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Thursday, May 16, 2013
ARCH P. O Box 11902, Kampala Uganda. Tel 256-772-479386 msmalearch@gmail.com
Office: suite 309 Span House, Plot 1 Portal Avenue near Workers House, Kampala
Commissioned to equip God’s people for Freedom: come, we can accomplish this call together
4/May/2013
Bishop David Kiganda,
Christianity Focus Center
Dear Bishop Kiganda,
Ref: Teaching that Matthew 19.9 permits divorce & remarriage for adultery is peddling lies
In defense of Biblical principles, my most heartfelt greetings to you in the wonderful name of Christ Jesus and thank you for whatever you are doing for the sake of mankind and to God’s glory. I also congratulate you for having got the wife of your choice and heart in the person of Cindy. Praise God.
I refer to your erroneous teaching that Matthew 19.9 permits divorce and remarriage in cases of adultery, the irreversible divorce and subsequent remarriage which have caused not only uncertainty in Christian marriage, but discredited the ability of Church leadership to handle marital problems. It comes when the church is among others already plagued by dwindling faith (nominalism); scriptural, spiritual and physical manipulation; fraud, sexual abuses, homosexuality, pedophilia and indulgence in the occult which have not only hurt but disillusioned many once faithful and left others wondering which way Christianity is headed.
It also comes when feminist and homosexual movements are gaining ground in marriage destruction.
You are well aware how your remarriage has taken centre stage, shifted focus off the graver pedophilia and homosexuality in the Church in which Born Again pastors like Robert Kayanja, Handel Leslie, Isaac Kyobe Kiweweesi and Grace Kitaka; Catholic Priest Fr Anthony Musaala and Br Robert Mukasa; football guru Chris Mubiru and other prominent people have been implicated by streams of youthful victims though covered up by fellow clerics and people in systems like the Police, DPP and Judiciary.
It is even surprising that pastors whose lips were tight during the pastors Kitaka, Leslie, Kiweweesi and Robert Kayanja pedophilia and sodomy sagas and those involved in covering them up and misleading Christians and the entire public that it is rivalry between me, Pr Sempa, Pr Kyazze, Pr Kaira, Sr Deborah and victim David on one side and Pr Robert Kayanja and his bunch on the other without regard for victims whose hearts still bleed, could have the audacity to scribble and circulate emails for or against your new love.
I hope you are aware that I am not among those who wished you to be ‘suffocated’ in marriage, fail in your new found love or leadership; I write from deep my conscience, compelled by the Holy Spirit to correct an error peddled as truth and cause for skepticism, even by Christians, about Christian marriage, for the good of the marriage and family institutions in the entire body of Christ.
This letter is not intended to force you out of your new marriage, but to let you know that you are in error and that it is you, not your congregants, pastors or leaders of the National Fellowship of Born Again Pentecostal Churches in support of your errors, responsible for your marital decisions and consequences.
Being married for 24 years (since 1/4/1989) and for over 15 years involved in marital counseling, I understand your pain and reason to divorce and remarry; but you need to understand that even a chapatti baker is a man; the Bible permits divorce not to the obedient Jesus’ followers (Christians) but to the hard hearted Pharisees and for fornication not adultery; the Bible mandates forgiveness and reconciliation; and, it was wrong to petition, debate and cast lots in regard to your remarriage:
1. Even a chapatti baker is a man
My brother, the man with whom your wife is supposed to have committed adultery was a chapatti baker and seller and Daily Monitor of Tuesday Oct 3 2006 (copy attached) quoted you as follows: ‘I would have thought twice if she had committed adultery with tycoons in Kampala but not a chapatti baker. I would have appreciated that may be she was tempted by money. I have been greatly humiliated.’
If I am not mistaken, what hurt you and stopped you from reconciling with Hadijah is the chapatti baker vocation. Your statement seems to license whoever wants to commit adultery to do so with city tycoons!
