I will stand for the Gospel, truth and justice - Kaziimba

From [Wednesday, this week], I am the Archbishop-elect [of Church of Uganda] and I am so grateful to God for the far he has brought me. I was born on born on August 15, 1952 in Buikwe Najja, formerly in Mukono District. I didn’t grow up with both my parents.
My father was a polygamist and married women according to the (agricultural) season. My mother felt disappointed and wanted to abort, but got advice from the neighbours that ‘you never know the kind of child you are carrying’.

And so, this actually up to now means to me that even the women who abort never know the kind of the child [they] are carrying. So, I would not buy into that (abortion). I am a family planning champion who doesn’t buy into that [abortion].
I support the use of modern contraceptives, but I would very much support natural (family planning) which doesn’t have side effects. That’s why I recommend that people go for professional advice before taking up modern contraceptives.

How did growing up in a polygamous family shape your life, and would you endorse the traditional family way of life considering your personal success?
Polygamy is not God’s way; that’s why God created Adam with Eve and removed only one rib meaning that God’s wish is one woman, one man. And because of what I experienced, I totally discourage it because it brings a lot of conflict, promotes evil and devil characters in the home.

I learnt the disadvantages that’s why I have one wife and four boys. One of the boys completed his Master’s degree in Business Administration and now he is completing a degree in Theology, another one is pursuing a degree in Information System, another one became a pilot in South Africa and the third one is pursuing his degree in Medicine and Surgery. So, I am really mindful of education and what they want to achieve.
What is your take on the growing inequality in the country and social injustice?

Definitely injustice is not good. The message I want to put out is that of conversion of the heart or transformation of the mindset of how we relate with others, the emotions and the feelings. This way, we need to encourage forgiveness, discourage killing of one another like the killing of boda boda [riders] and corruption.

You can get money from government or an organisation and embezzle, which otherwise would be used to construct a hospital, and the next day, your child might get an accident and die without getting help from that [underserved and under-resourced] hospital.
I will definitely promote the change of the heart and hand because the hand is about working; giving help so that the conversion I am going to be emphasising and once that’s addressed, then it means injustice.

What role should Church of Uganda play in a changed world where atheism, especially among the elite and wealthy, is becoming fashionable?
The church’s role is to preach the gospel and also discourage our people from copying things. We need them to analyse things, we should discourage secularism, materialism, consumerism, liberalism. All these are western ideologies which are sometimes far away from what the Bible [teaches]. Also, [we need to change our] way of [sedentary] living.

I was walking seven miles in the morning and evening and it shaped me. I am 57 years old, but I am not on any medication [for lifestyle diseases]. I exercise, I am the coach of the clergy team of Mityana (Diocese). I support Mpindi Football Club which is my clan [and in English premiership], I support Arsenal.

What is your position on Homosexuality?
The Church of Uganda has totally embraced the biblical teaching. It is so clear. God created Adam and Eve, he never created Adam and Steven and so we want to promote Christianity and other cultures because no culture promotes homosexuality, lesbianism, bestiality and this is what the western world, actually the devil, is imposing on us because of money.

What exactly happened inside the room of the vote and did it ever occur to you that you would be the next Archbishop?
I didn’t expect to become an Archbishop, with my humble beginning. When God called me, I was sent to college where I was trained as a lay reader or a catechist. A lay reader is a trainer holding and leading pastoral duties in church.

I thought that was enough; so, even becoming a priest [was unexpected for me]. Becoming a Bishop [was] too much and now [I am an] Archbishop-elect!
But this is what the Lord tells us: The Lord makes a way [that is] impossible possible. And the unknown author says, the Lord makes a way where it’s not and makes the impossible possible.

In the room of the vote [for an Archbishop at Namirembe Cathedral in Kampala], only 33 were eligible to vote. And leave the media speculation [on who was in race to become Archbishop].
It’s only [on Wednesday] after the procedures that nominations were done. A nomination [would be] done and someone [would] second.

Then we got two or three candidates. The moment your name [upon nomination] is seconded, you become a candidate. The secret ballot was done and two thirds must actually support someone before he becomes the Archbishop-elect.

How will you deal with the widespread problem of ungazetted churches solemnising marriages, essentially committing couples in a legal invalid union?
Even in our House of Bishops on August 27, before the election of the Archbishop, there was already a plan to meet the Registrars of Marriage at [Uganda Registration Services Bureau] headquarters to see how they can help us.

We have already sent in money to register our churches and we haven’t actually gotten [a feedback]. Gazetting a church requires Shs450,000. We now encourage our people and we continue to do so because we don’t want people to operate outside the law. And I will continue to do so as long as I am installed as [the next] Archbishop.

Tell us about your immediate plans once installed as Archbishop
I was elected [on Wednesday] and ever since, I have been so busy. I didn’t dream of becoming one [Archbishop]. So now I have to rest and write my charge (an equivalent of a manifesto), but already we have the vision and mission.

