Comment
The rebellion against
the Catholic Church in Uganda seems to
be increasing day by day. For a very long time , the catholic church was unquestionable.
No catholic faithful would dare raise a finger against a catholic bishop or
against the catholic system. Not anymore!! A couple of weeks ago, catholic lay persons in
Arua rose against the sitting bishop and ended up burning a temporary praying
shelter. I think God is smashing the witchcraft
of the catholic church that has
been used to hold Catholics under boundage. Surely, one can not sit under a
satanic system like the catholic unless under a spiritual spell. Praise God, a
number of people are going to leave the catholic church and get saved. It must
be noted that the charismatic Catholics have not yet left the catholic church .
You cannot leave a certain house and stay in the sitting or court yard(compound
). These so called charismatic Catholics are not born again yet. There is no
way a spirit filled born again person can continue to sit under the error of the satanic catholic church.
A number of them will exit and get born again, never to return.
More Catholic priests rebel against Archbishop Lwanga
http://observer.ug/news-headlines/46659-more-catholic-priests-rebel-against-archbishop-lwanga
Written by Sadab Kitatta Kaaya
The Roman Catholic Church in Uganda is
facing a tough test as more priests walk away from the mainstream,
threatening the harmony and discipline it has always been associated
with.
At Lubaga, the seat of Kampala
Archdiocese, there are fears that the growing resentment among priests
towards Archbishop Dr Cyprian Kizito Lwanga’s leadership could lead to
an Arua-like scenario.
A source at Lubaga told The Observer on
Friday that the number of disenchanted priests has grown over what they
call the archbishop’s high-handedness.
“What happened in Arua is not far from
happening at Lubaga because of the way the archdiocese is being
managed,” the source said.
On September 22, a combined force of
regular and military police fought running battles with angry Christians
at Ediofe cathedral in Arua. The Christians who converged overnight
wanted to evict the Arua diocesan bishop Sabino Ocan Odoki who they
accuse of mismanaging the diocesan affairs.
Bishop Odoki too has a trail of bad
relations with priests under him. Some rebel priests in Kampala
archdiocese have chosen to take a low profile while others have defected
and joined charismatic preacher Fr Jacinto Kibuuka, who was suspended
from the Catholic Church in July.
Notable among the defectors is Fr Dr
Vincent Kibuuka Byansi, who previously headed Caritas Kampala, a church
organisation involved in socio-economic development activities. Others
are Fr Deogratius Ssonko and Fr Anthony Ssewanyana.
Byansi, Ssonko and Ssewanyana are openly
working with Kibuuka at his Mamre ministries, which subscribes to the
Antiochian (Eastern) rite of the Catholic Church as opposed to the
Western rite to which the Roman Catholic Church subscribes.
On September 22, Byansi, Ssonko and
Ssewanyana escorted Fr Kibuuka to Kibuku district where he opened his
first upcountry prayer centre at Kagumu. The session drew thousands of
people and galvanized Fr Kibuuka’s following.
Byansi’s defection shocked many at
Lubaga because he was known to be close to Lwanga. The two worked
together in Kasana-Luweero diocese before Lwanga was appointed Kampala
archbishop. Speaking to The Observer on Saturday, Byansi accused Lwanga
of misusing his powers under the church’s canon law.
“The major weakness of the code of canon
law is giving too much power to a bishop and when a bishop misuses such
power, it causes problems like what we saw in Arua,” Fr Byansi said.
“When talking about dictators, we should
not only talk about African presidents but also leaders in other
institutions and organizations; this is what the archbishop has become,
and that is why he is taking decisions that can be bad for the church,”
Fr Byansi added.
Byansi disagreed with Lwanga over the
suspension of his colleague, Fr Kibuuka. He told The Observer that
before Lwanga announced Kibuuka’s suspension from all priestly duties,
he (Byansi) had been pushing for dialogue.
“The decision [to suspend Fr Kibuuka]
was influenced by a small clique around the archbishop, which we didn’t
agree with because we believed that this matter could have been resolved
through dialogue,” Byansi said.
CHURCH IS NO PRISON
CHURCH IS NO PRISON
Interviewed on Saturday, the chancellor
of Kampala archdiocese, Rev Fr Joseph Mary Ssebunya, said the
archdiocesan leadership was not aware of priests joining Fr Kibuuka.
“We don’t have that information because
they have not officially communicated to us, but the church is not a
prison; it is a pity [that they have left] but we pray for them that at
some time they will come back,” Ssebunya said.
He prayed that what transpired in Arua does not come to Kampala.
“The church wants peace and wouldn’t
want to see a repeat of that (Arua protests)…if it happens, it will of
course be unchristian because that is not what the church preaches,”
Ssebunya added.
Apart from his leadership changes that
left some priests not impressed, Archbishop Lwanga is also accused of
frustrating independent-minded priests. Some priests are reportedly
unhappy with the new policy that requires those who receive donations
from their foreign benefactors to remit at least 15 per cent to the
church.
