26 April 2020
Covid-19 tests self-learning skills of students today
Covid-19 pandemic has challenged the status quo of the contemporary society on several fronts. Its impact has been felt across almost every aspect of life, including healthcare services, economics, entertainment industry and sports, work and family life, and in religious and educational practices. Amidst these global disruptions, the winners have been the contemporary twins, Information Technology (IT) and internet.
On the education front, the immediate focus has been on providing an emergency response, to keep the learning going remotely via the internet. If our investment of resources right now just targets a stop gap measure, we might miss an opportunity to make a systemic change to education. Covid-19 has thrust us by force, as it were, into how education ought to be carried out in the 21st century. READ ON…
COVID-19: Where is God?
Humanity is at its low ebb. After over 100 days of relentless effort we are still unable to contain the coronavirus.
Without the freedom to go on with normal life, overcome by the anxiety of the unknown, humanity mourns for itself.
Humanity is in the dark, like a seed that is buried beneath the soil, waiting for the first showers.
For those of us who take religion and God seriously, the spiritual questions still linger over our heads. The role of God in the current struggle between humans and this little virus does not make sense. READ ON…
5 April 2020
Coronavirus Spread Puts Religion in a Tight Corner
The coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) is due to change the current world order.
Besides the economic implications, many social agents and institutions are adversely affected by this viral phenomenon.
The global extent of the disruptions in educational institutions, religious practices, the entertainment industry, including the media, have been totally unprecedented.
It is a plain fact that religious gatherings have been early triggers for the spread of the contagion in many countries. READ ON…
4 April 2018
Why do you look for the living among the dead?
Today, Christians will gather in their millions across the globe to celebrate the core tenet of their faith: The resurrection of Jesus. This feast is referred to as “Easter” implying spring-time or sunrise. It was the dawn of Christianity. It could also mark the dawn of the spiritual life for all.
Most Kenyan Christians will begin the day with special prayers in their churches, while others might be tucked away in lodges and hotels enjoying the long weekend. Those who will go to church are likely to hear these words read to them from the Christian Scriptures: READ ON…
10 December 2017
Proposing New Type of Leadership for Kenya
Scholars and experts have proposed different models and styles of leadership. Among positive styles of leadership are: Visionary Leadership, Situational Leadership, Participatory Leadership, Transactional Leadership, Transformational Leadership, Servant Leadership.
Integrating most of these styles, I would like to propose a model of leadership which I call, “Magnanimous Leadership”. As we live through the current political situation in Kenya, I dare suggest, that Kenya today needs Magnanimous Leadership.
What could this mean in practice? I would like to explore certain styles of operation that Magnanimous Leadership entails. READ ON…
16 April 2017
True Meaning of Easter: Human Life as Experienced by God
Kenyans are enjoying a long weekend as Christians celebrate the feast of Easter today. It is one of the most important dates in the Christian calendar: The death and resurrection of Jesus.
Most Christians have prepared for this day by means of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, for a period of 40 days, in what is called “Lent”. Even if the Christian fasting is different from the Muslim custom of the month of Ramadhan, Christians are invited to take up personal expressions of self-control and temperance. Some fast from chocolates, others from tea or coffee, still others from Whatsapp! Many Catholics abstain from meat on the Fridays of the season of Lent. READ ON…
21 January 2017
Catholic Faithful to Witness the Enthronement of Don Bosco’s Relics
Catholic faithful will on January 29 congregate at Nairobi’s iconic Don Bosco Catholic Church in Upperhill, Nairobi after a procession from Nyayo National Stadium to witness the enthronement of the relics of St John Bosco, popularly known as Don Bosco. READ ON…
26 December 2016
Let this period be a time to build bridges
Since the end of World War II, there have been signs of the emergence of a global community – a network of peoples and nations socially, economically and politically interdependent.
