For months, I have been writing about the US connections to anti-gay activities in Uganda. Most recently, I noted the ongoing relationship between Canyon Ridge Christian Church and Martin Ssempa. Yesterday, Salon published my article detailing the split between Canyon Ridge and Southern Nevada Health District.
But there are other Christian influences in Uganda. The recent tragic terrorist bombing of two locations in Kampala reveals other stories of altruism and Christian mission.
A Pennsylvania connection was detailed in a Sunbury Daily Item article about a Selinsgrove church group who traveled to Kampala for mission work. Five of their people were injured in the blast who were there working in Kampala’s slums.
For days, members of a Selinsgrove-organized missions team had poured out their hearts by praying, working and sharing the love of Jesus Christ with those in the slums of the capital city of Uganda, Africa.
When they took a break at an Ethiopian restaurant on Sunday to catch the World Cup final, six of those team members, all with ties to the Valley, sacrificed even more for the cause when a terrorist bomb exploded, seriously injuring five of them.
A Delaware man, Nate Henn, lost his life in one of the blasts. He had dedicated his young life to rescuing the Invisible Children, orphans of the bloody war in Northern Uganda.
A former college rugby player who toured U.S. colleges and churches urging people to help children in war-riven Uganda was among 74 killed by explosions that tore through crowds watching the World Cup final in the African country.
Nate Henn was on a rugby field Sunday in Kampala with some of the children he’d gone to help when he was hit by shrapnel from one of the blasts, according to the aid group he worked for. A Uganda native Henn mentored had traveled back to the country with him and was standing next to him, but 20-year-old Innocent Opwonya wasn’t harmed.
These men and women were not in Kampala to fight the culture war. They were not there as was Scott Lively in March, 2009 to deliver a “nuclear bomb” in that war. Marching to a different drum, they were there to reflect their essence of their faith. These Christians were there to fight a different kind of battle with results that may not be seen for years.
God bless them.
Thanks for sharing this Warren. These folks stepped out for Christ in a good way .. putting themselves at risk in a foreign land. Its good to hear stories like this .. especially when so much of what we discuss seems to be Christians gone bad. May the Lord bless these folks richly and provide comfort to the family and friends of the man who lost his life.
Warren,
It seems you are obsessed with Ssempa. You obviously believe that if American christians stop supporting Ssempa then Uganda will suddenly drop efforts to combat western-influenced deviant sexual lifestyle. Hence your effort to cajole and arm-twist your evangelical compatriots to denounce the Ugandan preacher. If you really think that your strategy is what it will take to kill efforts to strengthen the criminalization of sexual perversion in Ugandan then it shows you know nothing about the Ugandan people (which wouldn’t be surprising—Americans are not known for their knowledge of the world beyond their borders). As a matter of fact, even if Ssempa were to drop dead today, Ugandans will still push for the eradication of public advocacy of sexual depravity. Obviously, without the “charismatic” presence of Ssempa, the strategy to be used in combating this depravity would change significantly. But in the final analysis, the efforts to strengthen gay sex criminalization would remain exactly the same.
Having said that, Uganda’s priority at this time is to mourn the dead and combat the Islamist terrorists that brought carnage to Kampala. Once we have recovered from this horrific tragedy, we shall turn our attention back to the ongoing processes in our Parliament to protect African culture and traditions.
MNCO – You think I don’t understand you and I probably don’t but as well you don’t understand me. If you all passed the law tomorrow, I would still expose the partnerships for American Christians to see what they are donating to.
In any event, I agree with you that the priority should be mourning and recovery and I am grieved over the loss of life.
Warren,
It seems you are obsessed with Ssempa. You obviously believe that if American christians stop supporting Ssempa then Uganda will suddenly drop efforts to combat western-influenced deviant sexual lifestyle. Hence your effort to cajole and arm-twist your evangelical compatriots to denounce the Ugandan preacher. If you really think that your strategy is what it will take to kill efforts to strengthen the criminalization of sexual perversion in Ugandan then it shows you know nothing about the Ugandan people (which wouldn’t be surprising—Americans are not known for their knowledge of the world beyond their borders). As a matter of fact, even if Ssempa were to drop dead today, Ugandans will still push for the eradication of public advocacy of sexual depravity. Obviously, without the “charismatic” presence of Ssempa, the strategy to be used in combating this depravity would change significantly. But in the final analysis, the efforts to strengthen gay sex criminalization would remain exactly the same.
Having said that, Uganda’s priority at this time is to mourn the dead and combat the Islamist terrorists that brought carnage to Kampala. Once we have recovered from this horrific tragedy, we shall turn our attention back to the ongoing processes in our Parliament to protect African culture and traditions.
MNCO – You think I don’t understand you and I probably don’t but as well you don’t understand me. If you all passed the law tomorrow, I would still expose the partnerships for American Christians to see what they are donating to.
In any event, I agree with you that the priority should be mourning and recovery and I am grieved over the loss of life.
The Church being the Church, as it was meant to be. These folks are some of the many who quietly go about serving human needs, seeking no attention and subsisting in many cases on far less than we, in our comfort, can imagine. Will there come a day when “culture warriors” will realize that a whispered prayer and a shared burden can speak louder than many word bombs? I have done far too little and said far too much. I guess someone needs to stir souls, but I am sure God wants our hearts and our hands more than our mouths.
Thanks for sharing this Warren. These folks stepped out for Christ in a good way .. putting themselves at risk in a foreign land. Its good to hear stories like this .. especially when so much of what we discuss seems to be Christians gone bad. May the Lord bless these folks richly and provide comfort to the family and friends of the man who lost his life.
The Church being the Church, as it was meant to be. These folks are some of the many who quietly go about serving human needs, seeking no attention and subsisting in many cases on far less than we, in our comfort, can imagine. Will there come a day when “culture warriors” will realize that a whispered prayer and a shared burden can speak louder than many word bombs? I have done far too little and said far too much. I guess someone needs to stir souls, but I am sure God wants our hearts and our hands more than our mouths.