The Bishop of Kabale Diocese, Rt. Rev. Callist Rubaramira, has called on Catholic priests to renew their commitment to the service of God among his people and take keen interest in the growing influence of prosperity gospel teachings and different political ideologies.
The bishop made the remarks on Holy Tuesday while addressing priests of Kabale Diocese during the celebration of Chrism Mass at Our Lady of Good Shepherd Rushoroza Cathedral on Rushoroza Hill, the seat of Catholic faith in Kigezi region.
He thanked the priests for their active participation in the ministry in different capacities as parish priests, assistant priests and office bearers in diocesan departments. He said it was important to renew their commitment to the Lord.
Bishop Rubaramira said many new churches are emerging and attracting Christians with teachings that link financial prosperity to faith declarations, donations and tithes. “Many churches are starting up daily preaching the prosperity gospel,” the Bishop said, noting that “some of these churches go as far as selling different types of ‘anointing oils’ at varying prices while promising miracles and financial breakthroughs to believers”.
He challenged priests to reflect on why some Catholics are leaving the Church for such ministries and urged them to find lasting pastoral solutions. “As priests we must interest ourselves in investigating why exactly our people are going to such churches,” he said.
Bishop Rubaramira noted that the appeal to such teachings is largely driven by widespread poverty and desperation among people seeking financial relief. Instead of relying on miracle promises, the bishop encouraged priests to guide believers towards practical solutions such as hard work, entrepreneurship and financial discipline.
“Our people must be encouraged to work hard, start small-scale businesses and projects to improve their household incomes. They must learn to save and develop financial discipline rather than following misleading teachings – Bishop Callist Rubaramira.
Beyond the issue of prosperity gospel, the bishop also called on priests to understand global political ideologies and their impact on society, noting that ideological conflicts have contributed to many wars across the world.
Bishop Callist noted that different countries and people hold different political ideologies, and many of these have led to wars that affect innocent citizens and that as servants of Christ, priests must guide with wisdom and care so that they can become instruments of peace.
While preaching during Mass, Msgr John Vianney Sunday, the Vicar General of Kabale Diocese thanked the priests for their availability to serve God among his people.
Priests are not anointed or ordained for status but for the service of God among his people where service is fulfilled in sacrifice hinged on love, and all this is possible because of their alignment to Christ. He reiterated that priests are called to be men of prayer remembering that they belong to Christ, a perfect example of servant leader.
Msgr. Sunday affirmed that Chrism Mass demonstrates the unity of all priests together with their Bishop, renewing their commitment to the Lord in front of their Bishop, a reminder that they cannot do anything on their own without the Lord’s intervention.
“Even if we possess all gifts for priesthood, if we don’t have Christ as our hinge, we become false prophets – Msgr. John Vianney Sunday.
We ask the Lord to grant us power to celebrate sacraments, power to pray for his people, power to do the Apostolate. We are called to remain with the Lord. He also appealed to the community of the Faithful to fulfill its obligation to pray for their priests and support their in their ministry.
Msgr. John Vianney Sunday recounted the words of Pope Leo XIV, while writing to the priests of Madrid by emphasized the role of priesthood in leading people to an encounter with God. Pope Leo XIV thus writes:
Dear sons, allow me today to speak to you about the priesthood using an image that is very familiar to you: your Cathedral. Not to describe a building, but to learn from it. Because cathedrals – like any sacred place – exist, like the priesthood, to lead us to an encounter with God and reconciliation with our brothers and sisters, and their elements contain a lesson for our life and ministry.
When we contemplate its façade, we already learn something essential. It is the first thing we see, and yet it does not say everything: it indicates, suggests, invites. So too, the priest does not live to display himself, but neither does he live to hide himself. His life is called to be visible, consistent and recognizable, even if it is not always understood. The façade does not exist for itself: it leads to the interior. In the same way, the priest is never an end in himself. His whole life is called to refer to God and to accompany the passage towards the Mystery, without usurping its place.
The cathedral is also a common home, where everyone has a place. This is what the Church is called to be, especially for her priests: a home that welcomes, protects and does not abandon. And this is how priestly fraternity should be lived: as the concrete experience of knowing that we are at home, responsible for one another, attentive to the life of our brother and ready to support one another. My children, no one should feel exposed or alone in the exercise of their ministry: resist together the individualism that impoverishes the heart and weakens the mission!”
The priests renewed their vows and commitment to the Lord to serve his people as was on the day of Ordination. This was followed by blessing of the Holy oils for the sick and catechumens and consecration of Sacred Chrism.
Chrism Mass is principally celebrated on Holy Thursday in the morning marking Jesus’ institution of the sacrament of Holy Orders but due to pastoral needs, this Mass can be celebrated on any day in the Holy Week not going beyond Holy Thursday, a reason why Kabale Diocese chose to celebrate it on Holy Tuesday.
The exercise of blessing and conservation of Holy Oils is done only once in a year (during Chrism Mass alone) and each priest in the Diocese receives a portion of the newly blessed and consecrated oils to last for one year.