But some events of 2016 have challenged the romantic possibility of a global community. The idealists stand aghast at the current forces of isolationism and fragmentation. Even as migrants rush into Europe, there have been signs of the world being pulled apart. From the hate-speech of Geert Wilders in Holland to the attack on foreigners in South Africa, people continue to express stereotypical hatred towards Muslims and minority communities. READ ON…
22 November 2015
The religious and political authority of the Pope
When the Pope arrives in Kenya on Wednesday, he comes as a religious leader of the Catholics worldwide, and also as the political head of the city-state of Vatican. It is no surprise then that on his arrival on Wednesday, he will pay a visit to the State House where he will hold talks with state officials and diplomats. In their bilateral talks, certain global issues are likely to feature: climate change, terrorism and security, and eradication of poverty.
So, how did the Pope acquire his political and religious powers? READ ON…
8 November 2015
Is Pope Francis a liberal or conservative thinker?
In September, when Pope Francis addressed the joint session of the American House of Representatives and the Senate, he received applause from the Democrats and the Republicans alike.
Journalists went to great lengths to estimate the number of claps that he received from the bipartisan chamber. It turned out to be a futile exercise that left the journalists even more puzzled: To which camp does the Pope belong? READ ON…
25 October 2015
Pope Francis: The Man Behind the Name and his Journey to the Vatican
A little over 30 moons ago, the Cardinal-electors had gone to “the ends of the earth” to get a Bishop for Rome, who, as per tradition, became the 266th Pope for the entire Catholic Church. The new Pope-elect was Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio from Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The first non-European Pope in over 13 centuries had chosen for himself the name of a saint known for his humility and simplicity: Francis. READ ON
11 October 2015
Looking at Family with Mercy Lens (on the 2015 Synod of the Family)
After what was acclaimed as a very impressive visit of Pope Francis to Cuba and the US, the attention of the Catholic world is now back on the Vatican, where 279 priests and bishops are gathered to discuss the family yet again.
The synod that got under way last Sunday is a sequel to the extraordinary general assembly of bishops that took place last year around this time. The present gathering aims “to formulate appropriate pastoral guidelines” for the care of the person in the context of the family. READ ON
5 April 2015
Will Easter mark a new dawn for Kenya?
Today most churches celebrate the feast of the resurrection of Jesus in what they call, “Easter”. (The Orthodox churches, even in Kenya, will celebrate it next Sunday.) For a majority of Christians this feast could be just another event in the annual calendar.
For others, it could be a long weekend for a family outing. For still others, it could be another day to show their faces in their churches just to identify themselves as Christians. For pastors it could be an occasion for increased collection. For some sincere Christians, though, after having prepared themselves in spiritual exercises for 40 days in what is called, “the Season of Lent,” these festive days could be a meaningful time – a time of resurrection through personal transformation. READ ON…
1 February 2015
Off the Cuff Remarks of Pope Francis: Are they Infallible?
The recent visit of Pope Francis to two Asian countries was a great success in every way. Sri Lanka, with a majority Buddhist population and until recently embroiled in a civil war, welcomed the Pope as a symbol of reconciliation and healing. Philippines, the largest Catholic country in Asia, and the third in the world, with over 80 million followers, was enthused to the third papal visit since 1970. While the media was still zooming in on his symbolic actions and prophetic words, in the press conferences en route to and from Manila, the Pope made some off-the-cuff remarks that, in the ears of many, seemed violent and vulgar. READ ON…
9 November 2014
Con Preachers exploiting society’s obsession with instant gratification
The subject of a recent investigative TV programme was the so-called Prophet Dr Victor Kanyari, whose alleged con activities in church have been the talk of the town in the past week. However, it may not have come as a surprise to most of us. Sociologically speaking, what is happening here? About two decades ago, in his ground-breaking book, McDonaldisation of Society, sociologist George Ritzer suggested that “the principles of the fast-food restaurant are coming to dominate more and more sectors of American society as well as of the rest of the world”. It is not difficult to recognise “McDonaldisation” spilling over to religion. READ ON…
26 October 2014
Bishops integrate truth and mercy in debate on divorce and homosexuals
As Pope Francis officially opened the Extraordinary Synod on the family, he gave its participants just one rule: to speak honestly. Already in the build-up to the synod there were open debates among some Church leaders. Cardinal Walter Kasper was proposing an agenda of mercy (see Sunday Nation of October 5). On the other end of the spectrum, there were some cardinals who were focused on an agenda of truth — in the definition of marriage and family, and in the Church’s approach to people in special situations such as homosexuality, divorce and remarriage. The outcome, however, was something meaningful: an integration of truth and mercy. READ ON…
5 October 2014
Synod of Catholic Bishops meets to discuss the future of family
Today, bishop-representatives from around the globe are gathering in Rome to discuss how the Catholic Church can respond more relevantly to the questions raised by the changing situations of marriage and family. The “Extraordinary Synod” will be presided over by Pope Francis and will last two weeks. The present synod holds promise that it is going to be different not only in methodology but also in its content. Interestingly, the working document of the synod focuses on pastoral responsibility of the Church towards the family rather than on its own moral authority. READ ON…
6 July 2014
Musings: Do we need walls to celebrate development?
