A new Catholic Church has been built in Uganda with money donated by a parish in the Diocese of Parramatta – and a priest from the parish was there to help celebrate its blessing.
Fr Abraham Kunnatholy CMI, the former assistant priest at St Paul the Apostle Parish, Winston Hills, and current parish priest of Corpus Chrisi Parish, Cranebrook, travelled to Uganda in May to take part in the special event, which was attended by hundreds of parishioners and well-wishers, and presided over by the local bishop of the Kasana-Luweero Diocese in which the new church of St Chavara and St Kizito sub-parish is located.
The Winston Hills parish began fundraising for the new church after Fr Abraham was told by members of his congregation – the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate – in Uganda that they were having trouble raising the money themselves.
The blessing of the church was presided over by Bishop Lawrence Mukasa, and concelebrated by Fr Abraham Kunnatholy CMI, right, from the Diocese of Parramatta. Image: Supplied
He relayed this concern to the Parish Priest at Winston Hills, Fr John Paul Escarlan, who gave his support and organised for the appeal to begin. The parish raised more than $25,000, which Fr Abraham said was a modest amount when compared with the cost of building a church in Australia, but which made a lasting difference to the struggling parish in Uganda.
“What I told the people of Winston Hills was: ‘What we have given is equal to the amount necessary for the construction of a pergola in Australia, and the people in Uganda get a completed church.’”
This commitment by the parish is an example of ‘mission’, one of the priorities of the recent Diocesan Pastoral Plan, which works towards creating a church that ’reaches to the margins’ and is ‘renewed in spirit and prayer’.
The plaque on the new church, highlighting the involvement of the Winston Hills parish. Image: Supplied
Fr Abraham joined other missionary members of his CMI congregation in Uganda in participating in the blessing of the new church, led by Bishop Lawrence Mukasa, on 1 May.
Afterwards, he met with Bishop Lawrence, who “spoke highly of the contribution of the church in Australia for the contribution that they made towards the construction of the Kalasa church”.
Uganda has one of the fastest-growing Catholic populations in the world, with more than 17 million believers, according to the latest Vatican statistics. This new church has a capacity for up to 300 people, and since its opening is almost full every Sunday for Mass.
One of the old Catholic Church buildings in rural Uganda, which is too small to fit the congregation. Image: Supplied
Fr Abraham, who was appointed Parish Priest at Corpus Christi Parish, in Cranebrook, when he returned from his trip to Uganda, said there were many other parishes with a similar need in Uganda and urged Catholics in Parramatta to help if they could.
“The Apostles always urged the people to support the churches in need. And I always told people that we share in the mission of Jesus when we support the missions in any way and urged them to be the missionaries in their own way,” he said.
“Though a small venture, this [fundraising] can take the Diocese of Parramatta a great way ahead in collaborating with sister dioceses that are struggling to engage in the mission work due to financial difficulties.”
