Kenya: MY HOMILY OF ELEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
SUNDAY, JUNE 16, 2013
The first reading of Eleventh Sunday in ordinary time is taken from 2 Sm 12:7-10, 13. While it shows us the weakness of human nature, at the same time it shows the infinite mercy of God. David acknowledges his sin and asks for God’s mercy and forgiveness. God’s forgives him and vows never to repeat that sin again.
The second reading is from St. Paul to the Galatians- Gal 2:16, 19-21. Paul is speaking here of justification and faith. In Christian theology justification is God’s act of removing the guilt and penalty of sin while at the same time declaring a sinner righteous through Christ’s atoning. In Protestantism, righteousness from God is viewed as being credited to the sinner's account through faith alone, without works.
Catholic and Orthodox Christians distinguish between initial justification, which in their view occurs at baptism, and permanent justification, accomplished after a lifetime of striving to do God’s will.
Most Protestants believe that justification is a singular act in which God declares an unrighteous individual to be righteous, an act made possible because Christ was legally "made sin" while on the cross (2 Cor 5:21). This is contrary to James 2:24-26. "You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone. But faith without works is dead."
In Romans, Paul develops justification by first speaking of God's just wrath at sin (Rom. 1:18 - 3:20). Justification is then presented as the solution for God's wrath. One is said to be 'justified by faith apart from works of the Law.'
The Gospel is from Lk 7:36—8:3. It shows the mercy of God for sinners and the willingness and eagerness, with which God welcomes back the sinner. A Pharisee invited Jesus to dine with him, and he entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table.
Now there was a sinful woman in the city who learned that he was at table in the house of the Pharisee. Bringing an alabaster flask of ointment, she stood behind him at his feet weeping and began to bathe his feet with her tears.
Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them, and anointed them with the ointment. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, that she is a sinner.”
Mary Magdalene was believed to be a reformed prostitute and is identified as the woman who 'was a sinner at the house of Pharisees, who washed Christ’s feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair and anointed them. Christ then forgave her sins.
The lesson we learn here is forgiveness, a decision to let go your sins and never to repeat them again as we see in the first reading and the gospel. David and Mary Magdalene never repeated the action they were accused of. It was wrong for David to kill Uriah and take his wife.
For unfaithful partners in Kenya where marital infidelity is as intertwined as nyama choma, also known as mpango wa kando, it would mean that forgiveness must go with justice. It means doing justice to your partner and your entire family that you will never cheat on your partner anymore.
In Kenya men are the ones closely linked with big percentage of mpango wa kando than women. A 2008 study carried out by Spylink International, a private investigation outfit based in Kenya, revealed that marital infidelity was on the rise with men taking the lead with 75 per cent share of cheating, while women at 25 per cent in 2002. By 2008 this figure rose from 25 to 45 percent of women cheating on their men.
The study pegged this scenario on “changing lifestyles, and women’s empowerment through higher education and knowing “their rights.” Hard economic times implied that more women were exchanging their bodies for material favours. The survey, however, revealed that “as the data stands, women in Kenya will be “leading the infidelity game by 2010.”
Even worse was the fact that 99 per cent of married couples cheat on each other, with Nairobi, of Kenya’s eight provinces, leading with 60 per cent of unfaithful men, and women at 40 per cent.
Nyanza comes second with 55 per cent of men and women at 45 per cent. Western and Rift Valley take fourth and fifth slots respectively, with men taking 65 per cent, while Coast came fifth with men leading with 60 per cent.
In Eastern province, unfaithful men stood at 70 per cent and 85 per cent in case of men in North-Eastern, a region where women are socially, culturally and economically suppressed.
Central Province was the surprise package with women taking a 60 per cent stake a head of their men.
This trend has led to single women in Kenya. A survey released few years ago by consumer market research firm Ipsos-Synovate, shows that 44 per cent of women dislike infidelity among men.
In terms of the state where the government is to ensure that all the citizens have an equal right to the most extensive total system of equal basic liberties compatible with a similar system of liberty for all, the forgiveness would also mean doing justice.
You must do justice on social and economic inequalities, nepotism, negative ethnicity, human rights abuses, and assassinations, tortures among other ills as recommended by The Truth Reconciliation and Justice Commission (TRJC) in their report.
The report recommends that the head of the state and other departmental heads apologize to Kenyans and then for justice to be done it recommends that actions should be taken. IDPs must be reallocated, people who lost their dear ones be compensated.
TRJC was set up following deadly post-election clashes five years ago. After those elections some 1,500 people were killed and more than 600,000 forced to flee their homes. Some IDPs are still in the camps and people whose dear ones died have not been compensated.
TRJC mandate was to investigate and recommend appropriate action on human rights abuses committed between Kenyan independence in December 1963 and the end of February 2008 - including politically motivated violence, assassinations, corruption and land disputes.
It recommends that those with alleged involvement in the Wagalla massacre should no longer hold any public office. The killings occurred in 1984 during efforts to disarm ethnic Somali clans in the north-east of the country. Survivors say close to 5,000 people died.
When justice is done it is when the forgiveness will bring a kind of peace that helps the victims go on with life. Forgiveness here means that you are now at peace with yourself and the community. Click here to read Pope John Paul II Message for the World Day of Peace 2002.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Facebook-omolo beste
Twitter-@8000accomole
Real change must come from ordinary people who refuse to be taken hostage by the weapons of politicians in the face of inequality, racism and oppression, but march together towards a clear and unambiguous goal.
-Anne Montgomery, RSCJ UN Disarmament Conference, 2002
A HIGH-RANKING VATICAN OFFICIAL WANTS GAY COUPLES GIVEN LEGAL PROTECTION
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2013
As a high-ranking Vatican official on Monday (Feb. 4) voiced support for giving unmarried couples some kind of legal protection even as he reaffirmed the Catholic Church’s opposition to same-sex marriage, British Prime Minister David Cameron is expected to see off a rebellion within his ruling Conservative party on Tuesday over his government's plans to legalise gay marriage.
Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, head of the Pontifical Council for the Family, was quoted to say the church should do more to protect gays and lesbians from discrimination in countries where homosexuality is illegal.
This was his first Vatican press conference since his appointment as the Catholic Church’s “minister” for family. He conceded that there are several kinds of “cohabitation forms that do not constitute a family,” and that their number is growing.
Against background that Paglia suggested that nations could find “private law solutions” to help individuals who live in non-matrimonial relations, “to prevent injustice and make their life easier.
Although Paglia was adamant in reaffirming society’s duty to preserve the unique value of marriage, he said the church must defend the truth, and the truth is that a marriage is only between a man and a woman.
Responding to journalists’ questions, Paglia also strongly condemned discrimination against gay people, who he said “have the same dignity as all of God’s children.”
“In the world there are 20 or 25 countries where homosexuality is a crime,” he said. “I would like the church to fight against all this.”
In Britain, even though parliament is likely to vote to give the draft law its initial approval, more than 100 of Cameron's 303 Conservative lawmakers are expected to vote against it on what they say are moral grounds.
Behind in the polls, Cameron is trying to perform a tricky, and some analysts believe, impossible balancing act: to reconcile his desire to show his party is progressive with the views of many of those inside it uncomfortable with such reform, amid growing talk of a possible leadership challenge against him.
Many Conservative lawmakers say they feel Cameron is not a real conservative and is sacrificing what were once core party values on the altar of populism. Such talk is rife among some Conservative lawmakers and follows a spate of articles in the British press in which a handful of MPs raised the possibility of replacing Cameron with someone else, a prospect most commentators regard as far-fetched before the next election in 2015.
The new law proposes legalising same-sex marriage in England and Wales in 2014. It would also allow civil partners to convert their partnerships into marriages. Faced with strong opposition from the Anglican and Catholic churches, the new law would not force them to conduct gay marriages, but critics say gay people may launch legal challenges.
