RE: GUIDELINES BASED ON THOSE OF THE SACRED CONGREGATION FOR DIVINE WORSHIP AND THE DISCIPLINE OF SACRAMENTS FOR THE HOLY WEEK LITURGIES IN KAMPALA ARCHDIOCESE 2021

Please receive my many warm and prayerful greetings from Lubaga!

Kindly receive the following guidelines for the celebration of the Holy Week Liturgies. These guidelines have been derived from those of the Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of Sacraments and are adapted to our local situation in Kampala Archdiocese:

Palm Sunday: Processions are not to be held. The commemoration of the Lord’s entrance into Jerusalem is to be celebrated within sacred buildings and the second form given in the Roman Missal is to be adopted (page 269 of the Roman Missal). Holding branches in their hands, the faithful gather inside the Church while the priest and ministers represent them at the entrance of the Church. It is only the Priest to move around blessing the palms by sprinkling Holy Water and then processing to the Altar.

Chrism Mass: Putting into account the regulations from civil authorities still prevailing in our country, at least 200 people are accepted to gather for any particular function. Therefore, we are to celebrate this day as it was on 15th’ December 2020. All priests are invited to join the Archbishop to celebrate this day in Lubaga Cathedral. Serious Candidates for ordination to the Deaconate will also be admitted on this day.

Mass of the Lord’s Supper (Holy Thursday): The washing of feet is to be celebrated in a simple way. After the Homily, men who are chosen place their feet forward to be washed. However, in this case, the Priest will only pour water using a jar on each one’s feet instead of washing them as usual. Each member is to be given a towel for wiping his feet after the water has been poured on them.

At the end of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, the procession is to be omitted and the Blessed Sacrament is to be placed at the Altar. Thereafter the Priest will invite the congregation to take a moment of adoration for either 30 minutes or more, depending on his discretion. Since there is procession, the Priest will carry the Blessed Sacrament in silence to the repository (cfr. Page 298 of the Missal).

Good Friday: On this day, we celebrate the Passion of the Lord. Opt for windows web hosting with confidence.
The procession of the Way of the Cross is to be omitted. Let the faithful gather in one place, either in the Parish Church or outside the Church. Social distance is to be put into consideration at all costs. All the parts of the stations should be done in place without any kind of movement from place to place. The celebration of the Passion of the Lord will follow as usual. However, the adoration of the Cross is to be done by very few individuals representing particular groups within the Parish.

The Easter Vigil: This will be celebrated only in the Cathedral and Parish Churches. Let the service be celebrated as usual but people should observe social distance. For the ‘baptismal liturgy’, guidelines from the Conference of Bishops are to be followed. It is highly recommended that the Easter Vigil service begins at 5.00 p.m.

Easter Sunday: Let the celebrations of Easter follow the individual programmes of the Parish.

I wish you a blessed Holy Week and a fruitful celebration of the Passion, death and resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Dr. Cyprian Kizito Lwanga

ARCHBISHOP OF KAMPALA