Sr. Meenakshi D’Silva, Sr. Sheela Furtado and Sr. Jyothi Pinto had the unique privilege of participating in the FMA PCI Youth Ministry meeting from 18th July to 21st July 2019 at Auxilium College Katpadi Vellore, India.
The 27 participants of all the seven Provinces were warmly welcomed in a traditional way with a shawl and accompanied with a guard of honour by the College band and the NSS students.
During the grand inaugural function, the college girls welcomed all the participants through dance and a welcome song. The Provincial of the Madras Province Sr. Maria Nirmala Lazar, the Provincial of the Chennai Province welcomed Sr. Annie Lolia Pfujumai, Youth Pastoral Rome, Sr. Ivone Lopes in-charge of Higher Education in the Institute, Fr. Joseph Manipada SDB. National Secretary for Education and culture CBCI, India and all the participants.
During this solemn occasion the girls of the college, through song, dance and skit showcased the 15 faculties of Auxilium College Katpadi and all the other wonderful activities carried out for the character formation of the thousands of youngsters. Sr. Annie Lolia Pfujumai addressed the participants and the youngsters and explained the goal of the meeting. Sr. Margaret Amalanathan the Provincial of Trichy proposed the vote of thanks.
On the first day Fr. Joseph Manipada SDB Presented the draft of the National Education Policy 2019 with its loopholes and how we as an educational institution should move ahead to face this new policy. On the following days Sr. Annie Lolia animated the group on the theme ‘Laudato Si’ and ‘Design for Change’ to develop a systematic plan to safeguard our environment.
The participants were divided into four groups and asked to envision the problems of the youth in 2020 and what responses can be drawn up to respond to these challenges. The groups were also asked to design a logo, a slogan, a pledge and a song for the PCI Youth Ministry.
Sr. Ivone Lopes gave the participants the awareness on ISS and how it works in the Institute. She presented an accurate statistics of the number of institutes of higher learning, the animated programs and the other initiatives taken for the growth of Higher Education in the Institute.
At the course of the meeting, all the seven Provinces were given an opportunity to share their best practices and also the Youth Pastoral activities. Every morning there was a ‘Thematic prayer’ along with the reflection prepared by Sr. Maria Ko Ha Fong. A moment of sharing made this Lectio Divina an enriching experience for all.
PCI Youth Meet ended on the 21st of July. All the participants participated wholeheartedly making their contribution for a better tomorrow. The different Provinces owned up to complete the Logo and the song which needed a little more of time and expertise. On the last day, the participants got an opportunity to visit the Golden Temple and an Educational Hub VIT Vellore. All went back with good memories and a greater vision to take care of this common home for our future generation.