In France while the process of legalizing same-sex marriage despite fierce opposition from the Catholic Church, a similar fight is brewing in Britain with the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches sharply opposed to the move.
The Conference of the Bishops of France (CEF) issued a nine-page paper outlining the main debating points for and against the reform planned for next year and detailed several legal and anthropological objections to same-sex marriage, avoiding religious reasoning.
The paper stresses that the Church respects homosexuals and rejects discrimination, but argues that the demand for gay marriage reduces a complex social institution to a question of equal rights for individuals based on "amorous sentiment, which is by definition ephemeral".
It claimed those calling for it do not take seriously enough issues of procreation, paternity and the duties of spouses to each other and parents to children.
France's Catholic bishops are backing plans for a national demonstration against same-sex marriage legislation, which is expected to be approved by lawmakers later in January.
A coalition of 30 French family groups, "Manif Pour Tous" (Demo For All), plans a Jan. 13 Paris rally against a bill allowing same-sex marriage, introduced Nov. 7 by the Socialist government of President Francois Hollande under the slogan, "Marriage for All."
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Facebook-omolo beste
Twitter-@8000accomole
Real change must come from ordinary people who refuse to be taken hostage by the weapons of politicians in the face of inequality, racism and oppression, but march together towards a clear and unambiguous goal.
-Anne Montgomery, RSCJ UN Disarmament Conference, 2002
BIG DEBATE WHETHER SAME SEX MARRIAGE IS CRIME AGAINST HUMAINTY
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
SUNDAY, JANUARY 6, 2013
While Victor Tonye Bakot, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Yaounde, Cameroon argues that marriage of persons of the same sex is a serious crime against humanity, retired Kenyan Anglican Archbishop David Gitari says churches should have a dialogue with gays, arguing that if the reasons for criminalization (homosexuality) are moral, then by criminalizing gays, an opportunity of freedom to choose ‘good from evil,’ a God given gift is denied of them.” Click here to view Touching Photos Of Gay Couples Finally Getting Hitched.
The bishop who was speaking during the meeting in his home when Reverends Michael Kimindu and Collin Coward and former Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Kenya general Manager, David Kuria, visited him last year says he would support any move to cater for the spirituality of gay and lesbian Kenyans.
On Saturday bishop Gitari was quoted to say that the church in Africa is conservative that is why they are opposed to homosexuals.
Although bishop Gitari says he does not support ordination of gay bishop, he does not have any problem with ordination of gay priests. He is opposed to the decision by a small group of Anglican bishops in the UK to allow gay priests to become bishops.
Unlike Bishop Victor Tonye Bakot, Gitari argues that there is no way marriage of persons of the same sex can become a serious crime against humanity. As defined by the Roman Statute of the International Criminal Court crime against humanity are particularly odious offenses in that they constitute a serious attack on human dignity or grave humiliation or a degradation of one or more human beings.
Murder; extermination; torture; rape; political, racial, or religious persecution and other inhumane acts reach the threshold of crimes against humanity only if they are part of a widespread or systematic practice.
Although as in most African nations, homosexuality is illegal in Cameroon, for most Cameroonians, homosexuals are members of some evil sects where sodomy is a part of mystical rituals.
Article 347 of the Cameroonian Penal Code states: “Whoever has sexual relations with a person of the same sex shall be punished with imprisonment, ranging from six months to five years and with a fine of between 20,000 and 200,000 CFA Francs (between 24, 50 and 245 euros)”.
In some countries, the Catholic Church has already joined forces with Jews, Muslims and members of other religions to oppose the legalization of gay marriage, in some cases presenting arguments based on legal, social and anthropological analyses rather than religious teachings.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Facebook-omolo beste
Twitter-@8000accomole
Real change must come from ordinary people who refuse to be taken hostage by the weapons of politicians in the face of inequality, racism and oppression, but march together towards a clear and unambiguous goal.
-Anne Montgomery, RSCJ UN Disarmament Conference, 2002
KENYA: SUBA LEADERS IN BOYCOTT OF RAILA ODINGA’S FUNCTION AT THE MAKE-SHIFT NEWLY ESTABLISHED HOME OF MILLIE ODHIAMBO IN LAMBWE VALLEY.
Writes Arrum-Tidi Ogonglo in Mbita Town.
A cross section of leaders in Suba region of Homa-Bay County on Monday stayed away from a function which was attended by the Prime Minister Raila Odinga at the make-shift newly established home of the nominated MP Millie Odhiambo in Lambwe Valley .
An account by an eye witness indicated that even the area MP Gerald Otieno Kajwang’ was nowhere to be seen at the function despite of the fat that the Prime Minister was visiting his constituency.
Instead Kajwang’and other local dignitaries had assembled at Magunga district headquarters in Gwassi where they were all waiting to received the PM. Also nowhere to be seen at the function were members of the powerful Suba Council of Elders and Luo Council of Elders whose vice chairman Ex-Senior Chief Omolo-Anditi hails from Mbita constituency.
The nominated MP Millie Odhiambo’s home is in Rusinga Island, but she is married to a Zimbabwean man. And for the purpose of winning the Mbita parliamentary seat during the impending general election she had decided to establish a home within the localty for the purpose of attracting votes.
According to Luo tradition and culture a woman who is married into another community outside her home region is called “Migogo” therefore a woman who is classified as ‘Migogo” has no right to come back to her home of origin and claim political leadership once she is already married into another community. She and her siblings are considered as outsiders and foreigners
For such a woman to come back home and demand the right to contest the election for political leadership is viewed as an insult and total disrespect to her people, particularly her cousins in Waware sub-clan in Rusinga Island Therefore Milie Odhiambo has a daunting task to convince the voters in Mbita to vote for her parliamentary bid. This would be an up-hill task, hence the reason for her hurriedly invitation to Raila Odinga into her make-shift home.
The idea of her building a new home in Lambwe Valley within Mbita constituency so as to dupe the electorate did not go down well with the local politicians who are competing with her for the same seat. He is being treated as foreigners with many claims that even in Zimbabwe there is a parliament there, and that the place where she should go and contest for a parliamentary the election there. It is Zimbabwe where she belongs to and not Mibita, said a civic leader in Mbita town.
Raila flew to Lambwe on Monday morning, and according to some account given by sources presence at the venue, the Prime Minister was accompanied by his wife Mrs Ida Odinga, but she is said to have refused to disembark and remained inside the chopper.
After a brief stop-over the PM resumed his flight to Magunga in Gwassi where he was given n arousing welcome by all the Sub region leaders. But Raila arrived there when the word had already reached the local Suba leader’s of the refusal of his wife Mrs Ida Odinga refusal to into a make-shift home of Millie Odhiambo.
A number of the elders interviewed heaped a lot of praise to Mrs Ida Odinga saying that by the Prime Minister visiting the make-shift home of the nomination MP he had stooped low and that in according to the norms, tradition and cultural virtues of the Luos the Prime Minister should have only gone thereto open a new house and not to grace the empty ground for political mileage.
Ms Odhiambo earned an accusation of misusing Raila to intimidate and bull-dose her opponents in the Mbita contest.
Such a make-shift home is called “Ligala” in the Luo vernacular and it is not a place worth a visit by a person of Raila Odinga caliber and status.
Milllie Odhiambo is a staunch supporter of the Prime Minister, but the visit to her still a bush site where she intended to put up her permanent home in the future world not augur well with the four other ODM members who are locked up in the stiffest election battle with Millie Odhiambo.
The ODM boss who has repeatedly said that this time around nobody would enjoy his political patronage during the forthcoming general election an each and every aspirant must get prepared to sort out his or her problems with the voters is viewed as having gone to Lambwe to offer the biased support toms Odhiambo. In the opposite Millie Odhiambo might have have hatched an idea of inviting the Prime Minister into the site of her still bush home for the purpose of intimidating her opponents in the Mbita seat contest.
