I was not the last member of the clergy to arrive for the procession, and so had the company of others who also had to robe in record time before moving swiftly to catch up with the procession which was by now nearing the entrance to the old cathedral.
The old cathedral has seen much better days and for some time the diocese has been advised to vacate the building for safety reasons. But that didn’t prevent one final act of worship in the crowded building for its de-consecration. The bishop acknowledged that some would be sad to see the end of the old cathedral, but the dominant mood was one of celebration. The singing was energetic, and thankfully the roof remained intact!
A final procession from the old cathedral led us out into bright sunlight. There were crowds of people, and accompanied by the sound of a brass band, drums and singing, the procession (by now more of a dance) passed between a guard of honour made up of the Mothers’ Union, members of the Boys’ and Girls’ Brigade, Guides and other uniformed organizations. We were headed for the new Cathedral about a quarter of a mile down the road past the Diocesan Office.
The West Door of the Cathedral was festooned with balloons and ribbons, but we didn’t enter. Instead, continuing to sing To God be the Glory, the procession was directed to ‘dance’ its way around the perimeter of the building - once only, not seven times - although the trumpets continued to sound in bravura fashion.
Arriving at the West Door for a second time we came to a halt. Bishop Joel knocked on the door three times with his staff - “The peace of God be in this house”. The crowd responded enthusiastically “Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!” and we entered the Cathedral, singing a Lugbara hymn – which some of us had to make up – or sing in tongues.
It took some time for the members of the congregation to take their places, but finally the service to consecrate the new cathedral began in earnest. If the service had been happening in a British cathedral, every move would have been worked out in minute detail and, probably, the printed orders of service would have been ready to be used in the service. But here there was a delightful spontaneity, aided by the fact that the Orders of Service didn’t appear until they were no longer needed
Up to two years ago Madi and West-Nile Diocese had been in some turmoil and in need of much love and healing. On this Advent Sunday in a new cathedral, a new beginning was made. Bishop Joel’s predecessor was present and God’s grace was apparent as Bishop Joel and he embraced one another. The Archbishop preached on the Parable of the Talents, congratulating the diocese on the work they had done to bring the cathedral to its present state of readiness. In fact the floor isn’t yet complete, and some windows and doors remain to be put in place, but in this condition it was a good parable in itself of a work in progress. I was reminded of Philippians 1.6 “......being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
Emmanuel Cathedral – that is the name it shares with its predecessor – and a good one for an Advent celebration. The forgiveness and reconciliation evident in the service, the fellowship shared over Ugandan food and bottles of soda afterwards, and the spirit of worship and celebration; all were testimony to God’s presence in this place and a genuine readiness in his people to listen and to follow. There is still so much to do, so much spiritual growth needed in clergy and congregation alike for us to be equipped to face the future, but ‘Emmanuel’ – God is with us. Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
The old cathedral has seen much better days and for some time the diocese has been advised to vacate the building for safety reasons. But that didn’t prevent one final act of worship in the crowded building for its de-consecration. The bishop acknowledged that some would be sad to see the end of the old cathedral, but the dominant mood was one of celebration. The singing was energetic, and thankfully the roof remained intact!
A final procession from the old cathedral led us out into bright sunlight. There were crowds of people, and accompanied by the sound of a brass band, drums and singing, the procession (by now more of a dance) passed between a guard of honour made up of the Mothers’ Union, members of the Boys’ and Girls’ Brigade, Guides and other uniformed organizations. We were headed for the new Cathedral about a quarter of a mile down the road past the Diocesan Office.
The West Door of the Cathedral was festooned with balloons and ribbons, but we didn’t enter. Instead, continuing to sing To God be the Glory, the procession was directed to ‘dance’ its way around the perimeter of the building - once only, not seven times - although the trumpets continued to sound in bravura fashion.Arriving at the West Door for a second time we came to a halt. Bishop Joel knocked on the door three times with his staff - “The peace of God be in this house”. The crowd responded enthusiastically “Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!” and we entered the Cathedral, singing a Lugbara hymn – which some of us had to make up – or sing in tongues.
It took some time for the members of the congregation to take their places, but finally the service to consecrate the new cathedral began in earnest. If the service had been happening in a British cathedral, every move would have been worked out in minute detail and, probably, the printed orders of service would have been ready to be used in the service. But here there was a delightful spontaneity, aided by the fact that the Orders of Service didn’t appear until they were no longer needed
Up to two years ago Madi and West-Nile Diocese had been in some turmoil and in need of much love and healing. On this Advent Sunday in a new cathedral, a new beginning was made. Bishop Joel’s predecessor was present and God’s grace was apparent as Bishop Joel and he embraced one another. The Archbishop preached on the Parable of the Talents, congratulating the diocese on the work they had done to bring the cathedral to its present state of readiness. In fact the floor isn’t yet complete, and some windows and doors remain to be put in place, but in this condition it was a good parable in itself of a work in progress. I was reminded of Philippians 1.6 “......being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
Emmanuel Cathedral – that is the name it shares with its predecessor – and a good one for an Advent celebration. The forgiveness and reconciliation evident in the service, the fellowship shared over Ugandan food and bottles of soda afterwards, and the spirit of worship and celebration; all were testimony to God’s presence in this place and a genuine readiness in his people to listen and to follow. There is still so much to do, so much spiritual growth needed in clergy and congregation alike for us to be equipped to face the future, but ‘Emmanuel’ – God is with us. Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
5 comments:
How pleasing to read of such progress for the Church and for you.
I wish I could have been there to see you (a) dance and/or trying to get out of it and (b) making up the Lugandan hymn. Fantastic stuff! Loved reading that, almost like an entry in Grapevine injected with a bit of African life! Loved it. Hope you're both well. We miss you both very much. It is great to hear all your news and can't wait to come and see it all for ourselves (let's get saving - money that is rather than souls, although I'm not going to put anything past God...even in London!) Anyway, fantastic to hear a buoyant story to start my marking this evening. Much love to you both,God bless, Ben
Sounds like a wonderful occasion - I think we should have more dancing and balloons here. It's great to see the photos - we'll have to use our imaginations about the music!
We're glad, too, that you've had a good welcome 'home' after your stay in Kampala.
Looking forward to hearing more.
With our love
Jan and Ken
I liked the idea of singing the Lugandan hymn in tongues. I sang an Easter hymn in tongues once at Boston Park at the dawn service, much to the amazement of Julie's Spanish friend. There weren't enough hymn sheets to go around, though I must admit they were there for the start of the service, unlike your service sheets.
Are the mangoes ripe yet?
Much love
Hilary
What great news. Praise God! I loved your description of the whole experience. In 2000 I stood in the skeleton of the building, looking up through the roof with the then Dean and wondered privately if it ever would be finished. So this is great news, and in Advent, a great sign of hope and new life to the Diocese of Madi and West Nile, surely? 'The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light'. Thanks for your frequent communications of late: we are praying for you regularly at St Joseph's.
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