Pastoral Formation and Workshops
Let Your Light Shine! (Matthew 5:16) | Annual Youth Festival
The Youth Festival, which had been taking place for three consecutive days (from Nehase 21 to 23 / August 27 to 29) in the Apostolic Vicariate of Soddo of the Ethiopian Catholic Church, concluded with a grand celebration of the Holy Mass and a solemn blessing.
At this spiritual gathering attended by more than 1,200 young people, Rev. Fr. Alemayehu Fola shared the Word of God and delivered a profound message, encouraging everyone to "bear witness to our Catholic identity."
Leading the Holy Mass, His Excellency Bishop Dejene Hidoto, Vicar Apostolic of the Soddo , delivered the following fatherly message to the youth during the closing ceremony:
"Dear youth, beyond keeping what you have learned from this festival merely in photos and videos, strive to keep it in your hearts and lives; let your lives be a testimony. Do not be passive observers; rather, be people of solutions and service. The Church needs your creativity, courage, and hope. Therefore, when you return to your parishes, do not hide your faith; bear witness to it and be true to yourselves.
To gain the strength to do this, read the Word of God; be strengthened through Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, and do not forget the Sacrament of Confession.
Recalling the message shared by Pope Leo XIV, I also say to you: use technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI) for good, and be witnesses of Christ in the digital world.
Finally, like Saint Francis, ask yourselves, 'Lord, what do You want me to do?' and embrace the answer the Lord gives you as your life's calling."
Lastly, heartfelt gratitude was expressed to all those who contributed to the festival's grand success: Youth Coordinator Rev. Fr. Abebe Mega, Pastoral Coordinator Rev. Fr. Matewos Tegegne, Rev. Fr. Alemayehu Fola and Fr. Tadeos Ayano for nurturing the youth with the Word of God, the reverend priests, sisters, and nuns who served during the Mass, singer Biniyam Afework and the members of Pison Choir, Eyasu Kolaso, Amanuel Arja, the coordinators, and all the young people who actively participated.
Under the project "Holistic Formation of Catholic Youth in Soddo Vicariate II," a three-day Catholic Youth Catechism (YOUCAT) training organized by the Ethiopian Catholic Church Apostolic Vicariate of Soddo has successfully concluded.
A total of 65 youth representing 33 parishes actively participated in the program.The training officially opened with prayers and blessings from His Grace Bishop Abune Dejene Hidoto, Vicar Apostolic of Soddo. The sessions were conducted by Rev. Fr. Worku Demeke, Head of Konto Abba Pascal TVET School.During their three-day stay, the youth gained valuable insights on key topics: What We Believe (Foundations of Faith) How We Celebrate Christian Mysteries How We Can Have Life in Christ How We Should PrayIn his closing message, Abune Dejene Hidoto encouraged the youth to share and teach what they learned to others upon returning to their respective parishes.
Special thanks to Missio for their generous support of this project !
በሶዶ ሀገረስብከት ለወጣቶች የ "YOUCAT" ሥልጠና ተሰጠ!
በኢትዮጵያ ካቶሊካዊት ቤተክርስቲያን በሶዶ ሀገረስብከት "Holistic formation of Catholic Youth in Soddo Vicariate II" ፕሮጀክት ስር የተዘጋጀው የሦስት ቀናት የካቶሊክ ቤተክርስቲያን የወጣቶች ትምህርተ ክርስቶስ (YOUCAT) ሥልጠና ተጠናቀቀ።
በሥልጠናው ከ33 ቁምስናዎች የተወጣጡ 65 ወጣቶች ተሳታፊ ሆነዋል።የሥልጠናው መርሃ ግብር በብፁዕ አባታችን አቡነ ደጀኔ ሂዶቶ (የሶዶ ሀገረስብከት ጳጳስ) ጸሎትና ቡራኬ የተጀመረ ሲሆን፤ ሥልጠናውን ክቡር አባ ወርቁ ደመቀ የቆንቶ አባ ፓስካል TVET ትምህርት ቤት ኃላፊ ሰጥተዋል።ወጣቶቹ በሶስት ቀናት ቆይታቸው በነዚህ ዋና ዋና ነጥቦች ላይ ግንዛቤ አግኝተዋል፦
#ምን እንደምናምን (የእምነታችን መሠረት)
#የክርስትና ምስጢራትን እንዴት እንደምናከናውን
#በክርስቶስ ሕይወት እንዴት ሊኖረን ይችላል
#እንዴት መጸለይ እንዳለብን
በመጨረሻም አቡነ ደጀኔ ሂዶቶ ለወጣቶች ባስተላለፉት መልእክት፤ ወጣቶች የተማሩትን ትምህርት ወደ ቁምስናቸው ሲመለሱ ለሌሎች ወጣቶች እንዲያስተምሩና እንዲያካፍሉ አሳስበዋል።
A 4-Day Teen STAR TOT (Training of Trainers) Successfully Concluded!
We are thrilled to announce the successful completion of an inspiring 4-day Teen STAR TOT workshop, organized by the Holistic Formation of Youths in Soddo Vicariate Project!The training brought together 19 dedicated teachers, staff members, and representatives from Dubbo St. Mary, Don Bosco, Konto Abba Pascal, Boditi St. Anna School, Caritas Soddo Office, and youth coordinators from the Vicariate.Led by three expert facilitators from National Teen STAR in Ethiopia, the capacity-building session covered key topics including: #Psychological Development#Male & Female Anatomy#Natural Family Planning#Theology of Body#Charting
#Unlike traditional sessions, this workshop was highly interactive and enriched with dynamic visual guides (pictorials), making complex concepts simple to understand and remember! #Participants expressed great satisfaction with the training and requested online follow-up sessions to keep the momentum going.#At the closing, Project Coordinator Mrs. Metasebia Thomas expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the facilitators Dr. Tium Debesay, Mrs. Selam G/Medhin, and Mr. Hafatom Haile for their exceptional competence, thorough preparation, and clear delivery throughout the training.#TeenSTAR_Ethiopia #CaritasSoddo #Teens #TeenSTAR
Apostolic_Vicariate_of_Soddo_Concludes_Landmark_Three-Day Resource Mobilization Training for Diocesan Priests
Under the leadership of His Excellency Bishop Dejene Hidoto, Apostolic Vicar of Soddo, diocesan priests successfully concluded a landmark three-day professional training focused on resource mobilization and institutional sustainability.
Initiated through the Bishop’s strong commitment to self-reliance and long-term sustainability, the program marked a strategic shift from traditional fundraising approaches toward a broader and more sustainable resource mobilization framework.
#A unique feature of the training was Bishop Dejene’s daily biblical reflections, which thoughtfully connected professional development with scriptural teachings, strengthening participants’ sense of mission and pastoral responsibility.
Throughout the three-day training, priests actively participated in experience-sharing sessions and reflective discussions, leading to a renewed understanding of their own value as the Vicariate’s most important resource.
Facilitated by Mr. Mamo Beriso Development Program Director at Spiritan Community Outreach Ethiopia (SCORE), participants collaboratively developed a strategic roadmap aligned with the Apostolic Vicariate of Soddo Strategic Plan.
The priests expressed deep appreciation for the training, describing it as both empowering and transformative. They also formally requested the continuation of similar capacity-building initiatives to further strengthen the long-term institutional and spiritual sustainability of the Vicariate.In recognition of his valuable contribution and outstanding facilitation of the training, His Excellency Bishop Dejene Hidoto presented a certificate of recognition to Mr. Mamo Beriso.