You forget that even a chapatti baker is a man and can be more precious to a woman than a city tycoon who doesn’t sexually satisfy her! And consummation is not about occupations, earthly possessions or qualifications however great they may be; it is about ability to function and deliver sexual satisfaction to your spouse. Otherwise, sexually starved women whose spouses have powerful credentials wouldn’t turn to the no-bodies, ie: house / shamba boys, drivers, petty traders, etc, for sexual intercourse. Therefore, chapatti baker or city tycoon shouldn’t be the issue because the man you suppose to have committed adultery with your wife was a substantive man though belonging to the low class to which most Christians even in your church belong and to which, unless you forget too soon, you once belonged.
Such a statement attributed to you indicates that you may not be aware what really compelled your wife into an extra-marital affair, which, if not sorted can also compel your bride to follow suit.
Therefore, do not be blinded or misled by the social class to which you now belong and the wealth you have accumulated to think that chapatti bakers are inferior men because social class differences may not be constant. A tycoon today may be impoverished tomorrow while a poor one gets enriched. Besides, most tycoons you may be comfortable with having sex with your wife started worse off than the chapatti baker.
2. The Bible permits divorce not to the obedient Jesus’ followers (Christians) but to the hard hearted Pharisees and for fornication not adultery (Mat 19.3-9):
I know how much you have fervently struggled to faithfully serve God and how I wish the Bible permitted divorce and remarriage.
There is no doubt that to justify your divorce and remarriage, you have not only cited, Matthew 19.9, ‘And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery;’ but usedthe media to promote a false Biblical interpretation. Though many pastors and followers backed your endeavor, numbers don’t mean they are right or they totally agree with your erroneous interpretations.
Matthew 19.3-9 says: ‘The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away? He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. And I say unto you, whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery. His disciples say unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry.’ KJV
Apparently when tempted by Pharisees whether it was right to divorce, Christ Jesus responded, ‘Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female and said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.’ Matthew 19.4-6.
When asked why if such was the case, Prophet Moses had permitted divorce, He said, ‘Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. And I say unto you, whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery.’
Some Bible versions use the term sexual immorality instead of fornication.
Since Jesus permitted them divorce in cases of fornication, not adultery, there is need to understand the difference between fornication and adultery. According to various dictionaries, whereas fornication means sex by an unmarried person with someone else (having pre-marital sex); adultery means sex between a married person and someone who is not his / her spouse (having extra-marital sex). This means that a married person cannot fornicate and an unmarried person cannot commit adultery.
Sexual immorality is defined as not following acceptable standards of sexual behavior; notably, indulging in pre-marital sex, prostitution, etc. Fornication is a sexual immorality because a person is not expected to have sex when not married.
Jewish culture treasured chastity. A woman had to prove a virgin on her first consummation in marriage. Husbands would feel cheated and shamed to marry a woman whose virginity was no more. Remember Joseph, suspecting his wife Mary of fornication because of the pregnancy by the Holy Spirit, planned to quietly leave her when an angel appeared to him in a dream and urged him not to do so (Matthew 1.18-25).
I am sure Jesus permitted divorce for fornication to deal with the disillusionment of men who expected to have virgins on their wedding days and to ensure that young women minded about chastity. You missed this provision the day you decided to continue having sexual intercourse with Hadijah after knowing that she was not a virgin on your first sexual encounter with her. At the time, none of you was a Savedee. After cohabiting with her for quite long, you both surrendered your lives to Christ Jesus and proceeded to get married.
If I can read Jesus’ mind basing on his teaching about forgiveness in Matthew 18, many temptations and hurts come to the married which, without forgiveness, may prompt marital breakage. If divorce were to be encouraged in all, there would be no marriage. Hence, He permitted divorce only in cases of fornication but which also ceases to have effect on marriage when you choose to continue in marriage with a non-virgin.
But even if it was adultery against which Jesus permitted divorce, the argument that He permitted his obedient disciples to divorce is greatly farfetched. It is clear that it is not the converted (disciples, followers or believers in his ministry) who asked him about divorce; it is the hard-hearted Pharisees who never believed him and whose aim of asking was hypocritical, just to find ground to accuse and eliminate him. At the time, wives would be divorced even on very minor issues like when men got younger ones and they (wives) questioned. As a social justice activist seeing that he couldn’t change them, he told them that the only reason for which they (Pharisees, not his disciples) could divorce was fornication, just to save women from being treated like movable properties that can be easily discarded on depreciation.