The issue is likely to impact negatively and adversely during her election campaign because her rivals have said they will use the visit as an attempt to intimidate and scare them away that she is too powerful and invisible.
“Whoever had invited the Prime Minister to that function had the ulterior motive to reduce his status.’,said one Suba elder who scathingly criticized the PM’s handlers for the incident.
Ends
Ending Child Marriage and Meeting the Needs of Married Children
From: Yona Maro
This document, entitled Ending Child Marriage and Meeting the Needs of Married Children, builds upon research into best practices for addressing child marriage.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) seeks to ensure that children are not robbed of their human rights and can live to their full potential.
--
Karibu Jukwaa la www.mwanabidii.com
Pata nafasi mpya za Kazi www.kazibongo.blogspot.com
Blogu ya Habari na Picha www.patahabari.blogspot.com
KENYA: THE MONTH OF JUNE AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE
From: Ouko joachim omolo
Colleagues Home & Abroad Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
FRIDAY, JUNE 1, 2012
Today is June 1, 2012, in Kenya it is Madaraka Day, commemorating the day that Kenya attained internal self-rule in 1963, preceding full independence from the United Kingdom on 12 December 1963.
In the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Benedict XVI uses the month for his general intention to pray that that believers may recognize in the Eucharist the living presence of the Risen One who accompanies them in daily life- and for his missionary intention that Christians in Europe may rediscover their true identity and participate with greater enthusiasm in the proclamation of the Gospel.
For the large number June is known for marriages that occur over the course of the month. According to one etymology, June is named after Juno (Hera), the ancient Roman goddess of marriage, and accordingly, many Romans chose to honor this goddess by having their wedding in June.
Many considered this month to be the most favorable time to marry and would be showered with luck and good wishes from the gods above if they did so. In dholuo Juno means love (hera), the goddess of marriage and a married couple's household, which is why some consider it good luck to be married in this month.
Significantly, it is the month that parents are required to teach their children about sex with honesty and openness so that they can make good choices- your rule being that for when it is right to have sex with someone.
Discuss with your children how to protect them from abuse such as rape. Make sure your children know that there are ways to express affection-kissing and touching that are safe, that show affection without risk. Make sure they understand that sex can be a beautiful part of life.
Discuss what our children learn by observing our sexual lives and the relationships around them.
Tomorrow is June 2, in Kenya it is going to be very important day- the day that reminds Kenyans: “It’s Our Turn to Eat” by Michaela Wrong, published about John Githongo’s expose of high level government corruption.
People for Peace in Africa (PPA)
P O Box 14877
Nairobi
00800, Westlands
Kenya
Tel +254-7350-14559/+254-722-623-578
E-mail- ppa@africaonline.co.ke
omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Website: www.peopleforpeaceafrica.org
USA: WHY OBAMA’S SUPPORT FOR GAY MARRIAGE WILL MAKE HIS RE-ELECTION VICTORIOUS
From: Ouko joachim omolo
Colleagues Home & Abroad Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2012
Politically correct, when President Barack Obama said Wednesday he supported gay marriage, reversing his position on a controversial social issue just six months before the November election, he had widely consulted his advisors.
His advisors know that public support for same-sex marriage has grown in America since the 1990s and by endorsing same sex marriage will not bar him from re-election. In 1996, just 25 percent of Americans supported legalization. Today this figure has rapidly gone up. Public support for same-sex marriage continued to grow in 2011.
On whether Republicans which support the views of Catholics will use this trend to campaign against Obama, overall, the survey found 53 percent of Catholics supported the idea of same-sex marriage.
Further more, among Democrats, 62 percent are in favor of gay marriage while 74 percent of Republicans are opposed with 52 percent of Independents in favor. Obama counts on the strong pattern of liberalism among Catholics that stands in opposition to the church hierarchy.
Catholics make up their own minds about these moral issues irrespective – or almost in spite of – what the bishops and official church teachings say.
On Wednesday, Obama explained, "I had hesitated on gay marriage, in part because I thought civil unions would be sufficient… And I was sensitive to the fact that for a lot of people the word 'marriage' was something that invokes very powerful traditions, religious beliefs and so forth."
He said his position was influenced by gay members of the military and his staff who are raising children together in monogamous relationships. President Obama is targeting military due to his new initiatives to help support military families across the country that he said is not just a moral obligation, but a matter of national security.
The initiatives focus on putting a new emphasis on the quality of life for military families, the education and development of military children, redoubling efforts to help military spouses pursue their educations and careers, and increasing child care for our military moms and dads with young children.
According to a March Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll in 2009, only 40 percent of Americans oppose gay marriage. In a recent Gallup survey, 50 percent approved of gay marriage, while 48 percent said they opposed it. But polls consistently show rising support in recent years.
In another survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, released recently, majority of U.S. Catholics now say they support same-sex marriage. The survey found 52 percent of Catholics are in favor of same-sex marriage and 37 percent against.
In 2010, Catholics were more evenly divided on the issue, with 46 percent favoring it and 42 percent opposing it. The Pew survey also found white mainline Protestants are the most supportive of same-sex marriage of any religious group, at 54 percent.
White evangelical Protestants express the greatest opposition, with 74 percent saying they oppose it. The views of these groups have not changed since 2010. That is why Obama is so confident that despite his support to same sex marriage he will still win.
Compared with evangelicals and black Protestants, white mainline Protestants are more supportive of same-sex marriage, with 54 percent saying they favor allowing gay and lesbian couples to get married.
Among Catholics as a whole, supporters of same-sex marriage now outnumber opponents (52 vs. 37 percent), including majority of Catholics who believe that employers should be required to provide health care plans that cover contraception and birth control at no cost, despite the objection of their bishops.
Nearly half of Americans (49 percent) say that religiously affiliated colleges and hospitals should be required to provide employees with free contraception coverage. Nearly as many (46 percent) say they should not.
A majority of Catholics (58 percent) support the contraception mandate generally. While Catholic Church teaching proscribes the use of artificial birth control to avoid conception, 98 percent of Catholics use contraception, according to separate surveys.
Young people and the religiously unaffiliated are much more likely to believe all institutions, religious or not, should provide free contraception coverage to their employees. Less than a third (31 percent) of white evangelicals agree.
The survey of 1,009 adults was conducted Feb. 1-5 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent. The sample included 219 Catholics and 168 Catholic voters. The margins of error for this sample are plus or minus 6.5 and 7.5 percentage points, respectively.
Obama essentially is betting that his decision will generate enough enthusiasm among young people to offset any votes he will lose from moderate and conservative whites who disagree with him. Seventy one percent of voters- ages 18-29 is crucial group for Obama- they favored legalization of gay marriage in three Gallup polls taken over the past year.
A key part of Obama's calculus, analysts said, also will be to hold on to the enormous majority he enjoys among black voters. Church-going blacks are divided over gay marriage but pollsters say they are unlikely to vote for Republican Mitt Romney over Obama, the nation's first black president, in November.
Poll experts argue that from this strategic vantage point, Obama is making a good decision here because this is the direction the country is going.
Reuters/Ipsos online polling data from 2012 indicates that more than half of registered voters under age 35 think same-sex marriage should be allowed, while just 22 percent of that age group think it should be illegal.
The question was asked of 7,616 registered voters under age 35 between January 1 and May 3, and the results have an accuracy of plus or minus 1.3 percentage points.
About 90 percent of blacks who favor gay marriage would also vote for Obama, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling after Romney became the clear Republican nominee, between early April and May 3.
