The former Archbishop of the Church of Uganda, Stanley Ntagali, has made a public apology and sought the forgiveness of all concerned for committing adultery.
Ntagali who committed adultery with a Reverend’s wife, Judith Tukamuhebwa, resulting in his suspension not to perform any priestly duties, publicly sought forgiveness before Anglican bishops, selected priests and faithful who gathered at St Paul’s Cathedral, Namirembe, this (Thursday) evening to mark the 60th anniversary of the Church of Uganda self-governance.
The former archbishop who looked nervous as he spoke, said that although he had been spiritually strong since 1974 he got saved, he sadly fell into sin. He told the congregation that he had since confessed the sin to God and concealed himself in prayer seeking pardon and guidance from God.
Ntagali also said that he is turning to his brothers and sisters in faith to find a place in their hearts to forgive him.
“I ask Reverend Christopher, his wife Judith to forgive me. I want to focus on eternity because one day I will stand before the Lord to account for my life. I want to remain closer to Jesus. I want to continue standing on that solid rock,” he apologised.
“On the Christmas eve of 1974, I gave my life to Jesus Christ as a young man. I still love Jesus Christ because he has loved me and I would love to serve him for all the years, sadly, I fell into the sin of adultery and I confess to the Lord to forgive me, bishops, partners, brothers, sisters and the entire Church of Uganda, please forgive me”, he added.
Many worshippers could not hold back their tears, as the man of God was cleansing his sinful past.
After his brief speech, Ntagali was embraced by Archbishop Dr Stephen Kazimba Mugalu as the rest of bishops clapped as the former archbishop moved back to his seat. The moment was followed by singing a popular worship song Tukutendereza Yesu.
Kazimba welcomed the confession of his predecessor saying sin is human and when truly confessed to God, one receives forgiveness.
“When we say we have no sins, we’re deceiving ourselves but when we confess our sins to the Almighty God, He’s just. Forgive us all our ineptitudes,” Kazimba said.
Ntagali’s adultery scandal came to the public in January when Kazimba suspended Ntagali from performing priestly duties -noting that the Church of Uganda sees adultery as immoral as homosexuality and that they cannot shy away from their commitment to moral standards.
Ntagali served as 8th archbishop of the Church of Uganda until March 1, 2020 when he clocked the mandatory retirement age of 65.
While serving as archbishop, Ntagali was also the Bishop of Kampala and earlier served as Bishop of Masindi-Kitara Diocese from 2004 to 2012.
