Brief Life of the founder: Bishop Caesar Asili

Bishop Caesar Asili, founder of MSMMC/MIDM was born to Sebastian Asili Beu of Pameri clan in Metu and Mama Catharina Lopere of Vura Opi (Royal clan) in the then Madi District. Caesar Asili was born on the 11th September 1924 at Moyo Parish in the then Gulu Diocese. He was the second born in a family of seven children; however, he had to take up the position of the first born who died at infancy. He was from a simple and modest family, with the father being a World War II veteran who later became a catechist (Nyapara). Sebastian Asili worked as a headman in charge of the catechumens recruited by the Comboni Missionaries the evangelizers of Northern Uganda. Having a military background made the family set up a strict disciplinary family in which everyone had to do whatever work it takes for the common good of the family.

Educational Background:

The Mission environment and the educational system introduced by the Comboni Missionaries precipitated the passion of the young Asili for formal education. He started his formal education at St. Dominic Savio Maduga Primary School at Moyo up to P.4, after which he joined Lacor Minor Seminary in Gulu at the age of 14 years in 1938 where he continued with his prerequisite studies before joining the Major Seminary for his philosophical and theological studies. By then, Lacor housed both the Minor and Major Seminary.

The practice at that time was to give the Major Seminarians two periods of probation for Pastoral work. The first lasted for four months after Philosophical studies and the second was a full year after completion of theological studies. This practice, however, was not applied to Asili; in doubt of his vocation, the formators subjected him to one full year of probation after the philosophicum. They needed priests outside the Seminary to give their reports to help the Seminary authority make a fair decision. His high Eucharistic and Marian devotion, fluency and ease in relating with everybody including the opposite sex, handsomeness and smartness, let alone his extraordinary performance in academics were very rare attributes that led to suspicion about his vocation.

In essence, Asili had a flamboyant, charming and magnetic personality. He spent the first part of the probation at Pakele Parish, then in the Seminary and lastly at Nyapea Parish before he was admitted to Theology. Among others, some of the tests he was subjected included being given half cooked chicken with part feathers on, which he ate without complain, being sent in families with girls under instruction to test his level of relationship with the opposite sex, but these were not a match to his impeccable moral integrity. For the second probation after theology, Asili was sent to Angal Parish and then Lodonga Parish where he also helped in teaching Music in the Marian Brothers’ formation house and doing artistic paintings in their chapel and living room.

Priestly Ministry:

Having been discovered innocent regarding the suspicions labeled against him by his Superiors that led to his probation, Seminarian Caesar Asili was subjected to accelerated promotion within a period of two months through the different ranks even before completion of his theological studies thus:

• On 6th April 1955, he was installed as a Sub-deacon.
• On 23rd April 1955, he was ordained a deacon.
• On 6th June 1955, he was ordained a Priest at Moyo Parish.

Following his priestly ordination, Rev. Fr. Caesar Asili was resent to Lacor Seminary to complete the last six months of his Theological studies which he accomplished with diligence and excellence whereupon he was given several assignments with intermittent studies:

Curate at Ulepi Parish:

He was appointed to Ulepi Catholic Parish as curate with Msgr. Isidore Alule as the Parish Priest, a task he performed diligently with passion and love for his parishioners. It should be noted here that he was very passionate with the youth with particular interest in grooming aspirants to the priesthood and religious life. This was an uphill task, considering the then conviction in wealth creation through bride wealth for the girls and continuity in cultural lineage that applied to the boys. He was however insistent and his efforts among others bore fruit in the young man Frederick Drandua who became his adopted son and he was happy to ordain him a priest and later he was a co-consecrator at his Episcopal ordination as Bishop of Arua Diocese in 1986.

Studies in Rome:

Having served at Ulepi Parish as curate for two years, Rev. Fr. Caesar Asili was sent to study Pastoral Theology in Pro Deo-University-Rome, where he also took a course in Journalism followed by another course in Canon law in the Pontifical Gregorian University.

Supervisor of Schools:

Upon his return from studies in Rome as noted in his educational background above, Rev. Fr. Caesar Asili was appointed Schools’ Supervisor in the West Nile region. This further exposed him to the education of the youth for which he had special love and passion. He discharged this responsibility so well that he became very popular in the realm of education in the region.

Makerere University

His commitment to education made his Bishop Angelo Tarantino to send him to study education. So in 1964, Asili joined Makerere University to study Bachelor of Education majoring in History and Religious Education. This was for Rev. Fr. Caesar Asili an investment because the future of the Church and the nation depended on education.

In the course of his studies at Makerere University, Rev. Fr. Caesar Asili noticed the secular Socialist trend in the education system of Uganda which alienated Christian Religious teaching and morals. This tendency weakened the ethical values of society, particularly with Marxist atheistic and materialistic ideology which was consistently growing among the elite who would be leaders of society. This triggered and renewed his zeal to fulfill his pledge to Mother Mary by doing something for the Church, thus the conception of founding two religious institutes (MSMMC & MIDM) as a thanksgiving to Mother Mary and the Universal Church.