People for Peace in Africa (PPA)
P O Box 14877
Nairobi
00800, Westlands
Kenya
Tel +254-7350-14559/+254-722-623-578
E-mail- ppa@africaonline.co.ke
omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Website: www.peopleforpeaceafrica.org
DEFROCKED PRIESTS ON CELIBACY DEBATE
from People For Peace
Colleagues Home & Abroad Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
WEDNESDAY, MAY 9, 2012
The News making headline this week is of Roman Catholic priest Rev Fr Peter Njogu Kibutu from Nyeri Archdiocese who got married and joined Renewed Universal Church and became a bishop. Before he left he had served as a priest, attached to the Mweiga Catholic parish for 13 years. He is married to Berith Karimi Njogu with three children.
Like Bishop David Kasomo, Njogu was ordained bishop by former Zambian Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo. He is in charge of Mt. Kenya diocese, covering Nyeri, Meru, Embu, Nakuru and parts of Nairobi.
SAME SEX MARRIAGE DEBATE SAGA AS WORLD MARKS FAMILY DAY
From: People For Peace
Colleagues Home & Abroad Regional News
International Day of Families will be celebrated on May, 15, 2012. Pope Benedict XVI has chosen May for his general prayer intention for the family. "That initiatives which defend and uphold the role of the family may be promoted within society."
The family day was proclaimed in 1994 by the United Nations. This was a response to changing social and economic structures, which have affected and still affect the structure and stability of family units in many regions of the globe, especially in developing worlds
KENYA: WHEN THE VALUE OF MARRIAGE HAS BEEN REDUCED TO ‘CHAPA’
Colleagues Home & Abroad Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
THURSDAY, AUGUST 11, 2011
One of my Facebook friends recently posted on her News Feed page a very informative joke: “If money grew on trees women would date monkeys.” This is also true of Gwen Guthrie, an American singer-song writer, best known for her 1986 song: "You've got to have a j-o-b if you want to be with me/ No romance without finance”.
It explains why a common saying that a Kikuyu woman will treat you like a king as long as you have cash, but toss you like rotten mutura (traditional sausage) once you are broke is no longer confined to Kikuyu women alone-every woman needs ‘chapa’ (cash), especially now that Kenyan economy is almost becoming valueless.
The prices of essential commodities continue to shoot up due to weakening of Kenya shillings against US dollar. This week alone by the close of trading session on Tuesday, the local currency closed the day at new low of Sh95.05 against the dollar with dealers in the market quoting the shilling at an average of Sh95, for the first time in about 17 years.
Already there is fear that by next week according to the market projections an exchange rate may shoot up to Sh100 plus. The weaker the shillings the continuity of higher prices-it means that pay cheques will never keep up as media reports. This scenario makes everyone to love money.
That is also why the myth of sex that Kamba woman is known to be a force to reckon with, or coastal women are so idle that they spend the whole day applying henna all over their bodies, prepare elaborate weddings and cook biryani the whole day as they gossip, or Taita are said to make exemplary, humble wives, but when they make up their minds that a relationship is headed for doom, they are known to vanish back to their parents' faster than you can say "mdavida" are gone myths.
Other myths that Luo women are said to stick to their men like glue as long as they suspect love is in the air and don't look at another woman! If you do, she will have you and the other woman by the neck does not apply. Apart from being prided to have "drop dead gorgeous" bodies - with 'Adhiambo sianda' being their brand name, Luo women are believed to be good cooks and bewitching lovers.
Some men, especially Luo men like to marry Luhya women because of the myth that they are known to be modest and to have austerity, and that while they cannot stand extravagance, a Luhya woman would rather stay at home and drink numerous cups of tea than have you take her for an expensive dinner so long as there is in constant supply of ugali and Ingoho (chicken), she is yours for keeps.
The Luo men, mainly from Awendo, Dede, Migori, Ulanda, Ogwedhi, Makalda or surrounding areas of South Nyanza are said to like marrying Maragoli women not only because they believe they are easy to tame, but also because they are known to be in the business of making children, does not apply either.
The myth also has it that Kalenjin woman will never utter a word even if she smells strange perfume from you-she will not ask you from which woman did you get the perfume and where. And that men like them because they most beautiful, hardworking and wear big-hearts-former American ambassador to Kenya picked one.
Other myths have it that Maasai women are unquestionably obedient. They will never dream of correcting their menfolk. They still view their husbands as "lord of the house".
People believe Masaai men are still glued to the custom of planting spears outside their age group member's manyattas to warn the husband that serious business is taking place inside the manyatta and therefore will not ask you where you slept and with whom. Men also like them because they are generous with their husbands.
While Meru women are believed to be so faithful and agreeable that they will fight divorce to the bitter end even if they are living in hardship condition despite the fact that like men they can be hot tempered, Kisii woman has it in her mind that as long as you make her world rock she will never leave, even if you hire ten bulldozers to evict her from your house, like Meru women men are cautious because they can be hot tempered.
Today all these myths have been taken by time. In US for instance, unmarried couples account for more than 5.5 million households. This is because marriage means business. Without money it means no love. Your girl friend can just leave you because you refused to M-Pesa her or bamba twenty.
This is because the lack of money generated by one person in the eyes of the other can cause a problem because the expectations of the other person haven't been met. Some working class would like to remain unmarried because they want to feel that they want to enjoy their funds alone because they are doing so well.
These are the type of women who would not like to get married because a man could use money as a symbol of power in the relationship. This is because in relationship money has proven to be the root of the problem. The man is usually the authority, and money has control and authority connected to it.
Another reason why most single professional women do not want get married as some of my Facebbok friends argue is because most single professionals are tied by careers, lack of appropriate partner or just lack of commitments and fear of responsibility, or because they are feared for what they have or education levels or the far they are careerwise.
Most single professionals online would however, like to combine forces to remove this fear and have single people take a step of faith to declare they are single and are ready for a commitment, which is why you can get them through date lines. Some women and men through such date lines have managed to get good partners for life.
Although some working class or professional single women as they are sometimes referred to would like to get married, according to the Daily Nation results of the poll published December 24, 2006, on which I was also interviewed, 63 percent of Kenya's single women are frustrated marriage-wise because there is no man to marry them.
It explains why some single women and men have formed their own class where they prefer to be lesbians or homosexuals staying together even though most gay people disagree with this theory despite the fact that most scientists and biologists agree that there may be an environmental component to sexuality.
Of course, while some women would like to be lesbians because of the past molestation by men, especially through rape, the fact remains that some do so as a matter of choice between two options. This also applies to homosexual gays.
The good news is that professional women in their late 30s and 40s are happy, independent ‘living singles’. Some have made a deliberate decision to remain so while others argue they are still single by forced circumstances such as broken relationships, whereas majority of those in their 40s have established careers and acquired property so many men shy off from them because they feel threatened.
The bad news is for women in their 50s-they struggle with loneliness. They tend to hate men and cry over lost relationships, cursing those men who messed them up when they could have made better choices. Most of those women suffer from rejection, bitterness and stigma.
So the issue here is not sorely on money that is why for instance, there are around 150,000 divorces a year in the UK at the moment with the average marriage lasting 11 years. It's often women who do the walking out of a marriage that has gone stale, or where both parties have grown apart.
People for Peace in Africa (PPA)
P O Box 14877
Nairobi
00800, Westlands
Kenya
Tel 254-20-4441372
Website: www.peopleforpeaceafrica.org
POPE BENEDICT PRAYS FOR SPANISH YOUTH
Colleagues Home & Abroad Regional News
from People For Peace
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
TUESDAY, AUGUST 9, 2011
Pope Benedict XVI’s general intention this month is for the World Youth Day taking place in Madrid from August 15-21, 2011. He prays that the world youth day may encourage all the young people of the world to root and found their lives in Christ.
