A Vocation Story. Father Ben Makungu Chola: “Lesa Waluse”

From the point of view of Christian faith, my childhood was as smooth as silk. I was baptised, I heard my parents and grandparents pray. I saw them going to church, and I followed them as the most obvious thing to do. During my primary school, I went to catechism classes, I received first Holy Communion and I was confirmed.

After my junior secondary school, in 2000 I went to a high school in Kafue. Here my dreams changed: my ambition was to become a lawyer. Why? To people, I kept saying that I wanted to fight for justice and for the good of poor people. Yet, in a remote area of my brain, there was the conviction that lawyers had a lot of money… I was a young man then, and I believe you can forgive me for that ‘sin: The fact is that everybody around me knew that I would study law. I invested a lot of energy and time in my studies, since I knew that, without good results, I could say ‘bye-bye’ to the university.

In 2002, I was elected chairperson of the youth of St. Ignatius small Christian community. As a young ‘would-be’ lawyer, I took that ‘call’ as a spur to create a peaceful environment for everyone and bring unity among the youth. The young boy who had preceded me in that role had divided the youth group and I thought I had to bring back unity and communion.

Then, Mission Sunday 2003 came a Comboni missionary priest to celebrate mass in my parish. His homily enchanted me. He spoke, with passion and joy, of missionary life as a fantastic adventure in the name of God. He used to play guitar.

After mass, I approached him and asked if he could teach me how to play the guitar. He answered “Yes, with pleasure”. By the time I could strum the instrument decently, I had become Comboni aspirant.

In 2005, I joined the Comboni Postulancy in Balaka (Malawi). I followed philosophical and religious studies at the Inter-Congregation Seminary (ICS – today, an Institute) in Balaka. Then I moved to Lusaka for the two years of Novitiate. The Novitiate was a special time for me to come to know and appreciate Comboni charism, life-style and values. It was a moment to encounter Christ ‘face-to-face’ and build a deeper personal relationship with him. On May 2011, I took my first religious.

I went to Kenya for my five-year theology studies, at Tangaza College, Nairobi. I loved theological courses, and I loved also reading and studying anything that dealt with missionary and priestly identity in the spirit of St. Daniel Comboni.

In 2015, after finishing the theological studies, I went to Uganda for my missionary service. I was assigned to the Holy Cross Parish, Ombaci, in West Nile, in Arua diocese, 520 km north of Kampala. There was plenty of work for me: visiting the 11 chapels, encountering the 27,000 Catholics, meeting pupils and students in the various schools run by the church, in particular Joseph’s College.

In April 2016, I made my final profession in Namugongo, near the shrine of the Ugandan Martyrs. On 22nd October, I became a priest. It was World Mission Sunday.
On my ordination day, I was appointed to Ombaci Mission in Uganda. After two year I am still in Ombaci mission, happier than ever. I am not a lawyer, true. Yet, I am still an ambassador of peace, a lover justice, crazy for love, unity, human dignity and solidarity. Above all, I am a witness of God’s mercy to me and to all.
Comboni Missionaries