Summary:
- Bishop Eciru urged the confirmed, most of whom were pupils and students, to continue seeking God’s guidance to enable them to proclaim Christianity and be witnesses of Jesus Christ.
KATAKWI: A total of 600 Christians were confirmed into the Catholic faith as St. Ann Catholic Parish celebrated its 73rd anniversary in Katakwi district.
The day was celebrated under the theme, “Rooted in Faith, Growing in Grace” (Eph. 3:16-17, 14:15-16).
The Sacrament of Confirmation was presided over by Rt. Rev. Dr. Joseph Oliach Eciru, the Bishop of Soroti Catholic Diocese, at an event held at St. Ann Catholic Church in Usuk Parish, Usuk Sub County, Usuk County, on July 26, 2024.
The event was graced by various political leaders, including Vice President Maj. (Rtd) Jessica Alupo, who also serves as the Woman MP for Katakwi district. It also saw ten couples receiving the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony.
In his sermon, Bishop Eciru urged the confirmed, most of whom were pupils and students, to continue seeking God’s guidance to enable them to proclaim Christianity and be witnesses of Jesus Christ.
He encouraged Christians to pray and fast whenever they face problems, as the Bible advises.
“We need to be serious with our faith because the Bible has all the guidance and answers to any query,” the Bishop said.
He counseled the newly wedded couples to always consult each other to ensure peaceful marriages.
“Men have to respect their wives. There’s a need for mutual understanding between man and woman to have a respectable family,” the Bishop added.
Vice President Alupo congratulated the confirmands and couples, urging them to love each other like brothers and sisters for peace to prevail.
“Christians should be truthful, modest, respectable, and value other people,” she said.
She encouraged Christians to preach the gospel of wealth creation so that communities embrace government programs like Emyooga and the Parish Development Model to create wealth and alleviate poverty.
She explained that through the Parish Development Model, for example, agriculture will be transformed from subsistence farming to commercial agriculture.
She encouraged the congregation to embrace and actively participate in all wealth creation programs to eradicate poverty in households.
The Vice President assured the faithful that the government will continue to ensure the maintenance of peace and security across the country, and the construction of necessary social and economic infrastructure, including roads, hospitals, and schools, to facilitate and attract local and foreign investments, creating jobs and incomes for Ugandans.
She thanked the Catholic Church for maintaining a cordial relationship and partnership with the NRM government in working towards the socio-economic transformation of Ugandan society.
The Vice President urged communities to plant trees to combat climate change. She also encouraged the population to utilize the rains to avoid future losses.
She made a further contribution of Shs 30 million towards the construction of Regina Caeli Cathedral and congratulated St. Ann on its 73rd anniversary.
Bosco Okiror, the MP for Usuk County, called upon Christians to uphold peace, unity, and reconciliation in families as they follow God’s ways, just as Jesus urged his disciples to live in peace after his resurrection.
