Another 27 Sunday School teachers and Pontifical Missionary Childhood (PMC) animators from Salesian parishes in Kenya have been trained in a three-day workshop (from 4th to 6th August) that ended last Wednesday. Earlier in the year, in April 2025, the first group of 39 animators were trained, totalling the number of animators to 66 men and women.
There are seven parishes entrusted to the Salesians in various dioceses in Kenya, including the Shrine of Mary Help of Christians at the heart of the capital, Nairobi. Two of the Salesian parishes in Kakuma lie over 800 kms away from the capital city, and Korr lies in the semi-arid terrain of Northern Kenya 660 kms away.
Across Kenyan Catholic dioceses, Sunday Schools cater to children aged between 3 to 6 years of age, and the PMC caters to those between 7- and 12-year-olds. One of the ways of creating the charismatic identity in Salesian parishes, as planned by the Provincial Youth Ministry Sector in the meeting of the parish priests, was to train our Catechists and other animators. Fr Sahaya G. Selvam, SDB, developed the training.
The content of the training covered topics such as the psychology of children, how children learn, the spirituality of children, Good Shepherd Catechesis, an overview of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and liturgical animation for Children.
Participants explored play-way approaches to children’s catechesis, including new ways of animating the Rosary, liturgical quizzes, photo-language sessions, and Bible games. These methods are expected to enrich the pastoral work of the animators, enabling them to reach more than 12,000 children aged three to twelve years in Salesian parishes throughout Kenya.
The training was made possible through the collaboration of the Youth Ministry Department, which continues to work toward the five-year strategic plan goal of accompanying mission partners, and the Salesian Missions in New Rochelle-US, which funded the programme.
