A Martyr’s Question becomes a Call to Justice: The Inaugural Fr. Vincent Machozi, AA (‘15) Colloquium
By Abednego Musau (‘28)
“Why are you killing me?”
These were the last words of Father Vincent Machozi, AA (‘15) questioning his killers on March 20, 2016, in Katolu village in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Born and raised in Vitungwe-Isale in North Kivu, and a member of the Augustinians of the Assumption, Machozi rose to become a champion of justice. He was a courageous voice in the region that borders Rwanda and Uganda, where armed groups terrorized communities in their struggle to control lucrative local coltan mines, which are integral in the production of cellular and mobile devices.
Through his website, Beni Lubero, Fr. Machozi documented atrocities and exposed human rights abuses in the DRC. In the middle of his doctoral studies at the Boston University School of Theology (BUSTH), he made the difficult decision to leave his studies and return home, unwilling to watch from afar as his community suffered under the violence and exploitation of militant groups. After returning, Machozi was elected president of the Nande community which is a Bantu ethnic group constituting over 60% of the population in North Kivu, DRC. He continued with his call of advocating for justice for his people despite growing threats.
Fr. Machozi’s life, and especially his untimely death, raises a challenging question: What kind of theological education forms leaders who return to danger instead of retreating from it?
That question dominated the inaugural Fr. Vincent Machozi Colloquium at BUSTH held on February 26 -28, 2026. In the opening plenary address, William Fairfield Warren Distinguished Professor Dana L. Robert referred to Machozi as a “martyr,” which means “witness.” She further stated that, “Machozi’s witness was not confined to the manner of his death. His Christian faith, scholarship, and activism were of one piece. His academic work on peacebuilding in the DRC informed his public advocacy; his documentation of abuses flowed from deep theological conviction. For Machozi, theology refused to remain abstract.”
The colloquium’s theme “Ecologies of Peacemaking” further broadened this vision. One of the keynote speakers, Dr. Ambaye Ogato, the Commissioner of the Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission, emphasized in his plenary address that sustainable peace demands inclusive dialogue that values every person’s contribution, even that of one’s enemies. He persuaded the attendees that, “peacebuilding demands courageous listening and the difficult work of imagining a shared future across deep divisions.”
“The true significance of love, the true significance of peace, is only revealed in the very process, in the very attempt to realize it.”
The third keynote speaker, Father Dr. Emmanuel Katongole, Professor of Theology and Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame, affirmed this conversation by insisting during his address on “social love” and the cultivation of institutions that embody love in public life and make peaceful coexistence possible. “The true significance of love,” he said, “the true significance of peace, is only revealed in the very process, in the very attempt to realize it.”
The themes of the Machozi Colloquium intertwine well with the Boston University School of Theology’s distinctive mission. During the colloquium, dean G. Sujin Pak emphasized “The convergence of social ethics, peacemaking, and ecological justice with attention to global partnerships is a unique strength of BU School of Theology. These particular sets of commitments are not only part of STH’s legacy—which Dana Robert’s lecture so beautifully depicted—they are ongoing core elements of its DNA. A hopeful part of STH’s mission is to convene interdisciplinary conversations for vision, collaboration, and impact.”
The Machozi Colloquium, organized by the BUSTH faculty team of Associate Dean Nicolette Manglos-Weber, Prof. James McCarty, Prof. Filipe Maia, and Prof. Rebecca Copeland, will be held every three years, ensuring that his legacy shapes future generations committed to justice and peace.
Top banner image: Dr. Emmanuel Katongole, Professor of Theology and Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame, gives his plenary address on Saturday, February 28, 2026. Photo by Inyeop Choi (’26).