Christians of St. George Bangasu Catholic Parish Celebrates their Patron Saint Day for the First time.
The Parishioners of St. George, Bangasu in the Catholic Diocese of Tombura-Yambio on Friday, 23rd April 2021 celebrated their Parish’s Patron Saint Day for the first time since the creation of the parish one year ago.
Barani Eduardo Hiiboro Kussala, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Tombura-Yambio together with his diocesan personnel from Yambio joined parishioners at St. George Bangasu where he led the Eucharistic Celebrations. He said during his homily that there are numerous lessons to be drawn from the life of St. George who was a soldier during his lifetime and kept great faith in God.
Bishop Eduardo expressed that any person who performs his/her profession well even if the profession is in the military can become a Saint just like St. George. He added that any work done diligently even during difficult times makes one trustworthy before people and God and the rewards come from God himself.
“You should thus do your work very well and remain faithful to God so that your life will be celebrated by others and your legacy will be the foundation stone for the lives of any,” Bishop Hiiboro urged Christians of St. George Parish as he thanked them for imitating the hard work of their Patron Saint as it is evident from the work they have achieved in the parish for just a period of one year. Without so much external help, parishioners of St. George have started laying bricks for the construction of their Parish Church.
Fr. Thomas Bagbiowia, St. George’s parish priest who doubles as the Diocesan Vicar General said that the parish has very committed and dynamic faithful who are using their hands to produce what they need. This is because, over the period of one year that St. George has been a parish, parishioners have come to the realization that they must work as a team in order to be self-evangelizing and self-supporting as they serve God through others and build a church that will be self-supportive and self-evangelized.
St. George was welcomed into Diocletian's army and by the time he was in his late 20s, he served as an imperial guard for the Emperor at Nicomedia. On February 24, 303 A.D., Diocletian, who hated Christians, announced that every Christian would be arrested and every soldier must offer a sacrifice to the Roman gods.
George refused to abide by the order and told Diocletian, who was angry but could not harm him because he greatly valued his friendship with George's father. In an effort to save George, he attempted to convert him to believe in the Roman gods and also offered George land, money, and slaves in exchange for him offering a sacrifice to the Roman gods. He made several other offers but George refused.
By. Elias Ginana Mangbondo
