The late Catholic Archbishop Joseph Kiwanuka..Photo /courtesy
KAMPALA, Uganda (IP) — Joseph Nakabaale Kiwanuka, Uganda’s pioneering Catholic archbishop who died in 1966, has finally been laid to rest nearly six decades after his death, ending a long and unusual chapter in the country’s religious history.
Kiwanuka, the former Archbishop of Rubaga, was buried this week inside St. Mary’s Cathedral Lubaga, where his remains had been preserved since his death. At the time of his passing, he was not formally buried, and for 59 years his body rested within the cathedral, becoming a site of reverence for worshippers and pilgrims.
Church leaders described the burial as both a solemn farewell and a symbolic moment of closure for the Catholic Church in Uganda. The ceremony drew senior clergy, faithful and church officials, who paid tribute to Kiwanuka’s legacy as a trailblazer in African church leadership.
Born in 1899 in present-day Mpigi District, Kiwanuka made history as one of the first African Catholic bishops and later became Archbishop of Rubaga in 1960. He represented Uganda at the Second Vatican Council and was instrumental in key moments of the church’s growth in the country, including the global recognition of the Uganda Martyrs.
His final burial has renewed reflection on his contribution to faith, education and African leadership within a church long dominated by foreign missionaries.
