Archbishop Stanley Ntagali (pictured) will officially retire as the 8th Archbishop of the Church of Uganda on 1st March 2020 after clocking his 65th birthday.
He was elected Archbishop on 22nd June 2012 and installed on 16th December 2012 at St. Paul’s Cathedral, Namirembe. He replaced Archbishop Luke Orombi.
On Sunday 1st March 2020, Rt. Rev. Dr. Stephen Samuel Kazimba will officially be installed as the 9th Archbishop of the Church of Uganda, replacing Ntagali.
God’s grace saw Ntagali rise from a catechist in 1975 to Archbishop in 2012. He is therefore retiring after 43 years of serving the Church.
In an interview with ‘Archbishop Stanley Ntagali Legacy Magazine’, Archbishop Ntagali speaks about a wide range of issues and this article just picks a few of them.
On Retirement
Asked how he has prepared for retirement, Ntagali said: “… My mind is prepared. You see some people look at the immediate; they look at my years in this office (Archbishop) but I started Church Work in 1975. I started as a catechist and two years later, I became a missionary in Karamoja through 1986. I later went Hoima where I became an Archdeacon, then Diocesan Secretary, then Provincial secretary, a bishop and here I am (Archbishop). So I am retiring from all the 43 years of long experience but some people don’t understand this; I am retiring after 43 years of long service in the Church.
The bible says there’s time for everything; time to come, time to go; time to begin and time to finish. So I am retiring as per the Constitution of the Church of Uganda and the provincial Canons that dictate that when you get to 65 years of age for us the clergy and bishops, you retire.
So what am I going to do?
I am going to be free to do my work. I will look after my farm, my cows and also continue preaching the gospel. I am not retiring from preaching the gospel. I always say you retire from preaching the gospel when God calls you home. So I will continue to support the Church through ministry when I am called upon. That makes me a happy man to know that I will be free to do God’s work. I love traveling for the Lord, I love meeting people and I will continue to do that but on a private basis this time.
So I will do farming and social work but I am happy the Lord has led me this far and time has come to retire from full time ministry in the Church.”
Advice to religious and political leaders on retirement
I would encourage people to know that when you enter an office or begin a vocation, know that you can’t be there forever; one day you’ll have to retire because old age will catch up with you or otherwise. People look at things differently but I want to tell you that I am happy and I want to encourage people to also look at their future.
When you retire when you’re still strong, you can be useful in another way; to your family and to yourself. So I want to thank God that I am retiring when I still have some energy so that will make me useful. So I encourage fellow Ugandans to prepare for retirement.
