“Akalimiro” Comes to Half a Century

“Akalimiro” Comes to Half a Century

Message from Cardinal Emmanuel Wamala, on the occasion of the celebration fo the Golden Jubilee of Nswanjere Seminary

Emmanuel Cardinal Wamala

In the Liturgical calendar, 22nd of February is the feast of the chair of St. Peter. Mother Church on that day praises God for the gift of Peter’s leadership of God’s family. This was the day when in 1964 Archbishop Joseph N. Kiwanuka opened The Kalimiro, Nswanjere Preparatory Seminary under the patronage of Sts. Joseph and Gabriel. We are privileged to witness the celebration of the Golden jubilee of this humble institution.

Our minds cannot but think of those two men, the Archbishop and Mr. Gabriel Byandaala. One had the vision and the other had the land but both were united in faith in God and in love for the Church.

In the period of fifty years, this humble institution has been the scene of a variety of activities, some evolutionary and occasionally revolutionary ones. But all have turned out to support it on its journey to growth. We gratefully remember faithful and dedicated leaders like Fr. Joseph Sserunjogi. He and those after him have all along proved themselves seasoned educators who loved the young and tender children of God whom the parents entrusted to them.

Nswanjere was meant to be a nursery bed. That is what it has proved to be. We must be talking in times of thousands of graduates from there. You will find them in every sphere of life. They are men who are serving the people of Uganda and other nations in their spiritual, social, economic and in other areas of human life. Above all, we are proud of those whom the Lord led to the high office of serving in the Order of Priesthood. This was the primary aim of the two men mentioned above when they decided to establish the Kalimiro.

Nswanjere Jubilee comes in the wake of the Centenary of Katigondo National Major Seminary. The Kalimiro rightly prides in being a tributary to the rivers which feed Katigondo, namely, Kisubi, Nyenga, Mubende and possibly any other Minor Seminary in Uganda. Our Jubilee also comes in the wake of the Centenary of indigenous priesthood in Uganda. Here again, the Kalimiro feels proud of being a humble tributary.

We thank God for the many people, beginning with the parents who in the course of the fifty years have fed Nswanjere with their children. I salute their Association which advises and works smoothly with the staff. They have owned the school and they contribute generously to its growth.

The future of Nswanjere depends on the Catholics of this country. It is you who will continue to feed it and to support it. It is you who will continue to advise and to work harmoniously with successive leadership of the Kalimiro. May the Lord shower abundant blessings on Nswanjere for many years to come!

+Emmanuel Cardinal Wamala
Archbishop Emeritus of Kampala

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