QUESTION: Morning pastor Isaiah, I have a question for You . Why are religious leaders silent about the current political atmosphere in Uganda? I thought they could condemn the police brutality and the people’s hooliganism?
RESPONSE: First of all, let me point out that religion is a political entity as well. Religions are political means of managing society which do their politics under mystification of gods. While ordinary politics uses the gun as its power to enforce behavior, religions use the gods as its enforcer. So the strait answer to your question is: I don’t know because am not a religious leader. However, unless you meant the INTER-RELIGIOUS COUNCIL (IRC), I have seen a number of religious leaders make statements and their videos have been trending.
On the other hand though, religious leaders and influencers are divided into three categories.
1. Palace Prophets:
These are religious leaders who work for the state and promote the agenda of the government. They work within the structures and established institutions (like the IRC) to advance government programs. Under this category, we have the mainstream religions like Catholicism, Islam, Anglican, Seventh day Adventists, and the two Pentecostal/Baptist Umbrellas. Their biggest contribution to political change in this country is organizing presidential debates. They once pushed for a National Dialogue over matters of transition but it died a natural death…the postmortem reports a political cause.
2. Partisan Priests:
These are religious leaders who (some) have a bad experience with the state or actually as individuals are not supporters of a sitting government. These are angry women men of god who exercise opposition in the name of the god. Under this category are fanatics of a the government, who mobilize and campaign for the state through their influence. This category can be influenced by the first category to produce gluttonous religious eloquent speakers like: Sheik Muzaata, catholic priests, Mondo Mugisha etc.
3. Indifferent ministers:
These are leaders of small churches whose relevance is not felt at a large scale. They normally side with the incumbent for no political rationale but based on the theological directive that incumbents are incumbents based on the will of God.
Whoever God dismisses goes and whoever God installs becomes. To these leaders, the politics of election is a mere rubber-stamp of what God has already predestined. So these won’t come out to condemn individuals (president or opposition leader) but what was done or what is happening.
So in countries where there is an official state religion, the statement of a religious leader makes sense but in countries like ours where religious leaders are either state operatives, poultry farmers or observers, you don’t expect an impact from religious leaders. This government did its homework and learnt from the past, you can’t afford a strong religious leader or strong religious institutions.
Today as we speak, the biggest religions were politically divided. The Catholics do not agree on political matters (in fact they have four power centers in contact with the Pope) and so do the Muslims given their two power centers (Kibuli and Old Kampala).
The Anglican church has a common wealth obligation to serve and for that matter, it cannot antagonize its church member. When it comes to the Pentecostals, we all know that it is almost the statehouse religion. Almost every sensible Pentecostal church has either a cabinet member, member of parliament, or a high ranking security officer as a member. Now you know why these Pentecostal pastors feature on national and dignitary occasions.
So when we talk of RELIGIOUS LEADERS, what exactly do we mean in Uganda? Are we talking about those who cruise around in expensive cars given to them by the state (SDA, ANGLICAN, CATHOLIC, etc) or these city preachers with mega churches who fleece from the public under the watch of the authorities. Prophet Kakande and the sand project, Kayanja on homosexuality cases
I think, as Ugandans, we must approach God ourselves not through fellow sinners in the name of KITAFFE MU KATONDA some who actually need more help than we do.
So in case you hear a statement from any of the above categories, it will either be from a compromised religious leader who will speak within the confines of the IRC political correctness or from a fanatic or a disgruntled religious leader.
What we the small ministries ministers say is irrelevant for it doesn’t address personal issues but public matters. Yet mankind is hell-bent to holding another man as the problem.
Priest M.I.T White
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24)
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24) 