New Doctrinarie mission in Buvyukana, in the archdiocese of Gitega

p. Protais Bivuzimana, dc
The doctrinaire community has been in Gitega for twelve years: spent above all in the formation of young novices and professed, but also in apostolic activity at the service of the Diocese.
In the first years of presence, the archbishop was Monsignor Simon Ntamwana, now Archbishop Emeritus, who had entrusted the Doctrinaries with the apostolate in the village of Mubanga. In the small church there were no pews, people sat on the floor, whoever could came to Mass bringing a chair. The Doctrinaries Fathers who went to Mubanga with some seminarians began to restore the church, enlarging the structure and adding wings so that people would find enough space to participate in the celebration of the Eucharist. Mubanga was then part of the cathedral parish of Mushasha, then it was aggregated to the new parish of Bikinga.
Little by little the doctrinarie community increased its presence in the branch, not limiting itself to the celebration of masses and the administration of the sacraments, but also with catechesis in the various groups of young people and adults, with visits to the basic ecclesial communities and to the sick. Archbishop Ntamwana had also entrusted the Doctrinaries with the secondary school of Mubanga, which trains veterinarians and agricultural specialists.
In 2022, Monsignor Bonaventure Nahimana was appointed Archbishop and it is he who, on May 11, 2025, in this Jubilee year, called us to a new adventure again in the parish-cathedral in the branch, this time in Buvyukana dedicated to St. Benedict.
From May 11, therefore, we left Mubanga and the school to move to Buvyukana, to the north of the locality where the community is located. That day there was a beautiful sun and during the mass the decree was read with which the bishop announced the beginning of the new branch entrusted to the care of the Doctrinaries. The mass was presided over by the parish priest, Fr. Methode, episcopal vicar of Gitega and delegate of the archbishop in the ceremony of that day. The decree of the archbishop also defines the boundaries of the branch.
The participation in the Eucharist was massive and the people had prepared for the event. Many faithful had come to thank the Lord and the archbishop for the gift of doctrinal priests in their area.
The administrator of the Municipality of Gitega was present and after the mass he thanked the archbishop for having thought of the people of Buvyukana and committed to collaborating with the priests for the new mission in the territory he governs.
Even in Buvyukana there are challenges: the branch church is too small to accommodate all those who attend the mass and so we asked the parish priest for permission to celebrate two services, the first at 7:30 and the second at 10:30. There is no water or electricity, the land is not enough, it will be necessary to buy a space to enlarge the church and possibly build a structure for the community that will be formed.
Thanking the Lord for this new mission entrusted to us, we hope to continue and always be a significant doctrinal presence in the Archdiocese of Gitega and we thank with all our heart Father Luciano Mascarin who started the doctrinarie presence in Burundi. We entrust to his interception and that of Saint Caesar and Saint Benedict the new apostolic activity in Buvyukana.