His response is similar to what you would give to a group of adulterous unbelievers procuring sex services of prostitutes and indulging in reckless sex orgies who are not ready to be faithful to their spouses who come in and ask whether it is right to use condoms in marital sexual intercourse. I doubt, given such a context, you would tell them it is wrong to do so, bearing in mind HIV / AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). In my opinion, because you can’t compel them to change and be faithful, prudence dictates that you would not only permit, but urge them to use condoms whenever they go for extra-marital sex to minimize risks of indulgence. You would not only be foolish but insensitive not to permit them to use condoms.
Would that mean that you have okayed those faithfully married to use condoms during sexual intercourse? I believe not because condom use is one of the veneers that prevents full enjoyment of marital sex and is responsible for many men and women seeking live sex outside marriage with terrible consequences.
Seeing the way you fervently hinge on Matthew 19.9, interpreting it out of context, deliberately or ignorantly ignoring the fact that at the time of that question, Christ Jesus had just finished teaching about forgiveness and reconciliation in Matthew 18.21-35, had that verse not existed, you would have gone out of the New Testament straight to Mosaic Law, Deuteronomy 24.1-4 to justify your action. With or without Biblical citations, your heart was determined not to reconcile with Hadijah in the very manner the Pharisees were bent on divorce and could in no way tolerate anyone teaching contrary to their hearts desires.
Therefore, justifying divorce and remarriage using Matthew 19.9 makes you no different from the Pharisees who asked not because they wanted to learn, but because they wanted Jesus to condone their actions and if he didn’t, then they would accuse him of teaching against their interests.
Your action manifests hard-heartedness, deliberate gospel error peddling and attempt to redefine Christian marriage common in church leadership circles today. This quote from your e-mail to Apostle Alex Mitala dated 15/2/2013 says it all: ‘About My Former Marriage Status: I would love to officially re-inform the Fellowship that, due to well-planned and continuous acts of adultery and witchcraft that transpired in my marriage up to 2006, I made up my mind to put away and later divorce my ex-wife (Ms Hadijah Nassejje) through the High Court of Uganda, which matter I undertook last year, after seeing no room for reconciliation. My divorce certificates are hereby attached.’
You decided to divorce and remarry, then deliberately sought Biblical verses that could support you without due regard for its implication on the Christian marriage institution in Uganda.
I wonder if you have never breached Jesus’ teaching on adultery in Matthew 5.17-18: ‘Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.’
3. The Bible mandates forgiveness and reconciliation.
Apparently, it was after her confession and apology during an occasion meant for reconciliation that you announced your irreversible decision never to reconcile with her in the presence of not only church insiders, but the media invited to publicize the event, meaning you had already ruled out reconciliation.
In Matthew 6.14-15, 18.21-35, Luke 6.37, 15 all and Mark 11.25-26, Christ Jesus instructs us to forgive; in Matthew 6.12, He makes forgiveness a pre-requisite of effective prayers and in Matthew 5.9, He taught, ‘Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.’
Forgiveness is best exemplified by reconciliation and re-unions. It is forgiveness that enabled Joseph to reconcile with his brothers and instead of abandoning them in their times of desperate need or punishing them in any way even if they showed no remorse by insisting on lying to him that he (Joseph) had been killed by wild animals (Genesis 42-45), he welcomed them and sought from Pharaoh, for his entire family without any exception, Goshen, a good grazing land in Egypt.
Jesus also emphasizes it by the story of the prodigal son (Luke 15) where the offended, the father, welcomed the offender, the prodigal son, without any pre-conditions and even made a party for a re-union.
For married Christians, no evidence for forgiveness is greater than seeing a couple that had broken apart get together again and consummating their marriage no matter what happened; in many cases when the offending partner has even produced extra-marital children.
In 1 Cor 7.10-11, inspired by the Holy Spirit Apostle Paul wrote, ‘And unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, Let not the wife depart from her husband: But and if she depart, let her remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband: and let not the husband put away his wife.’
