A Catholic priest in Bamenda has used the occasion of the International Women’s Day to remind women that celebration should not come at the cost of personal dignity.
During Holy Mass at St Paul’s Parish Ntahkekah Nkwen, Rev Fr Alphonse The called on women to maintain self respect and moral integrity as they celebrated the day.
“Maintain your dignity as a woman. As you celebrate, do not bring down your dignity,” the priest told the congregation, in a message directed especially at women and girls gathered for Holy Mass.
Rev Fr Alphonse said the day’s Gospel reading about Jesus Christ and the Samaritan Woman offered a powerful reflection on the place and dignity of women in society.
In the biblical account, Jesus meets a Samaritan woman at Jacob’s Well and begins a conversation that breaks several social barriers of the time. Jews traditionally avoided Samaritans, and men rarely spoke publicly with women who were strangers.
For the priest, that moment reveals a deeper message about respect and the transformative power of truth.
He explained that while Jesus confronted the woman with the truth about her life, he did not humiliate or condemn her. Instead, he offered what he called “living water,” a symbol of spiritual renewal and eternal life.
The priest said the woman’s encounter with Christ ultimately restored her dignity and turned her into a messenger who led others in her town to believe.
“The Gospel shows that a woman who discovers truth and dignity can transform her community,” Rev Fr Alphonse The told the faithful.
He warned that modern celebrations sometimes drift away from the values that honour womanhood. According to him, festivities that involve excessive drinking, indecent behaviour or actions that undermine personal respect contradict the very purpose of the day.
Instead, he urged women to celebrate with pride, responsibility and faith.
By linking the global celebration to the Gospel story, Rev Fr Alphonse The said the Church was reminding believers that the dignity of women does not come from public recognition alone but from a life rooted in truth and faith.
The call came as communities around the world observed this year’s International Women’s Day under the theme “Rights, Justice, Action for all Women and Girls.”
By Bakah Derick for Hilltopvoices Web
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