After two years of waiting and postponement due to the pandemic, the beatification of Father Giuseppe Ambrosoli will be celebrated on November 20th, 2022 in Uganda where the medical missionary spent his life.

LUIGI OCEN , A DRIVER WHO WORKED WITH DR. AMBROSOLI

Ocen was born in 1950, he worked in Kalongo hospital as Dr Ambrosoli’s driver. He said he stands witness to the powers the doctor had received from God even while he was still alive. Luigi testified that Dr Ambrosoli was working for God because during the war, the army stayed in Patongo while the rebels took control of Kalongo. He said Dr Ambrosoli had taken in many people in the mission for refugee and he would also pray for them, they also got attacked by the Karamojong warriors and people felt safe at the mission.

One day Dr Ambrosoli called him and told him to go to Patongo with Dr Carlos so that they could bring the army to Kalongo. When they arrived in Patongo, they found the soldiers

in a meeting, so they had to wait for them. After the meeting and, one army commander asked them where they were coming from and they said Kalongo, he did not believe them. He asked them how they had reached Patongo without any scratch, they told him that they had driven. The reason the army commander was asking, was because the rebels had planted land mines on the same road that Luigi and Carlos had driven on.

They were kept in Patongo until 4pm. On their way back to Kalongo they found big holes in the middle of the road after the army had dug up the landmines. When they returned, they had to give Dr a report but they were told he was in Church praying. Luigi said power was given to Dr Ambrosoli by God when he was still alive.

HELLEN AKELLO OKETAYOT

My testimony about Dr. Ambrosoli is like this; when Dr. Ambrosoli was being evacuated to Lira, I had my little child Apio Lillian admitted in the hospital in very critical condition and consequently, Dr. Ambrosoli decided that she shouldn’t be left behind but should go with them.

An x -ray machine was brought in front of the theater where the current statute of Dr. Ambrosoli is located; that is where it was burnt. Dr Ambrosoli called me, “Hellen, my heart is bleeding”, I responded, asking why. He said, “you see this equipment, I bought it to help Africans but the Africans themselves are destroying it.How much millions is this worth?” he lamented. I then urged him to forgive the wrong doers and reminded him that he is a caring person, then he laughed. At that time, Bishop Cessana was also hospitalized in Comboni house and he was very sick. Dr. Ambrosoli’s mind was simultaneously split between the destruction of the equipment and the sickness of the Bishop. He then decided to forgive those who destroyed his equipment.

People were walking alongside the convoy, after Patongo soldiers started misbehaving. I was present near Dr. Ambrosoli because my daughter was on blood transfusion and he was monitoring, replacing the blood once it run out. At some point Dr. Ambrosoli jumped out of the truck and instructed people to come out and lie down. He would personally tell the people to lie down. As he was doing this he said, “What I am I doing?”, “What is God doing?” in Luo, then he switched to

English and said “oh my people are dying”, he then shed tears at that moment and you could see the love Dr. Ambrosoli had for the people. He was just moving around to make sure people are unharmed thus exposing his life in the process. Along the way, a truck loaded with drugs disappeared. We were admitted at Ngetta health Centre while the rest of the people remained at Ngetta farm. Dr. Ambrosoli asked the commander, “now that you have dumped my people here, what do we do for them?” There was nothing to do and nothing to eat.

Dr Ambrosoli’s illness begun to manifest as soon as he returned from Angal where he had taken students. When he returned from his second trip, he found us packing books in the vehicles and he joined but his sickness became more pronounced because we had been loading books from morning till late, I even advised doctor to go and rest as he had been working since morning. He responded that, “Hellen, do you remember my X-Ray Machine?” I told him to let go, after which he said, “Hellen, I am going back to Kalongo, I am not going anywhere, I am only settling the students in Angal, you prepare, we shall go back to Kalongo, If I stay here my heart will continue to bleed”. I told doctor not to worry, at that time he started to be restless, I asked him, “Doctor what is happening? He said, “Hellen, I am feeling feverish.” When he said that, I got a damp sponge and started to apply on his forehead.

Later we heard a helicopter approaching. Doctor said, “Hellen, you see, Sr. Romilde has telephoned people at home, I did not want them to come here, why should they be disturbed?” I replied to him “How do you

know that it is bringing your relatives?” He said, “Just wait and see”. After a short while, Bishop Asilli (RIP), the army commander and Ambrosoli’s brother Francesco arrived, and when the door was opened, I saw the hair on Dr. Ambrosoli all uncurl from his body and that was how he died. The brother, on seeing that he tried to raise his hands, kissed him on both cheeks and saw a piece of paper on Ambrosoli’s breast pockets which was visible since he wore a white shirt. The brother started shedding tears, he took the piece of paper, read it and placed it back in the pocket and left.

