Archbishop Ziyaye calls on Catholics to use natural birth control methods
Archbishop Tarcizius Ziyaye of the Catholic Church’s Archdiocese of Lilongwe has encouraged the church’s faithful to use natural planning methods saying there are many benefits than using contraception or highly effective methods like sterilization, the pill, or the intrauterine device (IUD).
Many Malawian women have of late been shunning natural family
planning methods opting for pills a thing which continues to cause
consternations among married men.
Speaking when members of the Catholic Family Movement visited his
residence on Thursday to wish him Merry Christmas, Ziyaye said natural
family planning methods need to be encouraged because they can negate
the negative effects many women are facing by using unnatural methods
like pills.
He said. “We need to encourage the faithful to continue using the
natural family planning methods because the benefits are immense. The
problems we are now encountering is that families are copying
everything from ‘wherever’ putting the `existence’ of marriage to a
high risk.
“We need to educate all the parishioners to go natural
instead of exotic because at the end of the day it is the family that
benefits.”
Ziyaye also hailed parishioners in Lilongwe for being dedicated to the
work of God by contributing to the growth of the church through their
contributions.
“Just recently Msamba Parish managed to raise about K4 million which
is not a mean achievement. We want the laity to take this example and
also help in the growth of the church especially now when assistance
from outside Malawi is very negligible. We need to contribute more so
that we are able to meet the demands the Church is facing on a daily,”
said Ziyaye.
Chaplain for the CFM in the Diocese Father Chipalamwazani said the
Catholic Family Movement (CFM) has been very vibrant in the diocese
and its members are contributing immensely to the growth of the
church.
“We are always indebted to your guidance and advice and this is the
reason why (CFM) has grown and continues to grow. We always work as a
team and we encourage our members to follow natural family planning
methods because there are no side effects. In fact during the just
recently held Lilongwe ‘AGM’ that was the main theme and I was in
charge of that session,” he explained.
CFM Head for Lilongwe Diocese Francis Namulu wished the Archbishop
well during the festive period and assured him that CFM will always
strive to make a huge difference in the parish because family is
central to the growth and expansion of any institution including the
nation.
“As CFM we will always make sure that we are in forefront in almost
everything that happens in the church. These days family is facing a
lot of hurdles and is imperative upon us to make a difference and try
as much as possible bring more families closer to God. If family
collapse then there can never be a nation,” said Namulu.
He also promised the Arch-Bishop to take the natural planning message
to all the parishes in the central region and beyond so that many
families benefit.