This is to proclaim the gospel in a Christ-centered church and promoting our values, integrity, obedience and believing in the scriptures. I am going to promote all these things, but [personally,], I am going to promote the theory of Martin Luther King Jr where there is holistic transformation of the head, the heart and the hand.

We have seen many youths leaving the traditional churches for the modern Pentecostal churches. What do you expect to do to attract them back?
We are dealing with that already. That’s why you see at All Saints Cathedral Nakasero (the headquarters of Kampala Diocese), there is definitely some youth-friendly worshipping. It is there even at the Namirembe Cathedral (the administrative seat of Church of Uganda) and our cathedral here in Mityana.

The issue now is about teaching, it’s not about claim it, receive it. It’s about transformation. [A reference to blessings and materialism – Editor]. It’s about people getting together because we have discovered that some young people are going to what they are calling churches, but they are cults.

Cults are where the Bible is taught, but there is poison mixed [in the messaging]. It’s like milk, but there is two drops of poison, that one can kill you. We reach out using media, literature, you can get them (youths) once you have a programme that is actually relevant to them.
Like for me, I am a sports person. In Mityana, we have been having competition in soccer. So the youths when we convert them [to sporting], then we have opportune moment for preaching.

Young people who don’t come to church enjoy soccer. They even call me: ‘Bishop, we scored.’ I do talk to them in a friendly manner and they are my friends.

How will you handle the often polarising relations between church and politics since Uganda will head into an election just under a year after you take office?
Definitely, politics is not just beginning.

It started already. I want to encourage and continue to encourage people to respect others, honour others’ views and also to promote democracy. I will continue to promote that in whatever that I do. I will continue to promote that in my preaching using my pulpit, using all the gatherings and dialogues such as the Inter-Religious Council of Uganda and the Uganda Joint Christian Council.

Respecting leadership is a challenge, but you can’t say that everything is bad. We can see some challenges where we need to work together as opinion leaders, church leaders and religious leaders to ensure harmony is created.

On spotting his wife
My wife was a choir mistress at Nkonge Church of Uganda, which was neighbouring Madudu Church of Uganda [near Kayanja Sezibwa forest in present-day Buikwe District]. That is where I grew up.
The choir was calm and I admired my wife who was singing; a beautiful girl, very disciplined and born-again. God is the match-maker.

And it (relationship) took three years [before we got married]. There was no mobile phone [then unlike today], but you know we could write letters which could take a month before she could get it. But we could meet and talk. There was no business of sleeping together. No. It was pure. Three years and we made our vows and now we are together 36 years later.
Man of God with eyes on making money

Family man
I am a husband to Margaret and a father to four boys and daughters-in-law. My sons; Moses and Peter got married the same day on January 5, last year. Now we have two grandchildren. We got our first granddaughter on February 24, this year and the second grandchild on March 24.

I call them to my home in Mukono Nakabago to enjoy and look after my home gardens where I can make money. This man called Paul in 1 Timothy 6:4 says ‘the love of money is a source of all evil’. But I like the scholar called Mark [Twain]; he says ‘the lack of money is the root of all evil’. So, I don’t just love to preach the gospel, but also look at business: how you can make money to help the poor. I have boys, but I also have 17 other children under our care.

I know you can’t be blessed when you just take care of only your children. You need others. They cared for me and I have to care for others.
How do you spend your leisure time?
Football. I also watch television. I support Arsenal. I am going to support [other] teams such as Mityana SSS. [I also spend time in] prayer and business.
I love hanging out. I enjoy music. I want to interact with people, especially where I can get the opportunity to preach the gospel.

As a family planning champion and board member of the Faith for Family Health Initiative (3FHI), will you continue with this work after your installation as Archbishop?
This is an additional advantage. As a family planning champion and with all organisations that deal with in family planning, I have a bigger voice where I can do advocacy.
I have to do advocacy also for the boy child because I have discovered that all attention is given to girls. Women are given extra time for counselling and the men are left out.

We now have a much trained member of the family (Woman) and a naughty [man] and no harmony. [This is why there is] need for boy-child advocacy. They should be given attention. We have very well-educated humble girls and we have addicted boys who have disorganised our girls.
I discovered that there are so many educated girls, many women go to church, many women visit their children at school but there are so many men in prison.
I want to discard that imbalance and so it [his election as Archbishop] has had an added advantage for the cause of the ministry.

Any last word?
I invite the people of Mityana because they are going to have another challenge of going through the process of electing a bishop who must be consecrated and enthroned, and I hand over the pastoral staff to him. That must be done before I am enthroned.
So, I call upon the people of Mityana [Diocese] to be humble and pray for a wonderful successor and ensure that we [can] finish the projects we have established.