Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA
As the annual Uganda Marty’s day draws near, celebration which is normally attended by thousands of Christians from all walks of life, will this year be attended by a few Christians following the restrictions on mass gathering to curb the spread of Coronavirus.
“In the Archdiocese of Kampala, celebrations involving a few chosen people will be held at the Uganda Martyrs’ Shrine, Namugongo on Wednesday 3rd June 2020,” Archbishop Cyprian Kizito Lwanga stated in a statement released Saturday, May 23.
“This year, the Uganda Episcopal Conference made the historic and momentous decision to suspend public celebrations of the Solemnity of the Uganda Martyrs’ Day at Namugongo,” the Local Ordinary of Kampala Archdiocese explained.
He added, “Nevertheless, as stated by the Chairman of the Uganda Episcopal Conference in his 30th April 2020 Press Release, Uganda Martyrs’ Day celebrations can be organized at Diocesan level.
The Chairman of Uganda Episcopal Conference (UEC) Bishop Joseph Antony Zziwa stated in his statement released last month that “With the virus still alive in many countries including Uganda, it is not certain when restrictions on gatherings and movements will be lifted. Even if the government of Uganda were to lift the ban today, there would not be enough time to prepare for the event,” he said.
Being that only a few chosen people will attend the celebration Archbishop Kizito said, “The celebrations will be broadcast on various social and electronic media platforms in order to reach the faithful and enable them to follow and pray from their homes.”
Archbishop Cyprian Kizito Lwanga declared a nine days novena prior to the Uganda Martyr’s celebration for Christians to ask for Gods intervention through their intercession especially for the sick, those who have been affected by natural calamities and for health practitioners who are in the frontline offering services and helping in preventing the spread of Coronavirus.
“The solemn commencement of the Novena will take place on Ascension Sunday, 24th May 2020,” Archbishop Kizito disclosed adding that “e-book has been arranged to assist all Christians in prayer during the Novena to the Uganda Martyrs.”
“Let us pray this Novena to the Uganda Martyrs’ in our homes and continue to ask for their intercession for the sick and dying, for those caring for them, for those working to minimize the impact of COVID-19, for those who have been displaced due to the floods in various parts of the country, for those who have lost their crops and food due to the locusts in the north-eastern part of Uganda, and for God’s protection against all these hazards,” he urged.
The Archbishop recalled the “coming of the Missionaries of Africa” and said, “We thank God that through the grace of the Holy Spirit, their pastoral work bore fruits in the martyrdom and canonization of their first converts. Our faith and life are rooted in the blood of the martyrs. They are our intercessors before God and our models in Christian life.”