The death of Ambrosoli was the heartbreak precipitated by the burning of the x-ray equipment, he did not want to go anywhere and if it had so happened that he was alive, Dr. Ambrosoli would have probably died trying to return to Kalongo. He was always saying that he was only taking the students to a safe place but for him, he would return to Kalongo.

Before he died, Dr. Ambrosoli gave me a set of keys for the theatre, X-ray, his room, generator house and that for the midwifery school and for the Comboni sisters. He then instructed me to give the keys to Mr. Jino Owiny. He said, “Hellen, go and give these keys to Jino, tell Jino, I have kept some money somewhere in my room, let him use it to buy drugs to help the people. You have seen the drugs we came with disappeared”. He said, the key to the generator house should be given to Mr. Okeny who works there. I gave the key to Mr. Okeny.

He also instructed me and repeated this directive before he died that all his properties should be given to the poor and if anybody takes his properties, that person will not stay alive. I never took anything from the mission, I took the keys and gave it as instructed. When I came back from Lira, I suffered a terrible sickness, my face and head were all swollen, there was no hospital, there was nothing. What I did, I took the portrait of Dr. Ambrosoli I had come with from Lira and placed it on my head and prayed. I would sleep holding it to my head.

Pus started to exude from my ears and different parts of my head pus emanated. All the pus drained on its own until I recovered only with the portrait of Dr. Ambrosoli I used for praying and that is why I ardently attest that Dr. Ambrosoli was indeed a holy man and a blessed person. The act of forgiveness by Dr. Ambrosoli that he showed and that I witnessed, even if somebody does me wrong I forgive. What he did was really great, Ambrosoli welcome all the sick in the hospital regardless of whether from a rebels or government forces. He would treat them all as his children.

Hellen added that the Dr left a will that if he dies he should be buried in Kalongo and be buried using a skin in accordance to the Acholi customs because he is an Acholi.

INYEKO CARLA OCAN

I was born in 1963 in Kalongo. When I got married, I gave birth to two children after which I could not get pregnant for the next ten years. Then I visited the hospital and met Dr. Ambrosoli, after examination, he said, “Carla, there is nothing wrong with you and your fallopian tubes are fine, you will get pregnant and have many children”, he then gave me a tablet to swallow and after six months I became pregnant and was able to give birth to seven children thereafter.

This was possible due to the ability and medicine of Dr. Ambrosoli. I never sought any treatment after this encounter. In another incident, my sister in-law Akech Veronica who was in Lira Palwo had failed to conceive for 18 years, I brought her to Dr Ambrosoli where she was examined and again no problem was diagnosed. She was also given medicine and was able to get pregnant thereafter. This experience further compounds my testimonies on the greatness of Dr. Ambrosoli.

My younger sister named Betty was brought to the hospital having been struck with measles which affected her eyesight. When Dr. Ambrosoli examined her, he told my mother not to give any medication as it would naturally heal as she grows. Betty regained her sight fully and was able to go to school. She completed university. My aunt Camilla had difficulty with her speech, she was born with complication, her speech was not heard and she was taken to Dr. Ambrosoli who said that she will be able to speak audibly to comprehend with time.

MRS SANTINA ALUKO ORYEM, 78 YEARS

Ambrosoli came to us as a symbol of Jesus Christ Himself and this is why I attest that Dr. Ambrosoli was always accompanied by the Holy Spirit because all his patients, if he touches you, you begin to feel better, the same happens when he lays his hands on you or even stands by your bedside you feel better.

An example is my husband whom we wedded the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony was an asthmatic case. Nowadays the doctors who treat asthma are not there, he was the last doctor. Asthma used to be operated on and removed from the neck and a granular like substance like sorghum was removed and the patient got better henceforth. Which doctor if you do not have the Holy Spirit, can ever do such an operation and somebody gets healed? When he operated on my husband, who got an attack because he suffered from asphyxia.

The work of Dr Ambrosoli is reminiscent of the work of Jesus Christ in healing the sick, he would always start with prayers and invoke the Virgin Mary to intercede. Thereafter he would spread his hands over the patient, his hands were magical and that is why I affirm that Dr. Ambrosoli had God with him.

BRENDA OYO ANTHONY

I got married to Oyo Anthony in 1989, we lived in Pakor. I did not see Dr. Ambrosoli in person but I was present at his burial in Ngetta Lira. I developed love for Dr. Ambrosoli, my husband is a fine artist and he would always draw the portrait of Dr. Ambrosoli.

When it was announced that Dr. Ambrosoli would be beatified, I suddenly fell sick, I developed rectal prolapse and I was supposed to get surgery, but then, I decided not to go, instead, I said, “Dr. Ambrosoli, you are a doctor who operates people, I am not going to the hospital, I want to see you if you are in a holy place”.

At Mass, during consecration time, when the priest lifts the Holy Eucharist, I would also say this prayer. I prayed constantly for two months, the rectal prolapse disappeared.