According to the source, some foreign
benefactors, unhappy with the policy, have decided to keep their
donations, leaving many priests broke.
“Besides, the archbishop wants all
[bank] accounts for schools, hospitals and all projects to be
centralized and put under his watch,” our source said.
To stamp out dissent, Archbishop Lwanga has been making changes, replacing priests he suspects to be disobedient.
“There is a feeling among priests that
some priests were posted to ‘juicy’ parishes while those that are seen
to be disloyal were sent to poor parishes,” said the source.
Among the appointments that raised
suspicion was that of Monsignor Lawrence Ssemusu Lugoloobi, who has been
elevated to second vicar general responsible for shrines, worship and
priests.
He has been the episcopal vicar for
education and also the moderator of the archdiocesan curia (top
officials of the archdiocese). Some insiders saw this appointment as a
step towards quashing the charismatic movement within the church.
With more priests joining him, Fr
Kibuuka has embarked on expanding his ministry. Kibuuka is reportedly
planning to open another centre in Kasese soon.Gunfire at Ediofe cathedral, Christians attack bishop’s home
http://observer.ug/news-headlines/46594-gunfire-at-ediofe-cathedral-as-christians-attack-bishop-s-home
Written by URN
Police was today forced to fire
bullets in air and teargas at an angry mob that attempted to raid the
home of Rt Rev Sabino Ocan Odoki, the Bishop of Arua diocese near Ediofe
cathedral.
The mob accuses Bishop Odoki of ‘neglecting’ the late Bishop Fredrick Drandua, who succumbed to high blood pressure and diabetes on September 1. The chaos is said to have started yesterday evening when police moved in to arrest Christians who were ‘guarding’ the grave of the late Bishop Fredrick Drandua and calling for the transfer of Bishop Odoki.
James Okuni, a parishioner of Ediofe parish, says police arrested over 16 suspects, prompting Christians to ring the church bells - attracting even more angry people.
The mob accuses Bishop Odoki of ‘neglecting’ the late Bishop Fredrick Drandua, who succumbed to high blood pressure and diabetes on September 1. The chaos is said to have started yesterday evening when police moved in to arrest Christians who were ‘guarding’ the grave of the late Bishop Fredrick Drandua and calling for the transfer of Bishop Odoki.
James Okuni, a parishioner of Ediofe parish, says police arrested over 16 suspects, prompting Christians to ring the church bells - attracting even more angry people.
As a result, the residents moved in and
smashed the windowpanes of the parish block, burnt documents and
destroyed the temporary prayer structure as the cathedral is still under
renovation.
They tried to raid the bishop's house, prompting military and police guards to open fire leading to running battles. Currently, more officers from the police and army have deployed at the cathedral to contain the situation.
They tried to raid the bishop's house, prompting military and police guards to open fire leading to running battles. Currently, more officers from the police and army have deployed at the cathedral to contain the situation.
In the morning, a group of Christians
armed with placards calling for the removal of Bishop of Odoki attempted
to march to Arua central police station to demand the unconditional
release of their colleagues in police custody but were blocked by the
army and police.
Monsignor Casto Adetmi, the Ediofe parish priest has called for dialogue with the warring parties to address their concerns.
Monsignor Casto Adetmi, the Ediofe parish priest has called for dialogue with the warring parties to address their concerns.
“Of course we were all in the same
compound with the bishop. We shall also see how we can relate this to
the general security of the place of Ediofe. Certainly, we shall do
something. As I said, we are still yet to meet and see what we can do.
Right now there is a lot of insecurity, it is also difficult for people
to come in. So we wait for this situation quell first. Of course we are
open to dialogue, that is the mature way of solving problems, to listen
to all sides of the problem and try to solve. But we are not encouraging
mob action because with mob, it is very difficult to dialogue”, Adetmi
said.
Haji Ibrahim Saiga, the West Nile regional police commander and Arua district police commander, Jonathan Musinguzu declined to comment on the attack, saying are still busy coordinating the operations to protect church property from further destruction.
Today's chaos, comes a few days after Saiga penned a letter to the inspector general of police, Kale Kayihura saying there is need for the Vatican and Catholic church in Uganda to move Bishop Odoki from the diocese given the rising hostility towards him.
He also asked the authorities to neutralize Martin Andua, the leader of the group opposed to the Bishop if the tension in the diocese is to be addressed. According to police reports, Kayihura flew to Arua today morning in a bid to quell the tensions.
Haji Ibrahim Saiga, the West Nile regional police commander and Arua district police commander, Jonathan Musinguzu declined to comment on the attack, saying are still busy coordinating the operations to protect church property from further destruction.
Today's chaos, comes a few days after Saiga penned a letter to the inspector general of police, Kale Kayihura saying there is need for the Vatican and Catholic church in Uganda to move Bishop Odoki from the diocese given the rising hostility towards him.
He also asked the authorities to neutralize Martin Andua, the leader of the group opposed to the Bishop if the tension in the diocese is to be addressed. According to police reports, Kayihura flew to Arua today morning in a bid to quell the tensions.