I stay at the Shirimatunda village, at the foothills of Kilimanjaro, Moshi, Tanzania. I am not too sure if it can be referred to as a village anymore. Twenty years ago when I stayed at Shirimatunda for the first time, it was indeed a village. What does a village mean to me, anyway: huts, homes amidst farm lands, no cars or pikipiki’s (motorcyles), and most of all, no walls and gates. These days I take some long walks along the dusty pathways, what wounds my eyes when I am out of the hurting screen of the laptop are WALLS. Yes, traditional boundary markers are replaced by walls, these days. READ ON…
27 April 2014
Why controversial Popes are declared saints?
In an unprecedented ceremony this Sunday, Pope Francis will declare two of his predecessors as saints. The humble Pope does not want this occasion to be a pompous spectacle, yet three million people are expected to flock the Vatican to participate in the celebration. The popular Pope John Paul II, whose image is still fresh in many people’s minds, is likely to be the focus of attention among the masses. However, the revolutionary Pope John XXIII will be the subject of discussion among church historians and theologians, particularly given that the process of canonisation has been fast-tracked for both the candidates. READ ON…
20 April 2014
Why Easter beats Christmas in religious importance?
Two highpoints that dot the eventful terrain of Christian festivities are Easter and Christmas. Among these well-celebrated Christian feasts, which would you consider more important? For most people the answer would be obvious. Christmas, of course! Yet, Christian history would prove them wrong. Easter was the first feast to be celebrated. In fact, early Christians considered the resurrection of Jesus such an important feast that they began to celebrate it every Sunday. They referred to Sunday as ‘the Day of the Lord’. READ ON…
16 March 2014
Pope Francis builds an image of Church as Mother
In his own words, in electing him Pope, the cardinal-electors had “gone to the ends of the earth” to find the new Bishop of Rome. The election was unprecedented in that for over 1,300 years there had not been a non-European Pope. In the age-old Latin, the Church used to be called, Mater et Magistra – mother and teacher. In recent decades, in an overreaction to secularism and moral relativism, the church might have increasingly taken on the image of the magistra. The present Pope is bent on projecting an image of the Church that is also a mother. CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD
10 March 2013
From a Priest: Letter to Next Pope CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD
I am not a theologian, nor a church historian. I am a Catholic priest with some academic background and much pastoral experience with the younger generation. I have had the privilege of living and serving the People of God in four countries across three continents. Having lived four years in Northern Europe, I have seen the situation of the church there, witnessed the struggle between the church and the larger society, and heard the political rhetoric among the followers of Christ. However, I wonder, as the leader of the universal church would it not be more meaningful for Your Holiness to focus on the “joys and hopes” that the universal church promises, rather than get bogged down by the problems of the church in Europe and North America? READ On…
2 February 2007
One Euro – A short Story
The train is dashing through tunnels, gliding over bridges. But I sit here feeling homesick. The initial excitement of coming to Europe has now left an emptiness in my stomach. It is not that I am hungry. I simply miss ugali and sukuma wiki.
I miss the hustle and bustle of Korogocho. The nostalgic smell of the dark, dirty soil. The concealed fragrance of Omo from the washing of the clothes on the streets. The jostling crowds and the rubbing of shoulders. The dirges sung by drunkards as they stagger their way home. The freedom of the children running around.
When you are in those wretched hovels of Nairobi’s slums, you dream of being in the skyscrapers of America — or in the castles of Europe. But when you are here, suddenly you feel lonely. Strange! READ ON…