He continued, “Archbishop Didi of Khartoum, Bishop Trile of Elobeid, Bishop Stephen Nyodoth of Malakal, Archbishop Ameyu of Juba, Bishop Santo Pio Auxiliary of Juba, Bishop Alex Lodiongo of Yei and myself of Tombura-Yambio are all his students and hundreds of priests and religious plus a sea of professionals of all walks of life in South Sudan and East Africa! So, Dr. Lukudu will live on.”
“He guided the Church in the Sudan and South Sudan through his formation work in the difficult period of political and social transformation, with wisdom, with a healthy detachment from reality, promoting respect for each person, for the good of the community of the Church, and above all keeping faith alive in the hearts of humankind,” the 58-year-old South Sudanese Catholic Bishop eulogized the late Priest.
Bishop Hiiboro who has been at the helm of CDTY since his Episcopal Ordination in June 2008 expressed his awareness of the challenges Fr. Lukudu has had and the positive attitude he exemplified. He said, “In the last phase of life, he was greatly tried by suffering which he accepted with peace of mind.”
“Even in this trial he remained a faithful witness to trust in the goodness and the mercy of God,” Bishop Hiiboro said about the late member of the Clergy of Juba Archdiocese, and implored, “He will thus remain in my memory and prayers. May the Lord welcome him into his glory.”
On September 8, the Auxiliary Bishop of Juba Archdiocese urged Seminarians in the South Sudanese only Metropolitan See to emulate the late Catholic Priest.
In his homily during the Requiem Mass for the Soul of late Fr. Lukudu at St. Theresa Cathedral of Juba Archdiocese, Bishop Santo Loku Pio Doggale said, “We have lost a great formatter and I urge the Seminarians to emulate him because he has shown so many ways to us in the Church.”
Ordained a Priest in December 1968, the late Fr. Lukudu served as Rector Magnificus/Vice Chancellor of the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) in Nairobi Kenya from 1996-2002.
In their condolence message published Monday, September 12, the National Salvation Front (NAS) officials say that following the death of Fr. Lukudu, “South Sudan has lost a very gifted, resourceful, and patriotic son at a time she needed him most”
“Late Rev. Lukudu Caesar was a dedicated Christian who stood with the church and the people of South Sudan at difficult times,” NAS officials say, adding, “He was very dynamic, skillful, patriotic and a gifted man of God.”
As a priest and teacher, NAS officials say, “Rev. Lukudu Caesar inspired thousands by his selflessness, courage and spirit of love.”
