Eternity Minded Ministries

HELPING PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD WITH THE LOVE OF JESUS

"If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did the most for present world were just those who thought most of the next."
(C.S. Lewis)

Pastor Mary Eteu's Story

Pastor Mary Eteu lives in Mbale, Uganda, a city situated on the main road from the capitol of Kampala to the country of Kenya in the East of Africa. Mbale is the third largest city in Uganda with a population of more 60,000 people and is the district capitol serving a district population of more than 600,000 people.

Pastor Mary does not pastor a traditional church; instead she is the chaplain to the district's prisons. In fact, Pastor Mary serves 12 prisons in the eastern region of Uganda. She is certified by the Uganda Bureau of Prisons as their only qualified chaplain for her region. Even though Mary is certified by the Bureau of Prisons, they do not give her any support of any kind. She receives no salary or expense money at all from the prison system. She is challenged to find her own means of supporting her ministry to those in the prisons.

The prisons in Uganda are extremely harsh places. The prisoners are not housed in cells as you might imagine. Instead, they are housed in large dormitories that have no bed, and mostly have dirt or concrete floors. The prison system provides only one meal a day of simple staple foods like rice or matoke, a local staple made from green bananas. Often times even the most basic medical care is not available, unless the family of the prisoner provides for it for them. In Uganda, many young men are imprisoned because the parents of their girl friends, who do not approve of their relationships, accuse the boys of rape. They are then incarcerated for up to two years while waiting for a trial.

Until recently, Mary's husband, who was a policeman, provided the financial support for their family and enabled Mary to minister to the prisons. However, for the past two years, her husband has been suffering from the effects of diabetes. In late October of 2005, Mary's husband passed away from complications arising from his diabetes. The medications to treat his disease were either not available or not affordable.

Now Mary is challenged to find another way to support her family as well as her ministry. EMM, and several of our supporters, have graciously stepped in to provide financial support for Pastor Mary's family for the next several months. We are praying that others might be prompted by the Lord to help support the ministry she has to the prisons in Eastern Uganda.