Kabale Diocese continues with Bishop’s Annual Appeal Fund (BAAF) in Rubanda District. This was held on Sunday, September 10, 2023 at Immaculate Heart of Mary Rubanda Parish in Rubanda Deanery. This Deanery is comprised of 5 parishes namely: Kakore, Rubanda, Kabirizi, Muko and Kishanje. A total of 178.9 million shillings was raised both in cash and pledges
Preaching during Mass, the Vicar General Kabale Diocese, Msgr John Vianney Sunday said it takes much humility and a pure heart to confront another person with their sin in such a way that they listen and repent. Normally, confronting another with their sin is done more out of anger than it is out of love. We ought not confront another with their sin out of our woundedness and a desire to inflict guilt as retribution. We ought not confront another to humiliate them or harm them. We should only bring up another’s sin because we love them and have already forgiven them and now want them free of their sin for their own good. When this happens and when this is our sole motivation, another might more easily receive correction.
This passage gives three successive levels of confronting a person. First, it must be done one-on-one. Second, it is done with two or three others. Third, it is done in the presence of the Church. Try, at first, to set aside the second and third approach and only look at the first one. The goal of this one-on-one confrontation is reconciliation. It is good to put much energy into reflecting upon how well you do with this sort of situation because if you can do it well, there will be no need for the second or third form of confrontation.
The number one enemy of reconciliation is pride. Pride is a habit by which we think about ourselves first and foremost, or even exclusively in the most serious cases. Pride makes self-evaluation impossible. We become blind to our sin and are agitated the moment it is identified or causes problems. Of course, the opposite of pride is humility. This is the virtue that enables us to forget about ourselves and have concern only for others. When a person grows in humility, the evil one will always tempt them with thoughts such as: What about you? You are right and they are wrong! This is unfair! You shouldn’t be treated this way! These tempting thoughts must always be rejected. To the person who has pride, humility will seem foolish. But humility is true wisdom. He warned those people who go on social media to tarnish the name of others and implored them to apply fraternal correction.
The Bishop Annual Appeal Fund was initiated by Bishop Rubaramira in 2009, as they have been holding annual fundraising events where money is collected to help with church projects. Dr. Peter Ngategize, Chairman, Bishop Annual Appeal Fund (BAAF Sais), said that the Diocese resolved this year to fundraise for the diocesan university that is to be located at the former St. St Mary’s Boys Primary School at Rushoroza along the Kabale Katuna road.
He says that the National Council for Higher Education has already given them provisional license to start a university and has already allowed them to begin with five programs: Bachelor of Tourism, Heritage and Hospitality, Business Administration, Diploma in Laboratory Technology, and Tourism and Hotel Management. He said that the target to be raised during 2023 BAAF campaign is Ugx 3 billion. A grand event is scheduled for November 25, 2023, to crown the campaign after mobilizing funds from all districts that make up Kabale Diocese.
In his remarks, Rt. Rev. Callist Rubaramira, Bishop of Kabale Diocese said that he considered the project of the establishment of the university for this year’s BAAF to ease the accessibility of higher educational institutions in the Kigezi Sub-region as well as strengthen education in the Diocese. He said that Kabale Diocese has given out ten acres of land located in Kitumba Sub County, Kabale District to St. Ignatius University to aid the Faculty of Agriculture in carrying out research that will help farmers acquire knowledge on how to use their small pieces of land profitably.
Hon. Henry Musasizi, State Minister for Finance in charge of General Duties and MP for Rubanda East, who served as the chief guest commended the Catholic Church for initiating development projects that aligned with the government’s development agenda to fight unemployment. He said that the government has put measures in place to provide good education to the people of Uganda, a reason for the establishment of a public university. He stated that St. Ignatius University Kabale will supplement government efforts to providing good education to the people of Uganda. He contributed 20 million cash and a pledge of 20 million from Rt. Hon Anita Among, Speaker of Ugandan parliament.