POPE FRANCIS SOUNDS ALARM OVER THE PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
TUESDAY, MAY 14, 2013
In his homily during the canonisation ceremony on Sunday, Pope Francis sounded the alarm over the persecution of Christians today, stating: "We ask God to sustain the many Christians who, today, in many parts of the world, right now, still suffer violence."
Apart from Vatican’s concern over attacks on Christians in the Middle East, including Egypt's Coptic Christians, churches in Nigeria suffer a great deal in the hands of Islamic fundamentalists, Boko haram. Churches have been bombed in Kenya, Tanzania, Indonesia, Syria, just to mention a few.
Since Islamists rose to power after Egypt's 2011 uprising that forced out longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak, Christians have grown more fearful of intimidation and violence from fellow Egyptians, especially ultraconservative Salafis.
Muslims have attacked churches there and forced Christians to close their shops. Members of the Christian man's family have been arrested, including his mother and father, after a prosecutor accused them of collaborating in hiding the woman.
In the past, similar incidents have triggered deadly sectarian violence. In 2010, the ultraconservative Muslim Salafis claimed that Camilla Shehata, a Coptic Christian wife of a priest, had converted to Islam, but was abducted by the church to force her to return to Christianity.
Iraq's branch of al-Qaida used the incident as justification for an attack on a Baghdad church that killed 68 people, and threatened to conduct similar attacks in Egypt until the church released her. On Dec. 31, 2011, a suicide bomber killed at least 21 Christians at a church in the port city of Alexandria — an attack linked to the Shehata case.
In May 2011, at least 12 people were killed and a Cairo church was burned in clashes after a Christian woman had an affair with a Muslim man. When she disappeared, the man alleged that Christian clergy had snatched her and were holding her prisoner in a local church because she had converted to Islam.
Separately, dozens of mostly masked protesters hurled stones and firebombs in clashes with riot police at Egypt's presidential palace in a Cairo suburb. Protests have become a weekly occurrence in Egypt with unrest continuing since the 2011 uprising.
In Asia the story is the same. Asia News recently published a terrifying story. “Christian tombs were recently desecrated and a young Christian woman was gang-raped for an entire night. In both cases, police refused to file a First Information Report, allowing the culprits to escape justice.”
The Christian minority in Pakistan is persistently abused. “Whether it involves Christian-owned land and property or individuals who are targeted because they are defenceless, victims will not find justice with the country’s legal system.
The Pakistan Christian Post reports: “Muslim landowners destroyed and desecrated a Christian graveyard, using a tractor to plough over a number of tombs. Buried coffins were broken and the bones of the dead were brought to the surface. The local police refused to open an inquiry, whilst the landowners utter threats against local Christians to get them to stop legal proceedings.”
Islamic Jihad circulated this frightening report from Pakistan: “A powerful Muslim businessman, with the help of a group of accomplices, kidnapped two Christian sisters, forced them to convert to Islam and marry him.
“The girl’s father reported the kidnapping to the police but the police blocked investigations by reversing the facts: the daughters fled because of their father’s violence.
“A priest from the diocese of Faisalabad points out that the kidnapping of young women has become “common practice”, because the authorities and police are “puppets in the hands of extremists.”
The word "violence" can be defined to extend far beyond pain and shedding blood. It carries the meaning of physical force, violent language, fury and, more importantly, forcible interference.
Violence also refers to that which is psychologically destructive, that which demeans, damages, or depersonalizes others. In view of these considerations, violence may be defined as follows: any action, verbal or nonverbal, oral or written, physical or psychical, active or passive, public or private, individual or institutional/societal, human or divine, in whatever degree of intensity, that abuses, violates, injures, or kills.
Some of the most pervasive and most dangerous forms of violence are those that are often hidden from view (against women and children, especially); just beneath the surface in many of our homes, churches, and communities is abuse enough to freeze the blood.
Moreover, many forms of systemic violence often slip past our attention because they are so much a part of the infrastructure of life (e.g., racism, sexism, ageism). Thus, under his definition, Christian violence includes "forms of systemic violence such as poverty, racism, and sexism.
Approximately 10 per cent of the 2 billion Christians in the world suffer persecution. This means that some 200 million Christians suffer harsh repercussions because of their religion.
Persecution of Christians often serves as an indicator of the status of religious freedom for other minorities, since where Christians are persecuted, other religions tend also to suffer.
A more startling figure on Christian persecution was published by the German news agency, IDEA. It claimed that since the crucifixion of Christ, more than 43 million Christians have been killed for their faith.
It includes persecution of Catholics mostly, before and at the beginning, of the Spanish Civil war (1936–1939) which involved the murder of almost 7,000 priests and other clergy, as well as thousands of lay people, by sections of nearly all the leftist groups because of their faith.
The Republican government which had come to power in Spain in 1931 was strongly anti-Catholic, prohibiting religious education – even in private school, prohibiting any education by religious institutes, seizing Church property and expelling the Jesuits from the country.
During the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939, and especially in the early months of the conflict, individual clergymen and entire religious communities were executed by leftists, which included communists and anarchists.
The death toll of the clergy alone included 13 bishops, 4,172 diocesan priests and seminarians, 2,364 monks and friars and 283 nuns, for a total of 6,832 clerical victims. On the night of 19 July 1936 alone, some fifty churches were burned. In Barcelona, out of the 58 churches, only the Cathedral was spared, and similar desecrations occurred almost everywhere in Republican Spain.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com
Facebook-omolo beste
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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: KISUMU CHRISTIAN MINISTRY TO CONSTRUCT HEALTH FACILITY IN SIAYA COUNTY.
