As holiday’s kickoff, children and youth tend to be reluctant, learn bad behaviors and also get involved in vices. Holy Cross Family Ministries and Kitagobwa Parish organized a youth and children seminar on spiritual well-being.
We reached at the parish at around 11am, started with praise and worship in order to awaken their brains, they were so joyful.
They were around 150 children and youth that participated.
We taught them God’s love in 4 aspects that’s patience, goodness, forgiveness and kindness.
They were taught how to pray, Hail Mary, Our father and how to recite the rosary.
A 10 year old Walusimbi Timothy surprised us when he narrated a story of Jonah and the fish to the rest of the children, he said the exact story in the bible and this reflected the home where he comes from, to be a religious home.
Another child was Calvin, an 8 year old who narrated the story of the good shepherd. As Holy Cross Family Ministries we encourage parents to continue helping their children in spiritual well-being by conducting prayers at home with them.
Challenges that the youth face today were shared by the youth that were present for example:
- An Identity Crisis: Who am I?
- Lack of self- confidence and low self- esteem: I am worthless
- A sense of hopelessness: Where am I going?
- Confusion and ambiguity concerning moral issues: What is right and wrong?
- The negative impact of the electronic media: Entertainment?
- Competitiveness in education: the uneven playing field: Excellence by whom? Not Me.
A way forward for the challenges was also shared amongst themselves.
We marked the end of the seminar with celebrating mass, which was conducted by Fr. Steven Nkwaju.
In his homily, he put more emphasis on what we taught the youth and the children. He urged them to be disciplined at school, home, respect their parents as well as the elders.
Fr. Steven appealed them to love one another, by sharing the little they have with others not to be selfish because Jesus loves us, that’s why he provides what we ask from him.
He encouraged them to pray morning and evening prayers as well as pray on Sundays.
Holy Cross Family Ministries EastAfrica will continue conducting such seminars during holiday time because we realized there is a need especially for the youth and children.