The newly ordained Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Kigali, Rev. Nathan Amooti Rusengo, has said that he will put emphasis on the use of digital platforms in evangelism as he sets sight on endearing the gospel towards the urban youth.
Officially ordained yesterday by fellow bishops, Rusengo replaces the long-serving, Louis Muvunyi, who has been Bishop of Kigali for about nine years.
Muvunyi relinquished his position following a request from fellow bishops who requested him to pursue a PhD after which he will head a new theology school that the church plans to set up in about four years.
Rusengo has been serving as the bishop of Cyangugu Diocese. He is not new to the Kigali Diocese having served as a pastor as well as a secretary in the Diocese before he moved to Cyangugu.
The enthronement ceremony involved prayers for the new bishop by Christians, as well as vows from him that he will serve in reverence of The Lord.
Speaking after his enthronement, Rusengo highlighted the need to stream the gospel through various digital platforms to be able to reach different urban audiences.
"I will pay attention to urban evangelism. You see Kigali is changing, and not Kigali alone but Rwanda as a country. Things change one by one, little by little,” he said. "Roads are changing, houses are changing and (the use of) technology has increased which means that the way we used to approach people with the gospel needs to change. We need to learn to speak to people via WhatsApp and YouTube. We need to think for a way how we can change evangelism to reach these urban populations.”
The bishop echoed the need for positive changes in the church’s infrastructure,
"There are some church facilities that don’t glorify God. We need to upgrade them. If you (Christians) have upgraded your own houses, why don’t we upgrade the house of God?”
Rusengo also stressed that he will work on the education of pastors.
Outgoing Bishop Louis Muvunyi thanked Christians and pastors of Kigali Diocese for standing with him and his family for the time of his service.
"When I became a pastor, I didn’t know that I would be a bishop but God made me one in a surprising and pleasing way,” he said.
Kigali Diocese is one of the 11 Dioceses of Anglican Church of Rwanda. It has six Archdeaconries with 41 parishes, 192 local churches.
The Diocese operates in three districts of Kigali city—Nyarugenge, Kicukiro and Gasabo as well as two districts of Eastern Province—Rwamagana, Bugesera. This is in addition to Rulindo and Gakenke districts in the Northern Province.
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