Apollo Kivebulaya had persecuted Christians before his own conversion. After his baptism, he became a catechist, or lay teacher of Christianity in western Uganda. He was beaten and imprisoned for several months but in jail he had an intense experience of the presence of Christ. After his release, Kivebulaya became an evangelist to pygmies in the equatorial forests of the Congo and also to the people of Boga, formerly in western Uganda; there Kivebulaya trained other Christian leaders so that the church could become self-sustaining. In 1900 Kivebulaya was ordained. He translated the book of Matthew, as well as a book of prayers, hymns, and Scripture passages into local languages. Indigenous leaders such as Apollo Kivebulaya played a very significant role in evangelism in Africa.