It is clear that the Lord requires reconciliation, not divorce and remarriage no matter what has happened. I wonder if there is any evidence that since your marriage tragedy, Hadijah ever got another man in her life or continued with Mukwasi. If she has none, it indicates remorsefulness and waiting to reconcile on her part.
Apostle John Mulindeadhered to the Biblical principle of forgiveness and reconciled to his wife caught in adultery with a salonist. He never demeaned the man. Today, they consummate their marriage.
In many homes are non-believing men and women who treasure marital commitment, forgiveness and reconciliation as great virtues for marital stability and continuity, and have forgiven and carried on with their cheating spouses even in situations where children have been produced out of wedlock!!
Some of those cheated on are even pastors’ wives who have chosen to endure for the sake of their marriages! Having served in leadership for such a long time, I am sure you should know many couples whose reconciliations you have been involved in unless you don’t handle marriage issues.
You accuse your ex-wife Hadijah Nasejje of ‘… well-planned and continuous acts of adultery and witchcraft that transpired in my marriage up to 2006…’ Though I may not be in position to prove that she did or did not do so, I think I may understand if what you accuse her happened, why it happened:
If you can well remember, prior to your marriage breakage, you used to feature live on a daily early morning program on Super FM, praying for people and telling them at times to touch their radios for deliverance. And you used to return home very late, let alone the long trips from home and other schedules subjecting your wife to loneliness and vulnerability similar to Eve’s situation in Genesis 3. You owed Hadijah a duty of care sexually, which you failed to honor because of your constant schedules.
Your pastors’ petition to Apostle Mitala dated 23rd Jan 2013, point 4 highlights that your situation has not changed since then when it says: ‘We collectively know that this servant of God has a lot of responsibilities concerning his home, the ministry which he oversees and in the whole body of Christ in the nation and beyond its boarders, which is such a great task for him to accomplish single handedly. We are reliably informed that many times he wakes up in the wee hours of the night to start his daily routine and stay at it until midnight when he retires to his home.’
That being the case then, unless you change and know that in all you do marriage must not be neglected and ministry must not be run at the expense of your marriage, what befell Hadijah may befall Cindy, this time with a tycoon in Kampala and I am sure you will be hurt just like you were though you said you wouldn’t have minded if Hadijah, instead of the chapatti baker, had gone for ‘tycoons in Kampala.’
On Hadijah’s indulgence in witchcraft: a man of your caliber, cadre and spiritual disposition should not have made it an issue when you have successfully battled witchdoctors and cast demons from parishioners!
From the little that I know, for many years Hadijah was one of your devoted pastors till you fell apart. During her marital woes, she could have prayed in vain because ‘God’ is ‘busy with prayers’ by the numerous Born Again pastors praying for visas, riches, healing and other miraculous breakthroughs, signs and wonders; then in despair, turned to ‘witchcraft’ thinking it would salvage her marriage.
You know how some pastors indulge in the occult to attract desperate Christians. Synagogue Pr Samuel Kakande, Pr Ssozi Stephen, Pr Lule Godfrey, Pr Yiga (Mbizzaayo), Nabbi Mbuya Talemwa, Pr Imelda Namutebi and others cannot be a surprise to you.
I doubt Hadijah would have turned to the occult without despair and it was up to you as a steward to ensure that she didn’t fall to her total destruction. And as a watchman, your obligation would stop at telling her the truth and letting her make decision on her ways as defined in Ezekiel 3.16-21.
And even if she didn’t change but continued indulging in the occult, that would not give you ground to make a decision to divorce her. 1 Corinthians 7.12-16 is clear that unbelief is no Biblical ground for separation. Many brethren in church have unbelieving spouses some of whom even operate shrines and / or ferry in occult paraphernalia from near and far into their homes and they endure it all! Does it mean they should quit marriage? I think they are supposed to be vessels of the gospel to their unbelieving spouses and families!
My brother, I hope you are acquainted with the fact that Prophet Hosea married a prostitute (Hosea 1)and an adulteress (Hosea 3)and he had to endure the pains. He didn’t divorce.
