By Arnold Namanja
LILONGWE-(MANA)-The Archdiocese of Lilongwe and the Catholic Church in Malawi are mourning the death of Fr Francis Damaseke, a diocesan priest described as dedicated and impactful in his ministry.
The Malawi Conference of Catholic Bishops (MCCB) announced his death on Saturday evening through its Secretary General, Fr Valeriano Mtseka.
Mtseka said Fr Damaseke died at a private hospital in Lilongwe after a short illness, having succumbed to respiratory complications.
Until his death, he was serving as curate (assistant priest) at Nathenje Parish.
Fr Damaseke will also be remembered for his moving homilies and his role in championing a social media evangelisation platform, Tiyankhuleni Ambuye.
Meanwhile, messages of condolence continue to pour in from across the Catholic community.
Speaking before the cancellation of a scheduled press briefing by the Association of Catholic Journalists (Central Chapter), Communications Coordinator for the Archdiocese of Lilongwe, Fr Anselm Kaglui, described the loss as devastating.
“Death is unimaginable. It hits when you least expect it. But as one Franciscan said, we can only commit the soul of the departed into the hands of the Almighty. Death is what it is, indescribable,” he said.
Joseph Chisambula, who worked closely with Fr Damaseke in establishing Tiyankhuleni Ambuye, said he received the news with deep sorrow.
“I have learnt about the news with a very heavy heart. It is a pity that he is gone, just like that. He has died at a young age.
“It was very clear in our conversations that he had big plans in taking the word of God at intrapersonal level through innovative new media such as Facebook and WhatsApp,” he said.
Born on September 27, 1986, Fr Damaseke was ordained in 2016 and served in several parishes including Mlale, Chilinde, St Patricks (Area 18), and Nambuma.
He also served at MCCB as National Communications Secretary and Research Coordinator before his most recent assignment at Nathenje Parish.
He will be laid to rest at Likuni Priests Cemetery on Tuesday, April 14, following a Requiem Mass scheduled to begin at 9:30am.