📷 Key players Meteor shower up next 📷 Leaders at the dais 20 years till the next one
NEWS
Pope Francis

Thousands line up for pope's visit to Uganda

Tonny Onyulo
Religion News Service
Pope Francis arrives at the presidential palace in Kampala, Uganda, on Nov. 27, 2015.

KAMPALA, Uganda (RNS) — Thousands of cheerful Catholics lined the streets near Entebbe International Airport on Friday, waving yellow-and-white Vatican flags, singing songs and ululating — the distinctive African trill — to greet the arrival of Pope Francis.

Many in the crowd had gathered before dawn, even though the pope didn't arrive until many hours later.

“We are happy today because Pope is finally coming here,” Kennedy Kiwanuka said. “Our prayers have been answered. We will keep praying during his stay here. We need his blessing.”

The pontiff’s six-day tour began in Kenya on Wednesday and will conclude in the Central African Republic on Sunday.

Pope Francis arrives in Africa for trip marked by high security

After greeting dignitaries, churchmen and groups of the faithful, the pope is scheduled to visit the Munyonyo Martyrs’ Shrine on Saturday, the spot where an African king in the 19th century ordered a massacre of Christians.

Francis is likely to discuss themes he raised in Kenya — confronting corruption, ending tribalism and religious animosity. He will also probably talk about economic development that benefits the poor rather than elites who retain a stranglehold over the region’s small-but-growing economy.

Preparations for the visit have taken place for weeks. At least 300 choir members held last-minute rehearsals at the shrine  Friday morning as the pope concluded his visit in Kenya.

Ugandan Police Inspector General Kale Kayihura said his officers  spent much of Friday sweeping neighborhoods and meeting with residents living in areas where Pope Francis and his entourage will pass during his visit. He said he wasn’t taking any chances.

“Terrorism is an animal which is difficult to define, and you can’t tell when or where it will strike,”  Kayihura said.

A treatment center for the disabled in Kampala is among the last stops on the pope’s itinerary.

More than 700 sick, elderly and disabled people from several dioceses countrywide will gather there to meet the pope  Saturday before he departs for the Central African Republic.

“We need a message of hope that can help some of us to accept the life we are going through,” said Lydia Namubiru, who lost her eyesight in a car accident.

The pope’s visit comes as Africa’s role in the Catholic church  increases. Africa is a fast-growing continent for both Christians and Muslims, according to a report by Pew Research Center. Both Islam and Christianity are expected to gain more than twice as many adherents in the region by 2050. Christians are expected to increase in number from 517 million to more than 1.1 billion by 2050.

As the first pope from outside Europe in nearly 1,300 years, the Argentine pontiff has appointed more cardinals from Africa and the developing world  to increase the continent’s role in decision-making in Rome.

Ugandans are conscious of the change.

“Uganda is one of the luckiest nations (in the world) to be able to host the pope,” Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda said. “This church in Africa is very well recognized, and it has played a very positive role in shaping people’s moral and spiritual development, promoting education, health and other related social economic development.”

Pope: Education, jobs will prevent radicalization

Featured Weekly Ad