the church is preaching against,” said Tamani.

Voice chairman Moses Chikonga who came to Nation offices on Sunday, accompanied by his first vice chairman Kaliati Kotamu and secretary Margaret Mawaya, said churches should leave people alone and not guide them on political decisions.

“The priests shouldn’t use their power in church to influence our decisions on politics,” said Chikonga.

He said he is church elder for Kachere Ward and that the UDF-led government has done a lot of developmental projects in his area which, he said, include a good water supply and free primary education at St. Kizito and St. Maria Goretti schools at the Cathedral.

“These development projects are visible and we’re thankful to this government for that so the church shouldn’t say that government has failed,” said Chikonga.

He said the development projects are also visible in Makhetha and Bangwe where members of his group, who, he said, are 52 in number come from.

But Limbe Cathedral parish priest Phillip Mbeta said Chikonga’s group is not authentic and that “there are some political forces behind this”.

Mbeta said the group is just using the church for its political mileage.

“The population of Christians at Limbe Cathedral is over 30,000. How come it is only three people that are complaining?” said Mbeta.

He said his parish will just ignore the group and go on with its business.

“I did say earlier on that the church has a big role to play in politics and that’s it,” he said.

On August 17, Mbeta asked the Catholic faithful in the country to start praying for the right person to be voted into office next year and not vote for a candidate whose party is giving out handouts as a way of buying people’s votes.

He said this during the commemoration ceremony of the Cathedral’s 75th Anniversary, attended by a cross-section of people including Archbishop Tarcisius Ziyaye, Archbishop Emeritus James Chiona, UDF presidential candidate Bingu Mutharika, NDA president Brown Mpinganjira and MCP publicity secretary Hetherwick Ntaba.

The priest said as of now the country lacks a leader who is interested in people’s needs.