The Church of Uganda on Thursday held an official funeral service for the late Rt. Rev. Dr Christopher Disan Senyonjo at St. Paul’s Cathedral, Namirembe, in a ceremony that drew hundreds of mourners and appeared to mark a significant moment for one of its most influential, yet most controversial leaders.
The cathedral, where Bishop Senyonjo served as Vicar before his consecration as the first Bishop of the West Buganda Diocese in 1974, was nearly full as mourners from the West Buganda, Namirembe, Mukono, and Kampala dioceses gathered to pay their final respects.
Among those in attendance were the Bishop of Namirembe Diocese, Rt. Rev. Moses Banja; the Bishop of Mukono Diocese, Rt. Rev. Enos Kitto Kagodo; and retired bishops including Rt. Rev. Henry Katumba Tamale of West Buganda Diocese, Rt. Rev. Eliphaz Maali, former Assistant Bishop of Kampala Diocese, and Rt. Rev. Dr Dunstan Kopoliano Bukenya, the third Bishop of Mityana Diocese.
The official service followed several days of uncertainty after Bishop Senyonjo died on Sunday. Initially, the Church of Uganda’s provincial leadership, the West Buganda Diocese, where he served as bishop, and the Namirembe Diocese, where he retired, remained silent on funeral arrangements.
That silence fuelled public speculation because of the long-running dispute between Bishop Senyonjo and the Church over his ministry to LGBTQ persons. The disagreement led to the withdrawal of some of his ecclesiastical privileges and, for years, Church leaders no longer formally referred to him as “Bishop.”
While the Church leadership remained publicly silent, clergy from St. Andrew’s Church of Uganda, Bukoto, where Bishop Senyonjo worshipped during retirement, held daily prayers at his home and described him as a committed and active member of the congregation.
On Wednesday evening, the Archbishop of the Church of Uganda, the Most Rev. Dr Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu, visited the family home and led prayers for mourners. It was later announced that the late bishop’s body would be brought to Namirembe Cathedral for an official Church funeral service.
For the family, the decision represented a fitting recognition of a man who devoted most of his life to the Church. Speaking during the service, Peter Kyambadde, one of Bishop Senyonjo’s sons, thanked the Church for honouring his father.
He described his father as a man who consistently taught his family to love God and their neighbours, believing that genuine love among people would make the world more peaceful. “He always stood for reconciliation and peace throughout his ministry as a priest, bishop and even during retirement,” he added.
In his sermon, Bishop Moses Banja commended the late bishop and his wife for raising a strong Christian family and urged their children to remain faithful to the values their parents had instilled in them. He also encouraged Christians to use moments of bereavement as opportunities for self-examination and spiritual reflection.
During the final prayers, retired Bishop Henry Katumba Tamale prayed that God would forgive any shortcomings of the deceased while allowing the good he accomplished to remain a lasting testimony.
One of the most striking aspects of the service was the language used by Church leaders. Throughout the ceremony, speakers consistently referred to the deceased as “Rt. Rev. Dr Christopher Disan Senyonjo,” “Bishop Senyonjo” or “former bishop”, a marked departure from previous years, when Church leaders instructed the faithful to refer to him simply as “Mr Christopher Senyonjo.”
The issue had deeply troubled the late bishop. In correspondence with former Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi, Bishop Senyonjo protested after receiving a letter that omitted both his academic and episcopal titles.
“I am a graduate with a doctorate. So it is not proper to simply write Christopher Senyonjo on the envelope, as if I am a small boy,” he wrote. He further argued that while Church authorities could withdraw administrative responsibilities, they could not reverse episcopal ordination.
“I am a Bishop in the Church of God even if you no longer want to recognise me as such in the Church of Uganda. Theologically, there is one Baptism, one confirmation, one ordination to the diaconate, priesthood and episcopate. These you cannot undo by a stroke of a pen,” he wrote, a position he later expanded in his memoir In Defence of All God’s Children.
The decision to hold his funeral service at Namirembe Cathedral and consistently address him by his episcopal title prompted renewed questions over whether the Church had formally reconciled with him.
Speaking to Uganda Radio Network after the service, retired Bishop Henry Katumba Tamale acknowledged the public interest. “Those are legitimate questions. We are going to address them before we finally send him off. Be patient,” he said, referring to the remaining funeral services.
The subject was also addressed indirectly by Rev. Knaac Kyeyune, who served under Bishop Senyonjo in West Buganda Diocese. He suggested that history would ultimately judge the late bishop differently. “He lived in a society that sometimes did not understand him,” Rev. Kyeyune said.
He described the bishop’s final years in office as among the most difficult of his ministry, comparing the suffering he endured to that of Jesus Christ. Rev. Kyeyune also recalled Bishop Senyonjo’s long-held conviction that theological institutions should produce clergy equipped to engage contemporary society.
He welcomed Namirembe Diocese’s recent resolution requiring clergy to attain at least a bachelor’s degree in theology, saying it reflected the late bishop’s vision. In a light-hearted moment that drew laughter from the congregation, he pledged 10,000 Shillings towards the initiative.
The service also heard a condolence message from Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II. In the message, read to the congregation, the Kabaka said he had known Bishop Senyonjo for many years, dating back to his leadership of West Buganda Diocese, describing him as one of the religious leaders he frequently consulted on important matters affecting the kingdom.
Funeral services continue on Friday with prayers at St. Andrew’s Church of Uganda, Bukoto, ahead of his burial on Saturday at his ancestral home in Kabayima along Hoima Road-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