The ‘divorce certificates’ attached to your letter to Apostle Mitala, General Overseer then of NFBAPCU make no sense when you were wedded in church and should have handled your marriage Biblically.
You have repeatedly said that you forgave Hadijah long ago. Your actions should have manifested it by reconciling, getting back together and consummating your marriage again because marriage is not a mere friendship; it was meant to be a life-time commitment (Genesis 2.18-24 & Matthew 19.4-6).
You need to be aware that your failure to forgive and reconcile not only erodes your moral authority to counsel the married struggling with similar or worse scenarios, but opens a wide door for hurt spouses to quit their marriages. Your case serves as a very good precedent for many Christians who don’t want to listen to sound Christian doctrine compelling them to endure, forgive and reconcile.
You have in effect strongly stated that the Bible of the Born Again condones divorce and remarriage, which is a very unfortunate development in light of the fast growing feminist and homosexuality cults in Uganda and other developments whose aim is to undermine stable heterosexual marriages.
You prove aliability to the struggling Christian marriage institution in Uganda should you continue in church leadership and it is very unfortunate that many churchmen and women have not only supported your decision, but helped and stood by you in your pompous wedding and there is no expectation that your pastors and parishioners can dare instruct you to step down when they are the ones who ‘pressurized you’ to remarry and had at some point ‘threatened to chase’ you if you didn’t!!!
Besides, it is unlikely that anyone can dare force you to step down when known homosexual, pedophile and rapist pastors still stand in church pews and proclaim ‘Gad / God is good’ and none can dare remove them because they have stoutly built and armed men around them and some of the pastors including those who have criticized you evidently shield them; while some of those who would have the moral authority to do so have supported you, probably out of sympathy or compromise, impliedly stating that it is better to have a heterosexual divorced and remarried Bishop than sodomites whose sodomy appetites are insatiable.
4. It was wrong to petition, debate and cast lots in regard to your remarriage:
It is understandable when you are fed up with a spouse and want to get another, especially with all the reasons and support you had; it is different when you decide to use other people to condone your decision via petitions, debates and casting lots while claiming that the Bible permits you to remarry. While many of us waited to hear if God’s stand on your divorce and remarriage is different from the Biblical stand, all we got were petitions, debates and lots cast!!
It is surprising that after touting marriage for better, for worse till death, you could turn and pick just one verse, Matthew 19.9, interpret it out of its context and peddle false teachings about divorce and remarriage.
I feel our principles should be, the Bible says or does not say unless there is a new divine discourse or dispensation, not interpreting scripture to our convenience.
Pastoral petitions:
I was surprised by the 37 Christianity Focus Centre’s pastoral petition to Apostle Alex Mitala, General Overseer, NFBAPCU through Bishop Tom Okello, Chairman Board of Elders, NFBAPCU and Kampala Regional Executive Committee NFBAPCU appealing to him to permit you to remarry. I wonder how you, a leader and ‘Bishop’ for that matter could turn a Biblical matter into a petition full of human wisdom, yet you knew what you wanted, to marry Cindy, the new found queen of your heart. The arguments for and against that followed before you expressed your mind, tell it all. In fact, it was done the politicians’ way!
If the Bible clearly permits divorce and re-marriage; why the petitions? Why seek Apostle Mitala’s consent and BAFFU Presiding Apostle Joseph Serwadda’s backing if you never expected anyone to Biblically rule you out of order!!
In the Bible, one of the most prominent divorce cases was that of King Xerxes pressurized by his officials to divorce his wife Vashati over insubordination which culminated into Esther becoming Queen in the land of her captivity, only to be used by God later in the deliverance of her people from extermination. (Esther all).
Never did King Xerxes choose to divorce and remarry; but for seven years you had sufficient time to ponder reconciliation to Hadijah and you chose to divorce her and marry Cindy. Since God had a purpose in Esther’s life and there is no way she could have influenced events in the Jews’ times of need without being his wife, we are yet to see what times Cindy has come into your life for.
