Day 9: Cultural Celebrations - Ordination and Talent Night!

This nation is truly youthful. The West may think that the solution for Africa is to have less childern, but in Uganda they see children as a blessing!

We started this day off by going to an ordination, I would describe this day with words like culture, energy, and celebration. The mass was five hours long, all of it in the native language (Buganda), which made it hard for us to understand – but not hard for us to enter in! We finished the night off with a talent show, and I cannot overstate the fact that Ugandians are talented. It was awe-inspiring to see how effortlessly and rhythmically they can dance, EVERY ONE OF THEM! They sing and they laugh, they are truly free people. Everyone was celebrated, even if they weren't the most talented of the group. Our abilty to dance and sing was nothing compared to theirs, but they made us feel like we were just as good as them, that we could do it, and so we did! And for at least one night we had some soul in us! We brought the joy of the Chicken Dance to Africa!

We are preparing for next week, where we will be leading them through how to do campus ministry. The anticipation and expectations are rising, as does its signifigance. The reality that only 14% of Ugandians go to university tells us that the leaders in this country are going to be on campus. And, unfortunately, leadership is much needed as there is much corruption which keeps Ugandians opressed. The 30 students that we will be working with next week want to bring about change. They want to reach out to the growing number of Catholics that are wandering or that are being picked up by other denominations because the Church is not seen as having the answers/experiences of God.

Pray for us that we would be able to effectively raise up these Ugandian students who will become leaders on their campus for the new evengelization!