His missionary intention is that Christians of the West, docile to the action of the Holy Spirit, may re-encounter the freshness and enthusiasm of their faith-click here to read Spanish Episcopal Conference's WYD Invitation
The prayer is being offered at the time abortion among the youth is increasingly worrying. Abortion was fully legalized on July 5, 2010. According to new government study released in 2006 shows the rate of abortion has increased among Spanish young people.
According to the Spanish news agency EFE, the National Institute for Statistics reports that abortions among women under 19 in Spain rose to 8.8 abortions for every 1,000 women, up from 5.5 for every 1,000 women in 1995.
The government report confirms the findings of the Institute of Family Policy (IFP), which reported that in Spain approximately one in every six pregnancies ended in abortion, and one in seven abortions were carried out by women under 19. IFP also reported that the largest percentage of Spanish women aborting were under 24 in 2003.
Even though the Roman Catholic Church in Spain has denied it condones the use of condoms as a way of combating the Aids virus, the fact remains that due to abortion rates among the youth which have risen concomitantly, the government has publicly and massive lobbying for "safe sex" programs and promotion of condom use over the years.
While Spanish laws officially restrict abortion to situations involving rape, malformation of the baby, or threats to the physical or mental health of the mother, nearly 95.7 percent of all abortions are justified for concern for the mother’s health, while 2.5 percent are for fetal deformity, and just 0.1 percent for rape.
Recent surveys also show the number of practicing Catholics is dropping fast, to around 20 percent currently despite the fact that 94 percent of Spaniards are Catholic. Mass attendance has dropped from 44 percent in 1980 to only 19 percent in 2008.
Spain, of course, is not the only European nation to have largely abandoned the Faith. 2008 attendance among German Catholics was at 22 percent, among the French only 12 percent, and in the Netherlands a minuscule 7 percent of Catholics attended Mass weekly.
Apart from abortion, the Spanish parliament also approved a same-sex marriage law in 2005. Spain's action follows similar moves by the Netherlands and Belgium, where same-sex marriage has been legal. Same-sex marriage officially became legal in Spain on Sunday, 3 July 2005.
Although the Spanish law also gives same-sex couples the right to adopt children and receive inheritances, Catholic authorities are adamantly opposed to it, fearing the weakening of the meaning of marriage. Pope Benedict XVI has condemned gay marriage as an expression of "anarchic freedom" that threatens the future of the family.
Approximately 4,500 same-sex couples have married in Spain during the first year of the law. At least one partner must be a Spanish citizen to marry, although two non-Spaniards may marry if they both have legal residence in Spain.
Jobless is yet another big problem among the youth in Spain, to the extent that tens of thousands of Spaniards angry over joblessness went to the street to protest in cities all over the country.
Although Spain has no official religion, the constitution of 1978 disestablished the Roman Catholic Church as the official state religion, while recognizing the role it plays in Spanish society. According to the National Institute of Statistics (April 2010), 73.2 percent of the population are Catholic, 2.3 percent belong to another religion, 14.6 percent are agnostic, and 7.6 percent are atheists.
Spain has maintained its special identification with Latin America. Its policy emphasizes the concept of Hispanidad, a mixture of linguistic, religious, ethnic, cultural, and historical ties binding Spanish-speaking America to Spain.
With the Third Council of Toledo in 859 Catholicism became the official religion of Spain despite the fact that article 3 of this Constitution established that Spain has no official religion. This aspect was one of the reasons that led to the coup d’état followed by a bloody civil war between 1936 and 1939.
But even so the Spanish system is neither a denominational model nor a separatist model in the strict sense. It can be characterised by two ideas: the idea of some recognition of religious groups by the state and secondly the idea of religious freedom.
The treatment of religious groups can be described as a pyramidal structure. At the first level there is the Catholic Church which receives maximum rights with the help of Concordats.
The second level consists of minority religious communities having signed agreements. At the third level there are registered minority religious communities and finally those having no specific legal status.
In Spain there are no Theological Faculties in the State Universities. But you can find four Universities of the Catholic Church (Salamanca, Navarre, Deusto and Comillas) having a specific status regulated by the Agreement of 5 April 1962. Other religious groups can establish universities in the same way as any other body or individual.
Every religious group has the right to set up television stations, radio or press.
The Catholic Church is in contrast to all other religious groups financed directly by the State. All religious communities having signed an agreement are treated as non-profit organisations. Due to this regulation they profit from certain tax advantages. In Spain we can find only one class of matrimony: the civil matrimony. But there are certain different forms such as the civil, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish and Islamic form.
People for Peace in Africa (PPA)
P O Box 14877
Nairobi
00800, Westlands
Kenya
Tel 254-20-4441372
Website: www.peopleforpeaceafrica.org
KENYA: WORKSHOP ON LAND AND WATER SECURITY
Colleagues Home & Abroad Regional News
BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
WUNDANYI-TAITA TAVETA
FRIDAY, JULY 29, 2011
TAKE-3
Workshop on land and water security entered its third day yesterday here at Taita Taveta County in Mombasa Catholic Archdiocese with challenges on the implementations of the new constitution with some participants wondering why Kenyans voted for it overwhelmingly despite the fact that some church leaders told their flocks to vote against it.
Some participants were even concerned why the very church leaders who rejected the constitution and called the meeting to condemn one single man for wearing stud on his ear cannot do the same for over 10 million Kenyans who die of hunger.
Church leaders fear they would be blamed if they don’t condemn things that touch on morality that is why they were afraid if they did not reject the constitution because of abortion or condemn Dr Willy Mutinga for wearing the studs, which to them meant that he was either homosexual or advocating for it they would be blamed.
Those who die of hunger or still live in IDPs camps is not of a great concern to church leaders because they don’t touch on morality and therefore don’t see any need to call for meeting to push on the government to ensure that no body is dying because of hunger when they are able to feed them.
Kenyans overwhelmingly and peacefully voted "YES" for a new constitution as opposed to some Church leaders who commanded their flocks to vote “NO”. ‘YES’ got 5,954,767- representing 67.25 percent of the total votes while “NO” got 2,687,193- representing 30.25 percent.
Kenyans and for that matter, the vast majority of Christians went against their church leaders’ command and voted “YES” because they generally agreed that the proposed constitution, while not perfect, is a huge improvement over the old constitution, a colonial-era document that gives almost total power to the President and leaves out any mention that the government serves at the behest of Kenya's citizens.
They voted “YES” because Kenya’s new constitution is not only designed to re-distribute political power away from the capital, Nairobi, to 47 newly created counties (the devolution of powers), but also the land issue. It explains why numerous groups played a pivotal role in delivering this historically critical outcome, including established groups such as the Kenya Land Alliance.
Other groups included the Center for Land Economy, Women’s Right Movements, the Green Belt Movement, and newer groups such as the young women’s advocacy group Warembo ni Yes (an outgrowth of Bunge la Mwananchi—Women’s Social Movement).
Warembo ni Yes used new technologies such as mobile phones, Facebook, Twitters and the Internet, and more traditional methods such as community forums to amplify the voices of their constituency. In the process, innovative female leaders emerged to advance women’s rights.
Women were to vote overwhelmingly for the new constitution because it guarantees that they will fill at least one-third of elected and appointed government posts, land and property inheritance. Under Kenya's previous law, inheritance was governed by customary law, often preventing women from inheriting property from their parents or laying claim to joint assets when their husbands' died.
A new Bill of Rights also provides that all marriages shall be registered under an Act of Parliament. This means that even customary law marriages will be certified, protecting women's interests in disputes between a widow and her in-laws over property. Currently, in the case of customary marriage it is the in-laws who attest to the existence of the union since they are the ones who oversee the traditional wedding.
In the new dispensation, all marriages will be officially registered. Women will also be protected from claims by other women who turn up following a man's death, claiming to have been married to the same man under customary law and demanding a share of his estate - a common occurrence.
