UGANDA: Church Needs To Re-strategize on Evangelization
The rapid growth of Islamic religion, problems of atheism, secularism and religious indifference are among the greatest threats the Catholic Church in Uganda is currently grappling with and therefore a great need to restrategize on evangelization work especially from grassroots levels, says Rev. Fr. Benedict Ssetuuma, the Academic Dean of St. Mary’s National Major Seminary in Ggaba-Uganda
He said this during the opening of a joint workshop organized by the AMECEA Pastoral Department in collaboration with St. Mary’s National Major Seminary, and St. Mbaaga Major Seminary. The workshop which is on the Animation and Facilitation of Small Christian Communities (SCC) began on Thursday, February 28 and is ending on Sunday, March 3.
“As you are aware, the Church is highly threatened. In Africa you will do well to remember that the greater part of the population is Muslim. The Muslims also have a program to Islamise the whole of Africa. They say that in the next 30 years they want Africa to be an Islamic continent and they might achieve this if we do not play our roles effectively,” Fr. Ssetuuma explained adding that strengthening the faith from the very grassroots will help to stop this kind of threats.
“You are preparing yourselves to go into God’s mission as mediators between Him (God) and his people. I rejoice because you are young, vibrant and full of life. The Church needs young people, young priests and young Religious men and women,” Fr. Ssetuuma expressed adding that it was his delight to have AMECEA Pastoral Department facilitating the workshop on Small Christian Communities as this is a sure way of securing the Church’s future.
Speaking during the same occasion, the Rector of St. Mbaaga Major Seminary Rev. Fr. Joseph Sserunjogi pointed out that the formation of a true local Church has to start from the bottom by building up Small Christian Communities.
“A Small Christian Community is a level at which the Church can concretely live and work. It is at this level, that the Church will be really present in the society at large and therefore the very level at which the self-support has to begin, otherwise the apostolate becomes very difficult,” Fr. Sserunjogi explained.
He further indicated that if the Church’s life and work is based first and foremost on this level, then self-ministering, self-propagation and self-supporting of the Church will be possible. Unless the faithful at grassroots level are convinced and participate fully, self-reliance of our local Churches will remain only a dream.
“With a small number of priests, and with less and less external financial aid, the Ugandan local Church must put more effort on formation of Small Christian Communities because in places where such are properly established and are functioning well, the situation is quite different.”
~End~
By Pamela Adinda, AMECEA Online News