Rector of Sts. Peter and Paul Pokea Minor Seminary in Arua Diocese:

Before completing the third year that would lead to the award of Bachelor of Arts with Education, Rev. Fr. Caesar Asili was recalled to the Diocese and assigned a new responsibility as Rector of Sts. Peter and Paul Pokea Minor Seminary, an assignment he accepted in obedience to his bishop. In his service as rector for less than one year, Fr. Caesar Asili worked very hard to bring unity among the staffs of the Seminary who were from different nationalities, cultures and walks of life. In his effort to promote vocations, he traversed the whole diocese moving from parish to parish in search of vocations and this blended him with the different cultural backgrounds in the diocese which included the whole of West Nile and Madi

Appointment to Bishopric:

On 12th July 1968, Fr. Caesar Asili was nominated as the first Bishop of Lira CatholicDiocese. He was consecrated bishop of Lira Diocese on 27th October 1968 at Aki Bua stadium by Cardinal Rugambwa of Bukoba – Tanzania. Being a new Diocese and in a region predominantly protestant, the new Bishop had an uphill task, however he worked tirelessly to set the foundation of what Lira Diocese is today. The major projects he initiated are evident in this regard, prominent among which included the establishment of several parishes, a Catechetical Training Centre, Aber Hospital, St. Josephs Minor Seminary – Aboke, Ngetta Babies Home, Missionary Sisters of Mary Mother of the Church (MSMMC) and Missionaries of Jesus the Divine Master (MIDM). He encouraged the foundation of schools such as, St. Mary’s College –Aboke, Comboni College. But of particular significance is the legacy he left among the people in terms of his humility, holiness, cheerfulness, and firmness in the face of challenges, especially identifying with his flock during the war situation of 1979, 1980s in which he sheltered many people at his residence regardless of their faith or ethnic belonging. The love for his flock in his 20 years of service urged him to promote countless vocations to the priesthood and religious life.

Rt. Rev. Caesar Asili suffered stroke as a result of Hypertension while celebrating mass at the inauguration of the Association of Religious in Uganda (ARU) Centre at Nsambya as Bishop in charge of Religious and later died at Nsambya Hospital on the 12th October 1988. He was laid to rest at Uganda Martyrs Cathedral in Lira Diocese after requiem Mass at Aki Bua Stadium, the precise ground on which he was consecrated a Bishop.

Some Key Values Cherished by Rt.Rev. Caesar Asili

Right from his Seminary training, Caesar Asili exhibited peculiar characteristics, talents and traits that distinguished him as a person and he carried these traits throughout his life and in some cases, they made him to be misunderstood by his Superiors. Some of such traits included but are not limited to the following:

• Devotion to the Eucharist;Fervent devotion to the Eucharist and to the Blessed Virgin Mary, characterized Asili’s spirituality. He is reported to always have found time for personal prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. This could be seen in the poem he wrote in his first year in the Seminary expressing his love for Jesus, ‘We Two, Jesus and I.’ In fact in his difficult moments, he always had recourse to Mother Mary. This explains the pledge he made to her of founding an Institute in her honor. Right from the Seminary and throughout the course of his probation, Caesar Asili made statues and pictures of the Blessed Virgin Mary wherever he was sent, eg at Angal Parish, Lacor Seminary, Nyapea Parish,Olepi Parish, etc.
• Art work; Caesar Asili had a love for art work, painting, sculpture and construction with traits left at Ragem Parish, Ulepi Parish, Angal Parish and Paidha Parish. Making statues of the Blessed Virgin Mary was a favorite hobby for Caesar Asili at Lacor Seminary, indeed one of his statues still stands at Ulepi parish.
• Music; Caesar Asili loved liturgical music and was known as a conductor, composer, and organist. He had special love for classical music and encouraged people to learn the art of music.
• Drama and Debate; He was an ardent lover of drama and debating. This made him articulate and good in learning other languages. He was fluent in Madi his mother tongue, English, Latin, Italian, and Luo (Acholi, Lango and Alur). He found poetry as a way of expression.
• Tidiness; Right from his childhood, Rt.Rev. Caesar Asili was known for being a smart and tidy person. As a cleric, it was very rare to see him out his clerical attire.
• Spirit of Work; Caesar Asili was not afraid of making his hands dirty in doing manual work. This he kept throughout his life and instilled it in others. It was not a surprise to find Bishop Caesar Asili busy with his typewriter in office beyond midnight.
• Spirit of sacrifice for the good of the Church, - Even as a Bishop, Caesar Asili in accordance with the Gospel value of love, sacrificed so much to the extent that he shared his table with aspirants to the new Religious Institute with very simple meals. This spirit of humility and of sacrifice has had long lasting impressions on many former and current members of MIDM.
• Passion for education; Bishop Caesar Asili supported and encouraged many people to take education seriously including the education of the girl child well ahead of his time.
• Strong Will and Determination; In the face of challenges, Caesar Asili always demonstrated a decisive and firm temperament in the pursuit of his objectives.
• Patience;Patience in dealing with people and situations, Caesar Asili cherished the capacity of the human person to make a change for the better, giving a second chance. So to say, he was never in a hurry to pull out the weed from the wheat (cf. Mt. 13:26-30).
• Vocation Promotion; He was zealous for Priestly and Religious vocation. This propelled him to seek and recruit vocations from all over the country and beyond.
• Affability ; Caesar Asili was very simple, social, approachable and available to all categories of people with a high capacity of creating friendship and remembering details about his acquaintances.
• Holiness; His love for God, humanity and the Church was radiant in his personality. This found expression in the solemnity with which he celebrated the Eucharist, other sacraments as well as other liturgical functions and the way he related with people.

Know more about Our History

See Our Locations:

Along the road to Muni University, 200m from the main road