I am very surprised that the Kampala NFBAPCU leadership could rely on Esther 1.16-18 to claim, ‘We would like to take a stand like that of the elders and chiefs of King Xerxes in Esther 1.16-18 in order to eradicate adultery among church leaders’when facts are different.It is a shame that many churchmen are involved in adultery and cover each other even when their wives report to the NFBAPCU and no action is taken, yet when it comes to voiceless Hadijah, they hypocritically take such a stand!
In your case, despite 7 years of separation and healing which should have been sufficient for any Christian accustomed with Biblical principles of forgiveness and reconciliation to cool, forgive, reconcile and get back on marital course; you engineered a divorce and remarriage because of Cindy, a beauty queen who conquered your heart about 4 years into your separation. You wrote to Apostle Mitala, ‘I wish to inform you that three years ago, I travelled to Zimbabwe and found a woman that I admired to marry and whose bride price I have already paid to officially procure her engagement to me, and now she is awaiting her wedding day.’
I wonder, with such a statement, what you expected Apostle Alex Mitala, Dr Joseph Serwadda and others to do if not to rubber stamp your decision even if inconsistent with scripturewhen already decided to have your way totally different from what you publically used to stand for prior to your 2006 heart-breaks and had already initiated an unstoppable remarriage process in Zimbabwe!! I am therefore not surprised that many friends ignored Biblical teachings to stand by you in pursuit of your heart’s desire.
The debate and casting of lots
I followed your remarriage debate on e-mail and was surprised by many of the so called men of God and how they deliberately or ignorantly interpret scripture. Since when did marriage become a debatable matter?
If true that the Bible permits divorce and remarriage and your decision was consistent with Biblical teachings, why use your pastors to generate a ferocious debate that would have probably turned bloody had both sides of the debate physically encountered in an enclosure to decide the matter?
And why did you let the lots cast by your parishioners where those in favor of your divorce and re-marriage scored over 90% and those against proved a negligible minority?
It all depicted a gambling lot totally far from true Biblical principles in respect of marriage, just similar to the sailors who cast lots to find out who of the men on the ship was cause for the mighty tempest at sea (Jonah 1) and the lots fell on Jonah; and when the soldiers cast lots to share Jesus’ garments (John 19.23-24). In none of the two gambling circumstances did the people involved know and believe in the Living God.
I am inclined to believe that your pastors and parishioners involved in the casting of votes are in faith not much different from the sailors who cast lots to find out Jonah and the soldiers who cast lots to divide Jesus’ garments. It indicates a high degree of paganism. What a pity to have ‘Pagan Born Again Christians!!!!!!!!!’
On your interview carried by Intimate Magazine in Saturday Vision of March 2 2013, I say:
Ø Contrary to your claims, your divorce and remarriage will not make wives more honest in marriage because much of the gospel they hear via pulpits and the media is not only corrupted but poisonous too and most of their would be role models and icons of morality are not only rotten in character but manipulate scriptures to suit their interests. You also greatly forget that many pastors are cheating on their faithful wives! Will your remarriage make husbands more honest in marriage too?
Ø It proves you a Bishop who can’t distinguishbetween fornicationand adultery and what Jesus okayed and didn’t okay in Matthew 19.9; or define forgiveness and reconciliation. If you think you do, then it renders you a deliberate peddler of false teaching on marriage, divorce, remarriage, forgiveness and reconciliation. Either way, it is unfortunate that a Bishop of your caliber can make such non-contextualized interpretations and peddle them as truths.
Interesting about the interview is when you said, ‘Sometime back some members of our church convened a special meeting intended to force me to remarry. They even threatened to chase me out of the church if I did not heed their advice.’ Well, to me and I think many others, that was just hilariousof you since none can dare chase you from your church. Those who feel offended by your actions no matter how numerous can leave, not you.
Ø Your divorce and pompous remarriage spell doom for Church marriage and underscore very urgent need for thorough pre-marital and marital counseling which are none existent today. You know that most church marriage counselors are in fact gamblers, soothsayers, manipulators, fraudsters and sex exploiters. It is a shame that Muslim and traditional marriages can be more stable than Christians’!
