Anthony Peter Mayalla (25 April 1940 - 19 August 2009), also Anthony Petro Mayalla, was Tanzanian Catholic prelate who served as the Archbishop of the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mwanza The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mwanza () is the Metropolitan bishop, Metropolitan Episcopal See, See for the ecclesiastical province of Mwanza in Tanzania. History * 1880: Established as Apostolic Vicariate of Nyanza from the Apostolic Vicar ...

. He was appointed archbishop of Mwanza on 18 November 1987. He previously served as Bishop of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Musoma The Roman Catholic Diocese of Musoma () is a diocese located in Musoma in the ecclesiastical province of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mwanza, Mwanza in Tanzania. History * November 4, 1946: Established as Apostolic Vicariate of Musoma-Maswa fr ...

between 1979 and 1987. He was appointed bishop on 12 January 1979 by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

. He died on 19 August 2009 aged 69 years.

Background and education

He was born on 25 April 1940, at Ibindo-Kwimba, Kwimba District,

Mwanza Region Mwanza Region (''Mkoa wa Mwanza'' in Swahili language, Swahili) is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative Regions of Tanzania, regions, covering a total land area of . The region is comparable in size to the combined land area of the nation state ...

, Tanzania. He attended primary and secondary school in Kwimba District. He studied at the ''St. Mary's Minor Seminary Nyegezi'' in the Archdiocese of Mwanza. He then transferred to the St. Paul's Major Seminary in Kipalapala Tabora, before he was ordained priest. He studied at Loyola University in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

in the United States, from 1973, graduating from there with a degree in education in 1975.

Priesthood

On 20 December 1970, he was ordained a priest of the diocese of Mwanza at Ibindo Parish, by Bishop Renatus Lwamosa Butibubage, Bishop of Mwanza. He served in that capacity until 12 January 1979.

As bishop

appointed him as Bishop of the

on 12 January 1979. He was consecrated and installed at Musoma on 22 April 1979 by the hands of Laurean Cardinal Rugambwa, Archbishop of Dar-es-Salaam assisted by Bishop

John James Rudin John James Rudin, M.M. (November 27, 1916 – June 14, 1995) was an United States, American-born Catholic Church, Catholic missionary and Bishop (Catholic Church), bishop. As a member of the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America (Maryknoll), ...

, Bishop Emeritus of Musoma and Bishop Renatus Lwamosa Butibubage, Bishop of Mwanza. On 18 November 1987, The Holy Father appointed him Archbishop of the Metropolitan Ecclesiastical Province of Mwanza. He was formally installed there as archbishop on 28 February 1988. He was the first archbishop to serve the province of Mwanza following its elevation from a diocese. He served in that capacity until his death on 19 August 2009.

Illness and death

Archbishop Mayalla fell ill suddenly on the morning of 19 August 2009. He was rushed to Bugando Medical Centre in

Mwanza Mwanza City, also known as Rock City to the residents, is a port city and capital of Mwanza Region on the southern shore of Lake Victoria in north-western Tanzania. With an urban population of 1,104,521 and a population of 3,699,872 in the region ...

for evaluation and management. At the hospital, he was diagnosed as being in the process of having a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

. Despite the best efforts of the medical team treating him, he died at about 2.30pm that afternoon. He was 69 years old.

Legacy

He served as the chairman of the board of the

Catholic University of Eastern Africa Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) is a multi-campus private university in Kenya. It is accredited by the Commission for University Education in Kenya. Location The main campus of the university is located along Bogani East Road, in ...

(CUAEA), for over ten years. Archbishop Anthony Peter Mayalla is credited with founding of both Bugando Medical Centre, where he died and Saint Augustine University of Tanzania (SAUT), also in Mwanza City. He also served as the president of the Council of

Tanzania Episcopal Conference The Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC) is the conference of bishops of the Roman Catholic Church in Tanzania. Founded in 1956, the Episcopal Conference was officially recognized by the government in 1957. It includes all the Catholic bishops of ...

(TEC Council), beginning in June 1983 and ending in 1989.

References

Succession table

(5 July 1957 - 12 January 1979) (18 December 1965 - 18 November 1987)

External links

History of Mwanza Archdiocese
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayalla, Anthony Peter 1940 births 2009 deaths Tanzanian Roman Catholics People from Mwanza Region 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Tanzania 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in Tanzania Bishops appointed by Pope John Paul II Loyola University Chicago alumni Tanzanian Roman Catholic archbishops Roman Catholic bishops of Musoma Roman Catholic archbishops of Mwanza