Lay Collaborators

1. The Focolare Movement

 

The Focolare Movement, also known as the Work of Mary, has two communities in the Archdiocese of Bamenda: one for the Male Branch – the Focolarini – in St. John the Baptist Parish, Foncha Street, Nkwen and the other for the Female Branch – the Focolarine – in St. Pius X’s Parish, Akum. The community of the Male Branch is made up of 3 members, while that of the Female Branch is made up of 3 members. Last year, they lost one of their leading female members from Uganda. They have quite a good number of Volunteers or Friends of the Movement, among them a number of Diocesan Priests and Religious.

 

They continue to organize annually the Mariapolis encounters for families and young people and to carry out the so-called programme of the New Evangelization, especially in St. Pius X’s Parish, Akum which promotes dialogue between Christianity and the African Traditional Religions. One of them was in charge of the Archdiocesan Mechanical and Technical Centre. Another runs an Optical Centre in St. Blaise Clinic, Mankon.

 

2. Auxiliaries of the Apostolate

 

The Auxiliaries of the Apostolate were founded by Cardinal Mercier in France. They are neither an Institute of Consecrated Life nor a Society of Apostolic Life. These are mostly lay women who want to dedicate themselves to the service of the Particular Church, living their consecration in the world. The call is addressed to an individual lay woman by her Bishop, a call which establishes her in an apostolic vocation. As a lay woman, the Auxiliary shares exactly the same conditions as those among whom she lives, personally assuming her own responsibilities and providing for her own needs like any other lay person. As a consequence of this call, it is necessary that the Auxiliary of the Apostolate surrenders her entire life to God and does not marry; neither is she allowed to have children of her own. Since it is a diocesan vocation, it is normally in the diocese that an auxiliary receives the necessary formation before the call and continues to receive throughout her whole life.

 

There are three members of the Auxiliaries of the Apostolate living and working in the Archdiocese of Bamenda. They work in the office of the coordination and animation of the Catholic Women Association on the archdiocesan, provincial and national levels, the Education Secretariat, the Archdiocesan Book Centre, the Archbishop’s House, Bamenda and the Archdiocesan Bakery.

 

3. Catechists

 

The Decree on the Church’s Missionary Activity, Ad Gentes Divinitus, n. 17 says that “the role of catechists is of the highest importance” in the work of evangelization, for the catechists are “true co-workers of the priestly order”.  For them to carry out this role effectively, there is need for formation.

 

Consequently, during the last decade, the formation of full time and part time catechists has been our priority. This is carried out by the Maryvale Institute in Bamenda. Candidates are chosen by the various parishes who sponsor their formation in the Institute. The Archdiocese subsidizes their lodging. One of the difficulties encountered in the process of formation is that most of them do not have the basic qualification needed to do the programme. To remedy this, the members of the Maryvale Formation Team go round the parishes every year to continue updating the catechists and the entire Christian community with the Echoes and Anchoring Christ programmes. Many have found this to be very valuable.

 

The Chaplain for Catechists organizes Formation Seminars for parish Catechists two times a year. For this, the Catechists usually come together according to deaneries in order to ease movement and catering. There is also an Annual Retreat for all the Catechists of the Archdiocese at the Paul VI Memorial Pastoral Centre, Bamendankwe, organized by the Chaplain.

 

There is an Episcopal Vicar for Catechists who follows them up very closely and attends to their various needs and refers the difficult situations and cases to the Local Ordinary, and assists them in various ways so that they can carry out their ministry properly. In Decree n. J-511/12/001 on the “Policy on Catechists in the Archdiocese of Bamenda” published on Monday, 14 May, 2012, the then Archbishop of Bamenda and his Auxiliary spelt out the various categories of catechists. There is a job description for every category and, except for those who are voluntary, they are remunerated accordingly.

 

In the Archdiocese of Bamenda, Catechists belong to the following categories:

 

Category 1: Full-time Catechists with a Diploma in Catechetics from Nguti, the Maryvale Institute, or equivalent Institute.

 

Category 2: Full-time Catechists without a Diploma in Catechetics.

 

Category 3: Part-time Catechists: Those who serve part time in a Parish (main mission or outstation) or in an Institution while at the same time carrying out their own occupation.

