By Comfort Sena Fetrie-Akagbor
Tamale, July 23, GNA – the Tamale East Region of the Knights and Ladies of Marshall, a Catholic friendly society, has organised its second regional conference to take stock of its activities.
It was on the theme: “Marshallans as Pilgrims of Hope: Reflections in a Jubilee Year Towards a Century of Service to the Church.”
Worthy Brother Thomas Azuure, the outgoing Regional Grand Knight, speaking during the opening ceremony in Tamale, said it was organised annually by all the regions of the Knights and Ladies of Marshall under the auspices of Regional Grand Knights and Regional Noble Ladies during, which participants (Brothers and Sisters) reflected on a chosen theme.
He said the theme was to encourage Brothers and Sisters to reflect on the jubilee year, declared by Pope Francis and to renew their spiritual journeys as pilgrims of hope.
Very Reverend Father Hilary Pogbeyir, Vicar General of the Tamale Archdiocese, who represented Most Reverend Philip Naameh, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Tamale, appealed to Catholic societies to give signs of hope to the billions of the poor and sick, who often lacked life’s essentials.
He said: “Each day, we meet people who are poor or impoverished. They may even be our next-door neighbours. The Bible reminds us that the goods of the earth are not destined for a privileged few but for everyone.”
He said Christians had a fundamental duty to care for the poor and urged the rich to be generous and not avert their eyes from the faces of the needy and the poor.
Sir Knight Brother Sir Professor Elias N. K. Sowley, Chairman for the occasion, urged Christians to love their neighbours and help those in distress.
The Supreme Knight, Sir Knight Brother Richard Ayih-Akakpo and the Grand Lady Most Respected Lady Sister Patricia Dunenye, in a message to participants, advised them to support God’s work by being disciples and missionaries to build the Catholic Church.
The three-day conference was hosted by Council 153 (Male Branch) and Court 149 (Female Branch) affiliated to Sacred Heart Parish, Tamale.
Other participants were from Council 27 and Court 12, Tamale, Council 146 Saboba, and Court 173 Lamashegu.
The Supreme Council (the governing body of the Knights of Marshall) was represented by Sir Knight Brother Dr Paul Ntodi and Worthy Brother Wisdom Kumah, while the Grand Court (governing body of the Ladies of Marshall) was also represented by Most Respected Lady Sister Clare Baneong-Yakubo and Respected Lady Sister Barbara Adisa Dickens.
A new Regional Grand Knight and Regional Noble Lady in the persons of Worthy Brother John Issah Alhassan and Respected Lady Sister Monica Ekekpi, were installed to steer the affairs of the Tamale East Region for the next two years (2025 to 2027).
The conference climaxed with a Mass at Sacred Heart Parish.
The Knights of Marshall was established in Sekondi in November 1926 while its female wing, the Ladies of Marshall, was established in Kumasi in December 1969.
The Knights and Ladies of Marshall exist in most Catholic Dioceses in Ghana with branches in Togo, Bennin, Burkina Faso, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast and the UK.
GNA
Edited by Eric K. Amoh/Benjamin Mensah