Coronation of Archbishop Paul Ssemogerere set for January 25

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The coronation of Archbishop Paul Ssemogerere as the local ordinary of Kampala Archdiocese Metropolitan See has been set for January 25.

The announcement was made by the Archdiocesan Chancellor Rev. Fr Pius Male on Thursday evening. According to Male, the date was chosen by the Archbishop-designate due to its significance in Christianity.

Explaining the importance of the day, Fr male noted that it is observed nearly by all Christian denominations as the feast day for the conversion of St Paul (formerly Saul) when he stopped persecuting Christians, turned into an Apostle and great evangelist. Paul is the patron saint of the Archbishop-elect, the connection and significance can easily be identified.

Fr Male said that although the coronation day is being anticipated with joy by all faithful from all walks of life, only a few guests will be invited for the event at Lubaga Cathedral Church at 10:00 am.

“The Archbishop will be installed by the Papal Nuncio to Uganda Archbishop Luigi Bianco. Most of our people are eager to attend this prayerful and joyous event which is a special moment in the life of our archdiocese. But due to COVID-19 pandemic, we kindly ask everyone to stay at home and follow the event on their television or other platforms like YouTube and Facebook where it will be broadcast live,” the chancellor noted.

The installation ceremony is a solemn liturgical ceremony usually done at the Cathedral church of the see or any other place chosen. In the ceremony, the Papal Nuncio (or another delegate) shows the Pope’s Apostolic Letter of appointment to the College of Consultors in the presence of the Chancellor of the diocese. The new ordinary is then seated in the cathedral (which is the bishop’s chair), at which moment he formally takes possession of the Archdiocese.

Rev Fr Male added that before the installation ceremony, the faithful in Kampala will formally receive their new Archbishop from his former Diocese of Kasana-Luwero.

“A procession will be held on the same day early in the morning. We will receive our Archbishop from Matugga township where Kampala Archdiocese borders with Kasana-Luwero diocese,” he added.

Pope Francis named Bishop Paul Ssemogerere as new Archbishop of Kampala Metropolitan Archdiocese on December 9, 2021. Until that day, the designated Episcopate was the Bishop of Kasana Luwero.

Canon law requires that if the Archbishop-designate is already a bishop, as Ssemogerere, he must take canonical possession of the See within two months of the date of appointment. However, it should be noted that on the installation day, Ssemogerere will not receive episcopal consecration given the fact that he is already a bishop.

However, rather he will take over the vacant see of Kampala and the Papal Nuncio might also place onto him a pallium which is a woolen band worn over the shoulders that symbolizes an archbishop’s pastoral care for the people of his archdiocese and his sharing with the pope of the shepherding of the universal church.

On April 8, 2021, four days after the death of Archbishop Cyprian Kizito Lwanga, Pope Francis appointed Bishop Ssemogerere as Apostolic Administrator for Kampala, a role he has played until when he was named the next Archbishop of the metropolitan see.

Ssemogerere was born on June 30, 1956, at Kisubi, in the present-day Wakiso District. He attended Kigero Primary School before transferring to Kisubi Boys Primary School. He later joined St. Maria Goretti Senior Secondary School Katende, where he completed his ordinary level studies.

In 1976, Ssemogerere and seven other young men became pioneer students of St. Mbaaga Seminary at Ggaba. This was the pioneer class of this seminary, which specializes in training men as priests when they are older and without having attended a minor seminary.

In 1978, the late Cardinal Emmanuel Kiwanuka Nsubuga sent Ssemogerere to the Saint Francis de Sales Seminary, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the United States, where he graduated with a Master of Divinity degree in 1982.

On November 21, 1981, he was ordained a deacon by Archbishop Rembert George Weakland, the Archbishop of Milwaukee. On Martyrs’ Day, 1983, Ssemogerere was ordained a priest and incardinated in the Archdiocese of Kampala.

His episcopal journey began on June 4, 2008, when he was elected Bishop of Kasana-Luwero, replacing Dr. Kizito Lwanga who had been elevated to Archbishop of Kampala two years earlier.

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URN