 

Category 4: Volunteer Catechists: Those who offer their services free of charge as Catechists in a Main Mission/Outstation/Small Christian Community/Institution.

 

The statistics for catechists in the Archdiocese of Bamenda stands as follows:

 

Category                             Married            Single                   Total

 

Full time:                                 41                        5                           47

Part time:                                237                      71                        308

 

Voluntary Catechists:              –                           –                         57

 

Total number of catechists  278                     76                        412

 

 

Job Description of Catechists:

 

1. Full-time Catechists in the Main Mission

 

1. Ring the bell, prepare the sacristy and altar for Mass;
2. Prepare Readers, Choir and Altar-Servers;

• Lead morning, evening prayers and other devotions;

1. Prepare Children and Adults for the Sacraments;
2. Give doctrine in non-Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools;
3. Do office work assigned to them by the Parish Priest such as filling registers, etc;

• Visit families, the sick and the old at home or in the hospital at least once a month;
• Follow up and animate Mission Groups and Small Christian Communities and RCIA Teams.

1. Organize and attend meetings at Parish/Outstation levels.

 

2. Full-time Catechists in the Outstation

 

1. Ring the bell, prepare the sacristy and altar for Mass;
2. Prepare Readers, Choir and Altar-Servers;

• Lead morning, evening prayers and other devotions;

1. Prepare and lead Sunday Services;
2. Prepare Children and Adults for the Sacraments;
3. Give doctrine in non-Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools;

• Do office work assigned to them by the Parish Priest such as filling Registers, etc;
• Visit families, the sick and the old at home or in the hospital at least once a month;

1. Follow up and animate Mission Groups and Small Christian Communities and RCIA Teams.
2. Organize and attend meetings at Parish/Outstation levels.

 

3. Part-Time Catechists

 

1. Ring the bell, prepare the sacristy and altar for Mass;
2. Prepare Readers, Choir and Altar-Servers;

• Lead morning, evening prayers and other devotions;

1. Prepare and lead Sunday Services in the Outstation;
2. Prepare Children and Adults for the Sacraments;
3. Visit families, the sick and the old at home or in the hospital occasionally;

• Follow up and animate Mission Groups and Small Christian Communities and RCIA Teams.
• Organize and attend meetings at Parish/Outstation levels.

 

4. Volunteer Catechists:

 

1. Prepare and lead Sunday Services;
2. Give doctrine for the Sacraments;

• Render any other services agreed upon with the Parish Priest and the Christian Community.

 

In the 444 mission stations in the Archdiocese of Bamenda, it is thanks to the contributions of the catechists that most of these communities exist and are active. In the absence of the priest, the catechists keep the communities alive and report to the Parish Priest at the end of every month when they meet for their monthly meetings. Together with them, most Parish Priests draw their monthly programme of activities and visit their various mission stations. Through them, the various pastoral needs of the communities are known by the priest and he can decide on when to pay a pastoral visit to the area. The catechists have played, and continue to play a very essential role in the implementation of the Provincial Pastoral Plan, especially in the formation of the various Small Christian Communities, Gospel Sharing Groups and the various commissions of the Pastoral Plan.

 

The Archdiocese takes care of the material welfare of the Catechists in various ways. Their housing is being taken care of, especially those in category 1 and 2. As concerns their remuneration, the various parishes take their responsibility in paying them, and, in some parishes, especially in areas of Primary Evangelization, an archdiocesan subsidy is given, thanks to the subsidy we receive from Rome and to the Annual Catechists Collection made on the First Sunday of Lent in all the Parishes to assist them and contribute to the payment of their remuneration. Added to this, once a year the Christians of a particular Parish may show their appreciation of the services their Catechists are rendering to them by making a collection for them on a Sunday or Solemnity of their choice. The collection is done at Parish level, and the proceeds equally shared among all the Catechists in the Parish without distinction. The tuition fee in the Catholic Primary and/or Nursery School of the legitimate, biological children of Categories 1, 2 and 3 Catechists is paid by the Parish/Institution. On the occasion of the death of a catechist, the Archdiocese provides a coffin and a fixed amount of money to assist the family in the burial of the catechist.