Kasese Catholic Diocese's Historic Return to Animate Martyrs Day Celebrations Postponed

The Kasese Catholic Diocese was selected to animate Uganda Martyrs Day celebrations at Namugongo this year, a role they last held in 2005. This significant spiritual undertaking for the diocese was unfortunately postponed following President Museveni’s announcement of an Ebola outbreak, which occurred during the final preparation stages.

The Uganda Episcopal Conference had entrusted the organization of this year’s event to the Archdiocese of Mbarara, which then designated Kasese Diocese to represent its provincial members, including Fort Portal, Hoima, and Kabale. The selection was seen as historic, especially with Bishop Emeritus Egidio Nkaijanabwo, who led the 2005 celebrations, still alive to witness his successor take the helm.

The diocese had prepared under the theme “Christ is Alive in You and Me,” drawn from Galatians 2:19-20, intended to guide pilgrims. The growth of the Kasese Diocese since its establishment in 1989 has been remarkable, expanding from nine indigenous priests and six missionary priests to over 70 diocesan priests, alongside 13 parishes and two pastoral centers.

Rev. Fr. Landus Bwambale, the Vicar General, clarified that the Catholic faith’s roots in Kasese trace back to Mbarara Archdiocese, not the Democratic Republic of Congo. The faith spread through Lugazi Parish, with a priest named Fr. Yohana Balyebuga establishing the first Catholic church in Nsenyi in the 1930s. Augustino Muhindo, baptized in 1939, became the first Mukonzo Catholic priest, instrumental in spreading the faith across Kasese’s challenging terrain.

By the 1970s, after Kasese became a district, calls grew for its separation from Fort Portal Diocese. Insurgency in the 1980s further complicated oversight, making frequent visits by the then-Bishop Sarpio Magambo difficult.