Two weeks in Uganda

Posted Aug 17, 2016 in Leadership

Craig Bailey visited Uganda from 27 June to 12 July, 2016. Based in Kampala, Craig trained local church leaders on the basics of leadership. In this article, Craig reflects on his experiences in Uganda – what he taught, and what he learned in return.

Every day that he is able, which is most days, Samuel makes his way to his school, five kilometres from his home. He’s 13 and still in primary school.

In Uganda, Samuel’s age is not worthy of remark. Nor is it that he makes his way alone to a school that is so far away, having been up since 5am tending his garden, from which he sells vegetables to fund his education.

What is remarkable, even to Ugandans, is that Samuel makes this journey even though he suffered from a malaria – a condition that resulted in the loss of his legs. He makes his way along the dusty pot-hole ridden and uneven dirt tracks to school on his knees!

Samuel wants to be a teacher when he grows up.

Had I only heard about this story, I may not have even believed it. But here in Uganda, amidst the busy, smog-filled city of Kampala, it’s more than believable.

In Uganda, a high price is put on education – it’s a ticket out of poverty. More than 50% of the population are unemployed, most eking out a meagre existence. There are probably a million other stories like Samuel’s.

If education in Uganda is the passport to freedom, spirituality is the panacea. Uganda is considered the last ostensibly Christian country in Africa, but many different religions and spiritualties abound. Amongst the religious and quasi-religious voices clamouring for attention is a rising tide of Pentecostalism.

Seeking to differentiate themselves from state-sponsored Catholic and Protestant churches, Pentecostal congregations have adopted all kinds of holy-cum-quirky names – “The Miracle Centre”, “True Believers Paradise” or “Refiners Fire Tabernacle”, for example. But while these names at first sounded strange to my ears, I soon discovered that the convictions of these Christians were sincere and deeply held.

The members of these churches displayed a commitment to Christ that expressed itself in boisterous worship – and acts of justice and mercy to the poor. I have rarely seen children worship with such passion; I have never seen boys and girls expressing a devotion that brought them to their knees.

Rev Scott Button and I were able to witness the worship, work and faith of these Ugandan churches through the invitation of Pastor Frank Butayi, overseer of the National Network of Born Again Pentecostal Churches.

Our mission was to “train” pastors of these churches in the basics of Christian leadership – what leaders are, what they do, what honest leaders and Christian leaders do, etc. Over 700 pastors attended the training – notably, 40% of these pastors were women. The majority of the pastors in attendance are unpaid and uneducated. But they have had huge success in planting churches, and together they represented upwards of 20,000 believers.

During the training, we were provided with opportunities not only to teach, but to learn.

The concept of leadership in Uganda is one with a complicated history, given past political leadership types and tribal ancestry. This influenced the way many pastors thought about leadership and received the ideas we discussed.

Pastor (or “Bishop”) Frank Butayi himself associated the word servanthood with leadership. While Scott and I saw a cultural and church hierarchy of sorts, the best expression of the ministries of Frank and other leaders was their commitment to actively working in the slum areas – seeking to make converts to Christ with a promise not only of redemption, but of a better and more prosperous life.

Introducing these high-on-inspiration, tongue-speaking, dancing, worship-loving pastors to strategic leadership seemed a little strange, but that’s what they asked of us and that’s what we did.

Upon completing the training, each of the pastors was given a printed attendance certificate. They received these certificates with more collective glee than I’ve seen at a thousand football games – and certainly far more than at the graduation ceremonies I’ve attended! Their sense of achievement was palpable.

We hope to continue working with churches in Kampala, Uganda, in the future, and will be exploring ways this relationship could develop. Having been afforded the privilege of spending this time in Uganda, my view is that the Ugandan experience may provide unique and mutually beneficial opportunities for growth and learning.

This article is an edited version of a report written by Craig Bailey, which was provided to New Times by Uniting College for Leadership & Theology.

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