Rev. Fr. Formedza John Felix Awaitey Jnr., Board Chairman of the St. Fidelis Senior High Technical School (SHTS) at Tease in the Donkorkrom Vicariate in the Afram Plains, has lectured students of the School on the importance of Unity in diversity, a tool can be used in enhancing development.
Speaking on the theme: Unity in Diversity, a Mechanism for Development, during the celebration of the Student’s Representative Council (SRC) Week on the St. Fidelis Senior High Technical School Compound on June 19, 2024, he underlined the importance of Unity as something that cannot be underestimated.
He made reference to Psalm 133:1 –“How pleasant, how good it is for brothers/sisters to live in unity.”
Fr. Awaitey, who is the Vocations Director for the Donkorkrom Vicariate and Parish Priest of St. Cecilia Catholic Church at Fori-Fori in the Apostolic Vicariate of Donkorkrom, indicated that life without unity could bring a whole lot of challenges to the human society.
Drawing further inspiration from Genesis 11:1, where the people were so united that they came up with a plan to build a mansion so as to make up for whatever was lacking in their lives, for which they succeeded all because they were united.
Even though their agenda was for their own self-glorification, he encouraged the students to learn to live in unity like the people did.
The Catholic Priest went on to explain to the students the meaning of diversity and how it plays out:
“Every individual, group, association or establishment has a unique identity and as a matter of fact, there are peculiar differences in and around us human beings,” he explained.
The Board Chairman looked at diversity from different angles: Anthropologically speaking, he underlined that human beings have differences in languages, ethnic groups, and culture, among others.
He charged his audience to appreciate the Divine beauty of diversity, saying that “Our God is a God of variety and that is why Scripture tells us that He made them male and female.”
“He could have chosen to make them one sex,” he added, but no. “He made some of us strong and some weak, some tall and others short, some others fat, and some slim, all of which put together, gives variety to God’s creation, and there is beauty in diversity” he stressed.
Fr. Awaitey further drew the attention of the students to a number of lessons that could be drawn from the theme chosen by the students themselves.
First, he exposed them to the knowledge that they have unique attributes and talents and so must share with one another, for their own good.
“Not all of you may be that smart, not all of you may have understanding in a particular subject area; but put together, your strength may show forth when you begin to assist and to help each other when necessary,” he stated.
He further encouraged the students to go to their friends who are strong in various subject areas and ask for their assistance so that they are helped now as they prepare for the exams, rather than waiting to ask for assistance in order to pass their exams while already in the exam hall.
The students were helped to understand that they are ‘work in progress’, and likened to ‘unrefined gold’ hence, should dispose themselves and trust the process of their formation in order to reap desirable fruits at the end:
“Your teachers, parents and guardians are only helping you to be polished up so that you become refined ladies and gentlemen. You are not a finished product, so become so malleable for them to be able to handle you with ease, so as to bring out the best in you,”, he remarked.
Fr. Awaitey added: “The process of knowledge acquisition may be tough, rugged and very unpleasant, but if you remain focused and determined, the end product would bring the best you so desire.”
He urged the students to identify their potentials and harness them while they are still in school, and when they eventually leave school they should come together and think of ways to help improve living conditions in their alma mater.
By so doing, he said, they would be working for the advancement and development of the school in all its facets.
The School Board Chairman entreated the teachers and parents and guardians not to lump all the students together in one ‘basket’, as not even identical twins are the same.
He charged all to be guided by the principle that states, “Together we shall prevail, divided we shall fall” and the students in particular should always keep in mind an expression in military training which says, “Hard Training, Easy Battle”.
The Vocations Team of the Apostolic Vicariate of Donkorkrom used the opportunity of the SRC Week to encourage the students, as well as promote vocations to the Catholic Priesthood and Religious Life among the Catholic students.
Dignitaries present for the peak celebration of the SRC week included Mr. Humphrey Agbeko Djopong, Headmaster of St. Fidelis School; Mr. Samuel Nkansah, PTA Chairman; Rev. Fr. Michael Awuah Ansah, School Chaplain and Teacher.
Others present were Rev. Fr. Anthony Teye Binyemi, Parish Priest of St. Fidelis Parish, Tease and Assistant Vocation Director for the Vicariate, and Sr. Sylvie Lum Cho, MSHR, Vocations Directress of the Congregation of the Missionary Sisters of the Holy Rosary, in Ghana; the Manager and Financial Controller of Deep Ice Mineral Natural Water, Afram Community Bank Manager, among others.
One of the major activities featured during the peak celebration was fundraising, aimed at repainting some existing structures in the school that are in a bad state.
Story and Photos by Sr. Sylvie Lum Cho, MSHR, (DEPSOCOM, Donkorkrom Apostolic Vicariate)