Historically land has been the centre for controversy in Kenya especially the issue of women being denied the right to own or inherit land. There are numerous cases where women are disinherited of land and new law seeks to change this as stated in the following articles Article 60:
(1) Land in Kenya shall be held, used and managed in a manner that is equitable, efficient, productive and sustainable, and in accordance with the following principles-
(f) Elimination of gender discrimination in law, customs and practices related to land and property in land: Article 68 Enact legislation (vi) To protect the dependants of deceased persons holding interests in any land; and water.
The new law defines community land as ancestral land and lands traditionally occupied by hunter –gatherer communities or lawfully held as trust land by the county governments. The new law entrenches provisions that protect culture and traditional lifestyles of indigenous people.
“The constitution shall protect indigenous communities that have retained and maintained a traditional lifestyle and livelihoods based on hunter- gatherer economy or pastoral persons and communities, whether they’re nomadic or settled community because of its relative geographical isolation who have experienced only marginal participation in social and economic life of Kenya as a whole.
That is why a day after Kenyans voted to accept a new constitution women across the country spoke about their hopes and expectations. Formerly women have been robbed of their financial contributions to matrimonial assets.
Men for example could just wake up one morning and sale the house they had bought together with his wife without her consent. This cannot happen now because the new constitution provides for the elimination of gender discrimination in law, customs and practices related to land and property.
This is indeed a very historic moment for the women of this country who have for years battled with their in-laws in succession cases. Formerly in the case of customary marriage it is the in-laws who attest to the existence of the union since they are the ones who oversee the traditional wedding.
The new constitution also grants health budgets for counties, making health care services more available in rural areas. It will ensure that there will be better deployment of health workers in all parts of the country, better nutrition and provision of health services. This will enable more women to deliver in hospitals and a sharp improvement of family planning services.
People for Peace in Africa (PPA)
P O Box 14877
Nairobi
00800, Westlands
Kenya
Tel 254-20-4441372
Website: www.peopleforpeaceafrica.org
HOME INTERNAL MEMO
FROM: FATHER
TO: ALL DEPENDANTS, RELATIVES & AUNTY
CC: MOTHER
DATE: TODAY
ECONOMIC SITUATION AND GROUND RULES
Due to the current economic situation, all domestic rules and regulations have been revised as below and under no circumstance is any violation going to be accepted.
1. The Kitchen and all pantries are declared Restricted Zones. Entry and/or passage shall require express permission from myself upon submission of written request.
2. Breakfast is banned. This matter cannot be discussed!
3. Such food items as rice, chicken, butter, jam, eggs, bread and milk are Restricted. Anyone intending to eat any of such foodstuffs must write to me in triplicate, with three days notice, giving justifications backed by a qualified dietician's report.
4. Watering with hoses is banned. Further, only food-giving plants shall be watered. No lawns or flowers shall receive water. For internal decoration, only plastic and dry-flower arrangements shall permitted.
5. Bathing in the morning is limited to 5 litres of water per day per person while bathing in the evening is banned unless there are medical reasons.
6. All security lights should be removed with immediate effect. All dependants shall abide by an all-night guard-duty roster I shall make available shortly.
7. No dependant shall entertain friends indoors, far less attempt to offer food, drinks or even music. Those who want their guests to listen to music shall sing for them.
8. No one is allowed to talk to officials from police, Council or Court Bailiffs; doing so shall carry an instantaneous penalty of ejection from the house.
9. Anybody who breaks a glass, furniture or any other property in the house, shall immediately have to seek temporary employment somewhere to earn money to replace such broken item(s).
10. All visitors intending to spend a night/week or more shall apply in triplicate and give two months notice, with an endorsement from their town Mayor, Village Headman or Church Priest, giving convincing reasons why they can't stay at their homes. Failure to do this shall result in their being turned away, at the gate, upon arrival.
THESE RULES ARE BINDING AND NOT SUBJECT TO ANY DISCUSSION WHATSOEVER!!!
Signed: DADY COLLINS Chairman of Home Affairs
KENYA: DOWRY/BRIDE PRICE , CHULO AYIE IS A MUST….
from: Felix Okatch
PAYMENT OF DOWRY IS A MUST!!
The section of Marriage Bill 2011 which proscribes payment of dowry is inconsistent with Article 44 of the New Constitution. The Article respects people’s cultures and values but this Bill negates that position.
Payment of dowry, dubbed pride price is a cultural practice among African communities and cultures. The Europeans do not have this practice. The Asians have it in a different format. Similarly as Africans have polygamous marriages, the Europeans do not.
Our Laws must be consistent with our cultures not foreign thinking. For example, the Bukusu communities of Western Kenya have annual circumcision ceremonies; the Swazis have annual Reed Dances and many more. These are initiations into adulthood according to various communities and many more.
Payment of dowry is a cultural and matrimonial practice among most African communities. It marks the issues of amatory, that includes entry into adulthood.
As a matter of fact marriage is one of the most important conditions in human life. It is a condition which produces more problems just as it has more joy and satisfaction in life. On a bad note, it does end tragically at times besides causing misery. This can loosely be made attributable to ignorance of both man and woman in matrimony.
Forms and types of marriage are many and have evolved over time. They include marriage of one man to one woman (monogamy), one man to many women (polygamy), many men to one woman (polyandry), man to man (gay) and woman to woman(lesbianism). These are all marriages. It depends on which side of the equation you subscribe to.
Now let us turn to payment of dowry, the bride price. To Africans this practice is as old as life and there are no major complaints about it. Socially, economically and politically the dowry payment has not caused any manifestation of injury to those undertaking this practice.
The purpose of dowry is not money or sale of a bride. You cannot sell human beings. Slave trade was banned in 1884 and cannot happen in this era and time. Dowry payment is essentially a manifestation of commitment and agreement. It has no commercial value but social satisfaction. Among the southern Luos the word is not price but, agreeing. AYIE.
The payment which is a token symbolizes that the bridegroom accepts to take the bride to his home as wife permanently and for good. Dowry payment and agreement is a ghost contract and the payer receives the bride. It is done publicly, in the day time, and in presence of close relatives and in-laws from both sides of the divide.
In absence of such a ceremony, the bride is alleged to have eloped; she is cheap, low value and many more derogatory silent insinuations.
The word bride price does not signify monetary value of substance. If it was of actual monetary value, it could have been construed to mean slavery yet it is not. On the other hand it does not show that it is paid according to economic value of the bride. It is just a way of thanking, appreciation to the parents of bridegroom, acceptance, AYIE.etc
Payment of dowry is usually an occasion of festive nature, not a hidden affair. It is at day light and well publicized ceremony that gives pride to the parents, in-laws, and all other close relatives on both sides of the divide. This occasion can also be rejected by either bridal party if one side is suspected to be sorcerers, witches or close relatives. Note that relatives are not supposed to be married tone another.
This bride payment ceremony would also help parents and close relatives determine whether the bride and bridegroom are related. This calls for vetting on consanguinity, which is, checking on blood relationship. People do not marry their relatives. This must be checked at the point of paying and receiving dowry.
This Marriage Bill 2011 assumes that all people planning to get married stay in town, they know that they are not related and also do not need any parental guidance on marriage. But this is not so. Marriage though seen as a union of the parties in exclusion of the others but the real world is not so. You cannot live alone. Man /woman are social beings and need other just as others need them.
Bride price/Dowry in an African context makes sure that things do not fall apart. From experience due care is taken in advance so that a marriage does not fall apart.
