Catholic Bishop’s Commitment to Build Cathedral in Zambia Bears Fruit after His Death

In the September 5 report, ACN reported that Bishop Hamungole led his people to build a new Cathedral, adding, “But like the prophet, he was called home by the Lord before he could see the finished cathedral.”

At the beginning of the project planning in 2017, Bishop Hamungole explained in a letter to the charity foundation that the old Cathedral, which was located in the middle of the city’s central business district, was unable to cater for the Catholic population that was swelling by the day.

Additionally, the noise pollution owing to its location was affecting church celebrations, especially during large services.

“Moreover, the plot of land on which the church stands is so small that it is impossible to build new facilities such as a parking lot and classrooms for catechesis, which we also need,” the late Bishop told ACN.

He said that owing to the large population of the faithful, four Masses were being celebrated in the Cathedral Parish every Sunday.

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Highlighting his desire to promote evangelization in the Zambian Diocese, the late Bishop told ACN in the letter, “Given the rapid growth and spread of Protestant churches, we thought that finding a site on the outskirts of the city and building a new church would help us create a new parish for evangelization.”

With this in mind and the support of the people of God under his pastoral care, Bishop Hamungole set to work, the charity foundation reports, adding that a fundraising campaign was launched and a plot of land was acquired from the government. 

Finally, a delegation visited Pope Francis in Rome, who blessed the cornerstone in March 2017.

The Pontifical charity foundation says that it also pledged financial support to implement the Cathedral initiative. 

However, according to ACN, delays in obtaining building permits from the government, as well as difficulties related to the COVID-19 pandemic, delayed construction of Holy Trinity Cathedral that was officially opened on September 3.