You need to know and understand that:
Ø None of the people who have helped you to achieve your heart’s desire is responsible for the consequences of your decisions and actions; it is you. Remember, Adam, Eve and the serpent was each sentenced for personal actions. The self-justifications of Adam and Eve, putting blame on Eve and the serpent respectively couldn’t help avert God’s anger against each of them.
Ø Not all people who opposed your divorce and remarriage are your enemies. Most are just keen on maintaining the Biblical marriage fiber which is fast getting eroded. If you think all are, I am not.
Finally my brother, from the deepest of my conscience, I suggest that during your honeymoon and / or sabbatical, you not only celebrate and consummate but take time to seriously re-examine the scriptures in context so that you eventually release a public statement that you erred in your interpretation of Matthew 19.9. Many people are waiting to hear you tell the truth that in cases of adultery, Matthew 19.9 condones neither divorce nor remarriage and that your heart’s desire to lock Hadijah out of your life and start life afresh with younger, educated and affluent Cindy could have blinded and compelled you to interpret scripture out of context. It is not only possible, it is understandable, since love can blinden.
Also kindly internalize what 1 Timothy 3.1-7 says about the integrity of a person of your status who must be exemplary to others: ‘A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach; Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous; One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?) Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.’
Understand what Ecclesiastes 7.5 says,‘It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise, than for a man to hear the song of fools.’
Take seriously what Christ Jesus says in Revelation 3.19, ‘As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.’
I also hope you make sense out of the over 400 prophets praises and vain prophetic declarations in favor of King Ahab’s intention to invade Ramoth Gilead contrasted with lonely prophet Micaiah’s declarations, Ahab’s choice of numbers and his tragic ending in 2 Chronicles 18.
May God give you wisdom and soul-searching to comprehend the contents of this communication, and due humility in due season to publically apologize and admit being in error without fear of shame, to salvage cherished Christian marriage, remembering that we all make mistakes which we must never deliberately justify or cover-up and that God’s laws must never be compromised using human wisdom.
Peace and blessings to you and your dear wife, Cindy.
Your loving brother in defense of Biblical principles,
Moses Solomon Male
Pr / Executive Director, Arising For Christ.
msmalearch@gmail.com
256-772-479386 / 256-702-196511THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA
IN THE HIGH COURT OF UGANDA AT KAMPALA
DIVORCE CAUSE NO. 42 OF 2011
BISHOP DAVID KIGANDA ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: PETITIONER
VERSUS
HADIJA NASEJJE KIGANDA :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: RESPONDENT
BEFORE HON. JUSTICE B. KAINAMUA
Judgment
BishopDavidKiganda (herein after referred to as the Petitioner) and HadijaNasejjeKiganda (hereafter referred to as the Respondent) were legally married at Victory Christian Center Ndeeba on 27th October 1991. Prior to the Solemnisation of the marriage the couple had lived in cohabitation. Out of the cohabitation and the marriage they produced five children namely:-
1. Kiganda Martin Ssemwonga aged 24 years
2. Kiganda Baker Wamala aged 22 years
3. Kisakye Phillip Kiganda aged 20 years
4. Kiwunulo Deborah aged 18 years
5. Kiganda Joshua Yotulwanira aged 13 years
6.
The Petitioner brings this petition for the following orders:-
a. An order for dissolution of the said marriage
b. A Decree Nisi be issued against the Respondent
c. The Petitioner be granted custody of the minor child who is already in his custody since 2006.
d. Consequential order relating to the matrimonial property
e. Costs of the petition
The Petitioner raised two grounds for the petition namely adultery, cruelty and desertion.
The hearing of the petition proceeded ex-part after Court satisfied its self that the Respondent had been served with the petition and she did not file an answer to the petition-Order9rule10CPR
The Petitioner’s case rested on the evidence of four witnesses, the Petitioner, his Best man at the wedding, Israel Sekanjako (PW2), Moses Kabanda (PW3) and his Personal Assistant Charles Kasule (PW4).
