Nyerere beatification prayers kick off martyrs celebrations
http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/-/688334/1173464/-/c0w8tdz/-/index.html
By Emmanuel Mulondo
Posted Thursday, June 2 2011 at 00:00
Celebrations to mark the Uganda Martyrs Day began yesterday with prayers for the beatification of late Tanzanian President Mwalimu Julius Nyerere. A special service held at the Namugongo Catholic Shrine, was directed to God to “accept intercession through the late Nyerere”.
If a Christian’s problem is solved after praying through Nyerere’s intercession, the former president will be on course to beatification, a first step to canonisation or sainthood.Hoima Diocese Bishop Emeritus Edward Baharagate led the service on the day now annually celebrated by Tanzania as Nyerere Day.
Those who attended included President Museveni, Tanzanian Premier Mzengo Peter Pinda, Charles Makongoro Nyerere – son of the late President, the Rev. Fr. Alfred Kwene, who represented Bukoba Diocesean Bishop Methodius Kilaini, and Mr Mamerito Mugerwa, the Mayor of Kira Town Council, in Namugongo parish, where the Uganda Martyrs were burnt to death. Christians from Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, also in attended.
President Museveni described the late Nyerere as the “the greatest black man” who practiced Christianity by caring for all people. He commended Nyerere for his effort towards political and economic emancipation of Tanzania and Africa at large and also for promoting literacy through the introduction of universal education and establishing Dar-es-Salaam University.
The President said Africa is getting out of darkness through education.
“We shall continue coming to Namugongo to pray for the beautification and finally for Mwalimu’s canonisation. If we continue knocking and asking, Rome will open for us,” President Museveni said.
Meanwhile, pilgrims who started arriving on Monday for the event, continued streaming in from different areas of Uganda and other countries. Some walked while others travelled in taxis and buses.
“This year, we are expecting between 700,000 and one million pilgrims,” Fr Joseph Mukasa Muwonge, the promoter of the Namugongo Martyrs Shrine project said. The rotational leadership of the celebrations this year falls to Arua Diocese of Uganda. Moroto Diocese led last year while Kabale Diocese was in charge in 2009.
As a security precaution, police this time have proscribed erection of makeshift stalls by business people and food vendors.
Nyerere is greatest African - Museveni
Wednesday, 1st June, 2011
By RAYMOND BAGUMA
and JEFF LULE
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has described Tanzania’s first President Julius Nyerere as the greatest black man he had met. Museveni added that he deserves to be made a saint by the Catholic Church.
“I am happy when I speak of Nyerere because I am his supporter. I said he was the greatest black man that ever lived. There are other black men such as Mandela, Kwame Nkrumah; but Nyerere is the greatest black man that ever lived,” Museveni said yesterday.
He was speaking during prayers at Namugongo Uganda Martyrs’ shrine organised by the Catholic Church to intercede for the beatification of the former Tanzanian leader.
The congregation included pilgrims from Tanzania, led by Nyerere’s wife Maria, and son Charles Lwanga Makongoro.
Every year, special prayers are conducted at Namugongo on June 1, to pray for the beautification and eventual canonisation of Nyerere.
The prayers precede the June 3 Martyr’s Day.
The mass was led by the retired Hoima diocese bishop, Edward Baharagate and the Arua diocese bishop, Sabino Ocan Odoki.
The rector of the Catholic Martyrs’ shrine, Fr. Deogratius Ssonko, asked Museveni to recognise the slain martyrs as national heroes during the upcoming June 9, Heroes Day commemoration.
Tanzania’s minister of state in the prime minister’s office Mary Nagu, who represented the Tanzanian Government, hailed Museveni and the Catholic Church for praying for the beautification of their former president.
Listing his attributes, Museveni said Nyerere was involved in the spiritual, political, cultural and economic struggles to free Tanzania, East Africa and Africa.
Referring to himself as a witness of Nyerere’s deeds, Museveni said in 1970s, when he was 26 years old, Nyerere helped in fighting Idi Amin even when other officials ignored him.
He said Nyerere had pioneered education in his country, having travelled from Musoma in Tanzania to study at Makerere University and later returned to his country to teach.
“Tanzania did not have a university until Mwalimu (Nyerere) was chief minister before independence when Dar es Salaam University was started. He introduced free education,” Museveni said.
Nyerere is unique. We shall continue coming to Namugongo every June 1, to pray for the beatification and eventual canonisation. A country without a vision would perish. Mwalimu had a vision for Africa,” Museveni added.
He said while Nyerere was involved in the economic emancipation of Africa, there were people who argued that Africans needed to remain enslaved.
Museveni described Namugongo as a place that represents a spiritual struggle. “As the new message of the christian religion came and it was in conflict with some of the bad practices of the kings of Buganda.”
He said when Kabaka Mwanga captured the Christian converts, he gave them a condition to abandon their new-found religion if he were to spare their lives.
However, the converts chose death, he added.
Museveni also said in a similar way, Uganda experienced a political struggle, which is commemorated on June 9, in honour of people who chose to die, instead of revealing freedom fighters’ hideouts.
