By KT Reporter
In response to growing concerns over declining male participation in church life, the Diocese of Madi–West Nile is set to hold its first-ever Diocesan Men’s Conference, aimed at reawakening men to their spiritual, family, and community responsibilities.
The development was announced on Wednesday afternoon during a press conference addressed by the Bishop of Madi and West Nile Diocese, The Rt. Rev. Charles Collins Andaku, alongside other senior diocesan leaders. Bishop Andaku said the conference was conceived out of deep pastoral concern after observing that many men have withdrawn from spiritual leadership, leaving women to dominate church life and shoulder most family responsibilities.
According to the Bishop, the situation has contributed to strained marriages, poor parenting, and weakened moral formation among children.
The two-day conference, scheduled to take place from 23rd to 24th January 2026 at Emmanuel Cathedral, Mvara in Arua City, will run under the theme “Anchored in Christ for Unity, Stability and Peace in Homes and Families.”Canon Onesimus Dralega, the Diocesan Fathers’ Union President, said observations from everyday social spaces reveal a worrying pattern of male absence from positive social roles. He noted that the conference aims to reawaken men to their biblical mandate of leadership, responsibility, and service.
The chairperson of the organising committee, Eliakim Matua Onyiga, said preparations for the conference are complete and that participants have already started arriving from within and outside the diocese. According to Matua, about 500 men from all parishes across the diocese are expected to attend, including both married and unmarried men.
Meanwhile, Rev. Canon Helen Munduru, the Diocesan Coordinator for Family Life, said the conference is long overdue, noting that women have dominated church programmes for years while men remained largely absent.
Madi–West Nile Diocese is the largest of the 37 dioceses in the Church of Uganda, having been carved out of the Northern Uganda Diocese in 1969. The diocese comprises 12 archdeaconries, 150 parishes, and 719 churches, serving more than 80,000 Christians across over 13,000 households, according to information from the diocesan official website.
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