The coming of Christianity in East Africa as from years 1800 by missionaries like Livingston, Krapf, and Rebman etc. brought with it a lot of Christian definitions of marriage. These are in the bible. They include quotations from the Holy Bible like; (1. Cor.6:17), (Eph.5:30, 31), (Deut.22:28, 29), (Mark 10:9) What God has joined together let no man separate’
As for southern Luos of Kenya, marriage is one of the ways in which they fulfill some of their customary rites. These range from pre-marital visits, making of homes, and burial ceremonies among others. The Luos believe in agnatic lineage (naming the dead) for their ancestors and also the principle of primogeniture, the first born starts a journey and others follow in that order etc.
Therefore failing to pay dowry/bride price can raise many cultural issues even after death of either spouse. This means that some aspects of insisting that dowry be paid after death is possible if it was not paid during a life time of married couples in question.
Among these southern Luos, there are instances where it is a taboo for a first born to be married to another first born. Similarly last born are not supposed to marry their fellow last born. This might sound biologically nonsensical but when bad omen or spirits befalls the two, then these are the matters that come up. They would lead to questions as to why did such matters get resolved at the stage of paying dowry. Culturally these issues get handled at premarital stages, hence bride price ceremony.
Therefore this section of the Bill is repugnant to cultural beliefs of some communities. It is in conflict with the Article 44 of the New Constitution. It does not respect cultural beliefs.
Felix Owaga Okatch
Wuod Gem Nyawara, Siaya County
Tel: 254-721-735489 or 0733-735489
E-mail: felixokatch@yahoo.com
Kenya: DOWRY BANNED, POLYGAMY ALLOWED-WE ARE FINISHED!
from Judy Miriga
Folks,
Changing life style and tradition of culture to conform with present generation of lifestyle in the millenium does not mean abandoning Traditional Values......
There were no weddings in those days, but dowry for bride price was......It now should just be retained as a symbolic gesture to seal and bond the marriage. "Mkosa mila ni mtumwa".......Slave masters have a passion to change and tranform a slave to fit in their lifestyle and design.........Watch out........This is a conspiracy theory sired.....
We are on the road driving towards CHANGE, and passionate people must focus on how they are going to achieve what they believe in.
However, now that there are common place marriage through Church to perform and seal the Holy Matrimony, again, part of a Bride Price for symbolic gesture to appease the community's spirit and avoid the curse of generation spirit, one cannot avoid to symbolize dowry as a Bride price not on monitary value of buying the bride.
However, when a marriage is done traditionally or over wedding, it is oath taking bond, given under oath......But incase there are unavoidable reasons that the two has to part ways, again, the two must seek legal redress for separation before they can commit to get married elsewhere.......Law is Law, there is no round about it, and Law must be obeyed.
It is against the law to just walk away from the marriage before legally separating as, settlement for divorce must be completed before one is free to go their ways as they freely wish to get engaged sexually away from their bond of marriage.
Consequently, if anyone walks out and gets married elsewhere in a binding marriage, before an official legalized divorce has been performed, commits Adultry, a crime punishable by the Law of land.
If the meaning of marriage cannot be protected and preserved by any Government worth its salt, then that Government has no business representing public interests......I do not see why there is a controversy about marriage........The union between a man and a woman is clear-cut and there is no debate about it.......those who choose otherwise have no reason basis to cause conflict of interest or create a controversy for the same. But if Slave Master want to swagger the wife and husband to enjoy loose ended life to sample variety left and right, have a reason to build scapegoating........
CHUNGA.....!
A domestic home (family), is the backbone of a community; a community is the backbone and strength of a Nation. A Nations Partnership for Unity of purpose with other Nations of the world, harmonizes conducive environment for peaceful coexistance sharing diverse interests of purpose for greater prospects in meeting challenges and competition for improved social lifestyle prospects.......and as a matter of concern, Trading is Link shared in Business of GIVE and TAKE.......You give what others do not have in exchange to get things in return to acquire things one do not have........Long ago it was known as BARTER TRADING......the reason monitory (Money) exchange was created as a valuable means buy and sell commodities or services sold or rendered.
As a matter of fact, Government have a duty to preserve and protect its people's security and interest, nurturing peaceful coexistance lifestyle with its Nation from destruction and against conflicting forces of diverse interest that could interfere with its peace and cultural values, honor and virtues, but provide negotiable atmosphere where its people and Nation can grow and prosper as they open doors and focus to meet other National communities.
There must be limitation of freedom, and Government has a duty to help assist regulate these freedom to make sure people do not break the laws, to avoid rules of the Jungle.
People go to school to get an education to do away with the rules of the Jungle. I expect a more sober debate from Policy makers or otherwise, it is time they must be shown the doors, if they cannot remember through which door they got to Parliament.
When Leadership and Integrity is lacking, this is what we get.......instead of the mind doing the business of thinking, it is in the business of lower industrial area of the bottom........!
To have a right is not a guarantee to break laws, and laws and policy must compliment human values, dignity and virtues, without which, it is not the Law or Policy of the Land.
Thank you all, and have fun as you enjoy your weekends while celebrating Southern Sudan Independence.
Congratulation and Cheers to the people of South Sudan, and may God give Salva Kiir with all its leaders as well as all people of South Sudan, wisdom and strength to improve lives under Peace, Love and Unity...
Cheers everybody...!
Judy Miriga
Diaspora Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
http://socioeconomicforum50.blogspot.com
- - - - - - - - - -
From: Jagem K'Onyiego
Oduya Eric,
Stop Panicking!! For sometime now, I have been following your postings and almost making a false conclusion that you are a very cool guy who can defend your territory well. Oooh!! Was I mistaken? Now, you just read this Bill and you are sounding like you have gotten scared out of your wits. No, No Brother; LAZIMA UKAE NGUMU KAMA GUMO.
During the promulgation of the New Constitution, he of the Kitendawili, aka "Dumakwiri" (Odharia in some Lingwa) quiped that "Sasa ndiyo Kazi inaanza". I hope you did not forget this.
This new Constitution you must remember is meant to protect you and me from being torn to shreds by Vultures and Hyenas who swoop on things and want to eat more than their fill particularly where they have not Killed the pray.
Imagine for a moment that, if you want to marry, today, Ladies parents can give some "unmeetable" demands. It is as though they are selling their daughters to some Oil magnate residing in the Baltic sea, or somewhere in Siberia, where they will never ever meet their daughter again; ever!!!.
The surprising thing is that once they are paid money, I say pay because it is no longer Dowry, they still keep seeing their daughter and almost every end Month they continue to demand Money Money and more Money. This is not healthy for the relationship of the newly weds. Sooner or later it will degenerate and turn from Love to Hatred.
The banning of this "Selling price" for daughters coundn't have come at a better time. Do not worry that if, say, you have daughters, like me and Miguna Miguna, that they will marry off and leave you a poor man. This notion is misplaced. Daughters will always come back to help their Parents, since they have that motherly instinct.
As for men the Bill is a Master piece for now, though it can be refined further. This is what I have been talking about here in the forum as to the Ligalization process of my "Favourite" Traditional Practise,....Polygamy. By the way don't you think that Okapu Janeko had heads up, when he brought up this topic. Janeko really has some crazy paraphanelia in that Okapu of his.
Jagem
From: Ericson Oduya
Good People,
We are finished; this bill will weaken the marriage institution and if we are not careful the family values will be eroded to nothing. Could we have Maendeleo ya Wanawake standing up to be counted.
http://www.the-star.co.ke/national/national/30816-bill-outlaws-dowry-allows-polygamy
Warm Regards,
Eric.
Bill On Dowry, Polygamy And 'Come-We-Stay'
Samuel Otieno And Dorothy Ruto
14 August 2007
Nairobi — The way Kenyans view marriages, dowry, divorce and come-we-stay relationships will change significantly if a proposed new law is enacted.
The place of dowry in society could be weakened considerably, as the Marriage Bill 2007 proposes that it should not affect the validity of marriage in any way, unlike in the present set up where dowry is seen as a binding factor.