It was the Petitioners testimony that he got married to the Respondent Hadija Nasejje on the 27th day of October 1991 at Victory Christian Center Church, Ndeeba. They had previously cohabited for some time.
During their cohabitation and after the wedding they produced five children named earlier in this Judgment.
The Petitioner testified that around 2006 the couple experienced problems in their marriage when the Respondent got involved in an adulterous affair with one Mukwasi Hussein and others. The Respondent is alleged to have confessed the act in church. In proof of this, the Petitioner tendered in evidence an Agreement for Separation signed by the Respondent on 29th September 2006 wherein under paragraph 11 she admitted adultery with diverse men including one Hussein Mukwasi. The agreement was admitted in evidence as EXP 1.
One Moses Kasanda (PW3) testified to the effect that he is a member of the Petitioner’s church-Christian Focus Center Mengo Kisenyi-where the Respondent was also a preacher.
He further stated that he was a witness to the agreement signed by the Respondent (EXP 1) wherein she admitted adultery. He concluded his testimony by confirming that since the making of the agreement above, the Respondent has not returned to the home of the Petitioner.
The Petitioner also called Isreal Sekanjanko (PW2) who testified that he was the Best Man at the Petitioner and Respondent’s wedding. He tendered in the wedding photograph (EXP2). He further testified that the Respondent though a Moslem initially, had converted to Christianity and was a well known preacher and used to baptize people.
One Kasule Charles was called as PW4 and testified that he was the Petitioner’s Personal Assistant. He testified that while still in school he used to spend the holidays at the couple’s home, knew the children of the couple very well and has since two years back been resident at the home of the Petitioner. He confirmed that the Respondent has not been at the home since 2006.
At the hearing of the petition, one issue was identified for determination namely:- whether the Petitioner is entitled to the reliefs sought in the petition.
In a nutshell these are:- Dissolution of the marriage between the parties and grant of custody of the minor child to the Petitioner.
Adultery has been defined as consensual sexual intercourse during the existence of a marriage between a married person and a person of the opposite sex not being the husband or wife of that married person. Adultery may be proved by either direct or circumstantial evidence. As observed by Justice Ntabgoba in GeorgeNyakairuVs RoseNyakairu[1979]HCB261
“in allegations of adultery it is not necessary to prove direct act of adultery for the fact was almost always to be inferred from the circumstances as a necessary conclusion since it is indeed true that parties were ever surprised in the act of adultery”.
Adultery must be proved to the satisfaction of the Court (see HabyarimanaVsHabyarimana(1980)HCB139)but the Court can conclude after considering the facts and circumstances pleaded before it that an adulterous sexual intercourse took place.
The Petitioner testified that he has not been living with the Respondent since September 2006. He stated that the reason for the separation was because the Respondent got into an affair with another man one Hussein Mukwasi which affair the Respondent admitted in the presence of others. (See EXP 1). This fact was collaborated by Moses Kabanda (PW3) who stated that he was present at the gathering when the Respondent apologized before people including elders and pastors. He further stated that he was a witness to the Agreement for Separation which the Respondent signed.
Based on the direct and circumstantial evidence before Court, i am satisfied that the Respondent did commit acts of adultery on diverse occasions with other men but more especially one Hussein Mukwasi.
I hold therefore that the Petitioner has discharged the burden of proving that the Respondent did engage in the acts of adultery with diverse men including one Hussein Mukwasi.
The Petitioner sought custody for Kiganda Joshua Yatulwanira, the only remaining minor child from the marriage. The paramount principle in cases of custody is the welfare of the child. The child has been in the custody of the Petitioner since 2006 when the couple separated. There is no compelling reason why this arrangement should be interfered with by Court. Accordingly the Petitioner will retain the custody of the child.
The Petitioner seeks no costs, so be it.
In conclusion Court makes the following orders:-
1. A Decree nisi is hereby issued for the dissolution of the marriage between the Petitioner and the Respondent
2. The Petitioner is granted custody of the child Kiganda Joshua Yatulwanira
3. There is no order as to costs.
B. Kainamura
Judge
2.08.2012
http://www.ulii.org/ug/judgment/high-court/2012/210
