A few years ago, we lost a dear friend of Gulu’s community. He had stood firm for the rights and social well-being of street kids. He laughed with them, he shed tears with them, and he dined with them. Through him, Hashtag Gulu was born, and it has been a home and a transformer of so many less fortunate lives. Our late friend would be proud of what his baby has grown into if only he had been alive to witness it.
Our late friend was nonetheless imperfect, and because of the momentous drive in his mind, he was outspoken; he did this loudly. One such area was religion, where his position on spirituality and the existence of God rubbed people the wrong. I cannot tell whether he was fully atheist or an agnostic. However, it is said, he had a different view and held a different conversation on the eve of his life. His views, the internet remembers, were not fully erased, and the affected people remembered.
Now you ask, why this story? When he passed, as is the norm, prayers were to be held, and things took a different twist – the church, the churches would not allow it. His views against the church were taken personally by some members of the church, and no amount of pleading would change their minds – none. The priests in robes – hypocrites, the bishops in robes – hypocrites.
One man, a friend of his, and a friend of the community, stood up. He led prayers at the Virgil; he led prayers wherever prayers needed to be held. He led prayers at the final send-off for our friend, also his friend. At first, Virgil looked tired; he sweated profusely but carried on – that man, Joseph Okidi, a pastor while he lived, died a few weeks ago from injuries sustained in a motor accident.
Today, like his friend, like our friend, he transitions into another world altogether, leaving a legacy among his faithful followers and friends of passion and a calling to forgive, to hang onto.