DOWRY BANNED, POLYGAMY ALLOWED
Friday, 08 July 2011 00:02 BY FRANCIS MUREITHI
Payment of dowry is illegal but polygamy is allowed. Those proposals are included in the new Marriage Bill released by the Commission for Implementation of the Constitution yesterday which seeks to introduce sweeping changes in the institution of marriage.
The Bill will legalize 'come-we-stay' arrangements. “Where it is proved that a man and woman having capacity to marry have lived together openly for at least two years in such circumstances as to have acquired the reputation of being husband and wife, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that they were duly married,” says article 7 of the Bill.
Thousands of people live together as married couples, especially in urban areas. If passed, this proposal will greatly assist those women and children who have in the past been disinherited on the death of their husbands and fathers because there had been no formal marriage. And for prospective in-laws who have commercialized dowry by demanding cash payments of up to Sh2 million, the Bill provides that there will be no legal provisions for a family or anyone to demand payment.
The proposed law defines dowry as “any payment of stock, goods, money or other property made or promised in consideration of an intended marriage.” It therefore applies both to payment of bride price, and to the dowry brought by a bride to a new husband.
Article 54 provides that “An agreement to give dowry, whether made before or after the commencement of this Act, shall not be enforceable as a contract and the breach of any such agreement shall not give rise to any remedies for breach of contract.”
An attempt to recover dowry will not even be admissible in court. Article 55 states, "no action may be brought for the return of dowry whether in whole or in part."
On polygamy, the Bill provides that if you are in a monogamous marriage, the status quo should remain. Men presently in a recognized monogamous marriage cannot convert to polygamous status.
However, unmarried men have the option of entering a monogamous or polygamous marriage. At the time of marrying, the groom can indicate that the marriage could be potentially polygamous which would give him a right to get married to other women.
No limit is placed on the number of polygamous marriages a man can enter into although the Bill states, “No married woman shall, while her marriage subsists, contract another marriage.” If the spouses agree, a polygamous marriage can be altered to a monogamous marriage. The Bill bars those already in polygamous marriages from dumping or entering a monogamous marriage with just one wife.
The Marriage Bill seeks to consolidate the various laws relating to marriage such as the Marriage Act, the Hindu Marriage and Divorce Act, the Mohammedan Marriage and Divorce Registration Act, African Christian Marriage and Divorce Act and the Subordinate Court (Separation and Maintenance) Act.
It clearly states that marriage shall be between a man and woman. A couple interested in getting married shall give the Registrar 21 days notice and indicate whether it will be a monogamous or potentially polygamous marriage. Where the intended husband is already married, the names of existing wives should be indicated in the notice. A marriage may be contracted in civil form, under customary law, Islamic form, Hindu ceremonies or Christian rites.
Those marrying will have to sign three marriage certificates—one for the district registrar or Kadhi, one for the husband and one for the wife. Presently, couples sign two copies, one of which is left with the registrar.
The Bill further states that unless the parties are legally separated or divorced, either spouse shall have the responsibility to provide the other with accommodation, clothing, food and other necessities.
Either spouse will have authority to pledge the other spouse‘s credit, to borrow money in his or her name, or to use any of his or her money which is in his or her possession or under his or her control.
Either spouse will have authority to convert movable property of the partner into money, and use it, so far as that credit or money is required or used for the purchase of necessities for himself or herself and any children of the marriage. In doing so, the spouse is required to have regard to the other spouse‘s means and way of life. Penalties for infringing this Act include being imprisoned for five years, or a Sh20,000 fine, or both.
The bible is explicit when it comes to sex
from collins odhiambo
Sex according to Pastor Khathide (Ugandan)
A lot of people don't associate sex with God - they associate it with Satan and darkness, as if sex is not holy.... !!
The bible is explicit when it comes to sex.
Sex is holy within marriage, and there is no prescribed style.
Nowhere in the Bible does it say that the missionary position is the only sexual style. Not discussing sex in a relationship leads to divorce!!!!!.
Pastor Khathide has counseled women who've complained:
my husband treats me as if I were his brother.
There was one who told him:
I am tired of getting sex fortnightly, like a salary.
Khathide told her she was lucky to be getting sex fortnightly,
since some wives only get it on big days, like elections.
Many husbands leave their wives to seek sexual pleasures in Hillbrow.
Have you ever asked yourself what those women have that you don't. Wives have become very frigid and even sleep with their panties.
If you're a married woman, you should sleep naked
and let your bum touch your husband..
Today you find men going out of their way to get a glimpse of a vagina. They page through magazines and even go to lingerie departments in stores hoping to see what's hidden under panties, because their wives hide it from them.
Marriage is about being free with your body in front of your partner.
A woman should parade naked and do some modeling to tempt her husband. There are many married women who don't know what their husbands' penises look like. She only feels it when he enters her. They've never touched it, let alone seen it, because the husband switches off the lights before undressing.
A penis is a wife' s toy - she is supposed to play with it.
He blames couples for not making time for sex andcomplaining about being tired after a day's work. You find many couples who've been sexually starved for years. God created sex for procreation and also for pleasure.You can't marry and not have a good time in bed.
WHO SAID YOU CAN ONLY HAVE SEX AT NIGHT?
Why can't you drive home during lunch and have a quickie with your wife?
We' re all equal in sex - it's not just about a woman satisfying a man.
You have to satisfy each other.
Have you ever seen a woman who has been satisfied?
Have u noticed how she glows and becomes energetic?
May the Lord Bless you.
This is the 'Whole Truth, Nothing But The Truth' so God !
Told Us From The Beginning.
Once you read this letter you have to keep it going.
This game has been played since 1996...
You must send this letter to 7 people.
On the 5th day someone will ask you out or say 'I love you.'
This is! not a joke.
It has worked for many years.
If you break the chain,
you will have bad luck with guys/girls forever.
This is just for future readers.
This began in 1996,not much of a past, but it works.
So here are the rules:
If you read this on a Sunday, wish for a good week
If you read this on a Monday, wish for money
If you read this on a Tuesday, wish for love
If you read this on a Wednesday, wish for success
If you read this on a Thursday, wish for anything you want
If you read this on a Friday, wish for a really hot date
If you read this on a Saturday, wish for an important phone call
Send this to seven people (after you make a wish).
Make sure it is sent as soon as you read it or your wish won't come true.
... And as we walk,we make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.We cannot turn back...
Sam-martins
Seeking A Luo Lady For A Serious Relationship
From: proud2bkenyan
I know this is unorthodox but I believe that sometimes thinking outside the box is OK... I'm a 35 yrs old 5'8" single Kenyan professional male. I permanently live and work in the US. I'm seeking a 29-35 yrs old professional (including graduate student) Luo lady with slim or athletic body type for a serious relationship. If you'd like to get to know me better, please email me at proud2bkenyan@gmail.com . Thanks!
Protect, take a bullet: a letter to my fellow men
From: Christopher Mutinda
Logo, Cover Illo.
LSR Magizine
Protect, Take a bullot: A letter to my fellow men.
- - -
This week, the US Leader is in the UK for His first ever official state visit there. The threats to the leader of the greatest nation on earth are real. The possibilities of a security breach many..... the secret service+CIA+FBI+NSA (read all security resources) have gone out of their way to cover every angle, visualize every outcome and countered it. The victory in battle belongs to the most informed, most agile, most malleable.....
Maybe we can apply this approach to our marriages and relationships.
read more
http://www.lsrmagazine.com/2011/05/25/protect-take-a-bullet-a-letter-to-my-fellow-men/
--
Best regards,
Christopher Mutungi
Editorial Director
LSR magazine
www.lsrmagazine.com
Love, Sex, Relationships...God's way!