Annual Bible Schools

The first Bible Schools were held at Mt Elgon. Mt Elgon is in the east of Uganda, right on the border with Kenya. The first Uganda Bible School was held here in 1998, this was sponsored via CBM Project Aid. Our hosts, the Christadelphians of Mt Elgon, had constructed a meeting hall specially for the occasion out of UNICEF tarpaulins! They fed us with two hot meals a day and worked hard to make the school a real success. About seventy people attended.

The subject on that occasion was "Themes in the Gospels". This was the start of an annual event, now included in the annual budget, held over Easter that has seen the numbers of brothers and sisters attending increasing over the past 6 years. In 2002 we met at Busowa which is physically more central, but the costs of transporting brothers and sisters there was expensive. When the hall at Mt Elgon was constructed we'd thought that the days of meeting under UNICEF tarpaulins were over, in 2003 we needed the UNICEF tarpaulins to make extensions to the hall to fit everyone in! This year we were forced to plan 2 Bibles Schools, the Mt Elgon venue remaining for Easter and the 2nd one being held in the West, at Mbarara, 2 weekends earlier.

At the Bible Schools, the talks are given in English and translated into whatever language the majority can understand (a vote is taken at the start!). There are always many Bible discussions. At some time during the Bible School there are normally baptisms. At Mt Elgon the baptisms take place in the local river in front of many witnesses.

The subjects that have been covered over the years have been: "Themes from Gospels", 1998, Mt Elgon; "Lesson from Corinthians", 1999, Mt Elgon; "Unity in Christ - Ephisians", 2000, Mt Elgon; "Family of God", 2001, Mt Elgon; "Lessons from James", 2002, Busowa; "Lessons from Peter" 2003, Mt Elgon and "Lessons from Phillipians", 2004, Mt Elgon and Mbarara.

God has blessed the Bible Schools in Uganda and the encouragement for everyone who attend is wonderfull. As a spin off from the annual Bible School, the Youth Camps have developed, these are now in their 2nd year and we are planning, God willing, to also make these an annual part of the CBM Uganda scene.

John Mathias
January 2004

Information about Uganda