After six years of construction, the Christ the King Church in Kampala has finally opened its doors to believers. In November 2016, the priests’ homes were rebuilt, and the church was renovated and expanded as part of the church’s growth.
The project experienced some setbacks, according to Msgr. Gerald Kalumba, the Priest of Christ the King Parish, when Siyan Brothers, the contractor, informed the architects that after demolishing the priests’ homes and a portion of the church, the renovation and extension of the church was not feasible due to the weak foundation.
The demolition of the entire church doubled the expected cost of construction, which prompted further talks with the contractor to continue work last year despite the initial estimate of Shillings 8.8 billion.
Despite the fact that the contractor’s work has not yet been finished, Msgr. Kalumba pleaded with them to permit Christians to use the church for Easter.
Christians don’t understand why they don’t finish projects, so we had to nudge them forward and tell them that we needed to be in the church by Easter this year. “They haven’t finished yet, but we had to nudge them along,” said Msgr. Kalumba.
With two storeys, the church can now hold more Christians as opposed to the past, when some people would attend mass in tents outdoors.
For six years, Christians prayed in Cardinal Wamala Hall and the underground parking lot of the structure. The history of the church began in 1900 when a small group of Catholics from Goa, Mangalore, and South India arrived in Kampala to work on the Uganda Railways Construction project, which had already gotten close to Kisumu in Kenya.
