Uganda Community



In the 1960s until 1977, the American Province of the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament had a Community administering a parish in Masaka, Uganda. But due to the brutal regime of its former president Idi Amin, they were compelled to leave and the Masaka House closed down. Almost twenty years later, the Sacramentinos re-established their presence in Masaka with the help of the Superior General at that time, Fr. Norman Pelletier.

The Masaka House personnel were volunteers from different SSS provinces; however, this arrangement only worked for a few years. Thus, the General Team, headed by Fr. Fiorenzo Salvi, who succeeded Fr. Pelletier, offered the care of Uganda to the American Province, who in turn had to decline due to a lack of personnel. So the General Team turned to POLA.

During its APC meeting in October 1999, POLA made the decision to accept the General Team’s invitation. Thus on February 4, 2000, a canonical decree was issued transferring Uganda from the responsibility of the General Council to POLA. On May 24, 2000, four Filipino religious arrived in Uganda and another followed on June 30. There were two independent SSS communities then in Uganda, one in Masaka whose superior was Fr. Joseph Matitu while Fr. Melchiades Ssemakula† was pastor of Kimaanya Parish, and Ggaba Community whose superior was Fr. Sebastian Luistro.

Later on, the Ggaba Community was closed down but a formation house, the Eymard Formation House, under the Masaka Community, was opened in Walukuba, Jinja, for the students studying Philosophy.