By Agwanda Saye
A Christian Organization Ministry is set to construct a health centre which is to cost Kshs 5 million within Siaya County to boost health care within the area.
Salem Orphanage Ministries head Bishop Pheobe Onyango said the clinic sponsored by Unbox Life International and her Kisumu Based Ministry is to serve those who are living along the beaches and other adjacent areas of Lake Victoria within Bondo District in Siaya County .
“We have palns to develop aclinic around this area to address the lack of proper medication in the area far away because even NGO’s have ignored it” she said.
KENYA: FREE MEDICAL CAMP BY SALEM MINISTRIES WITHIN SIAYA COUNTY.
By Agwanda Saye
Salem Ministries which is a Kisumu based Christian Ministry will host a free medical camp within Siaya County the birthplace of the USA President Barrack Obama which will be conducted by a group of volunteer nurses from California and Washington Seattle from the United States of America.
The free medical camp will take place at Uhasi in Pala Sub Location
According to the head of Salem Ministries Bishop Pheobe Onyango the free medical camp will take place between 13th and 14th of May this year and will comprise eight people from the US under Unbox Life and together with local nurses and doctors.
“There will be general treatment and the main target will be to try and de worm the children and test and treat malaria” Onyango added.
She added that her organization targets to offer the services to over two thousand people for the two days event.
“We target people from all the Constituencies making Saiya County to come for the free medical camp and we hope that people from Ugenya,Alego,Rarieda,Gem ,Bondo and Ugunja constituencies will attend ,my worry is that the duration might be a challenge but we will try to attend as many as possible “she added.
She however said that should they be overwhelmed by the number of those seeking medical attention then they might be forced to add another day.
“She added that she has followed all the laid down procedures with the authorities in regard to the event saying all the authorities concerned are fully aware of the free medical camp.
CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING ON CONDITION OF WORKERS
from: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
THURSDAY, MAY 2, 2013
Following my article of yesterday on middle class Kenyans continue to be exploited every time Labour Day being celebrated, some of our readers have sent in some comments and queries.
Peres Were of the graphic design, Westalnds-Nairobi asks: “Father, do you think government of Kenya will ever listen to the cry of middle class?”- Kizito Nyongesa from Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) writes: “Father Omolo thank you very much for your News Dispatch, they have helped me to have big picture on many things happening around us.”
The third reader is a Theology three Seminarian from Nairobi who does not want his name to be mentioned for fear of his authorities. He describes a sad and painful story where his parish priest is exploiting his cook by giving only Ksh 5,000 as his salary every month.
This cook has children to take to school, wife to take care of, medical care, food, clothing, etc. This is the same person who cooks, washes the clothes of the priests and irons them. When he asks the priest to add his salary, the priest tells him he has no money since the sadaka (offertory) is not enough.
But this priest is able to entertain his friends with more than Ksh 5,000 every week. He drives luxurious car, pays school fees to his siblings, able to talk on his phones hours and hours and many other things that cannot be counted here all.
This seminarian wants to know whether there is a place this cook can complain, that is a kind of a union defending the rights of the workers. The seminarian goes on to say that even it there was this cook may be afraid to go because when the priest discovers it will be the end of his job.
This story is just one sample of how many workers have been exploited in church institutions which are supposed to defend their rights. Most of the workers in these institutions have been treated like beasts of burden- an animal, such as a donkey, ox, or elephant, used for transporting loads or doing other heavy work.
The principles of Catholic social teaching on this issue are very clear. One reason compelling Leo XIII to write Rerum Novarum was because of the reason that middle class workers have been exploited like beats of burden. Leo XIII - Rerum Novarum.
http://www.google.co.ke/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CC4QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.vatican.va%2Fholy_father%2Fleo_xiii%2Fencyclicals%2Fdocuments%2Fhf_l-xiii_enc_15051891_rerum-novarum_en.html&ei=FvCBUaDxJYbYswa-kIH4Cg&usg=AFQjCNHZZv4Y-UQdX6cekrJXwHf2yv9FsQ&bvm=bv.45960087,d.bmk
His conviction was that the present age has handed over the working poor to inhumane employers and greedy competitors. He saw the working poor as needy and helpless and insufficiently protected against injustices and violence. His sympathy went out to these poor, who have a "downcast heart”.
Leo felt that most of the working poor live undeservedly in miserable and wretched conditions with no medical care, minimal wage, no retirement benefits, no savings, and no holidays- they overworked as if they were not human beings created in image of God.
That is why even more significantly, Leo challenged the position of those who use religion to support their oppression of the poor. In a clear anticipation of what would later be known as the preferential option for the poor.
The working poor, Leo asserts, should be liberated from the savagery of greedy people. He wanted the poor to understand that the lowest in society cannot be made equal with the highest and that poverty is no disgrace.
Leo XIII made it clear that the poor and the exploited were not to accept unjust treatment as though it were inevitable, and that they were to stand up for their rights at the same time that they helped to preserve good order in society.
His advice to them was: “protect your own interests, but refrain from violence and never riot; your demands should be reasonable; press your claims with reason; form unions but do not strike.
Leo XIII wanted the working poor to protect their interests, to make demands, to press their claims, and the principal means for doing this was the formation of unions. In their efforts to claim their rights, the working poor should find in the government an ally, and Leo made it clear that the working poor should be given special consideration by the government.
Rerum Novarum also contained a message to those who deal with the working poor. For Leo, employers have clear moral obligations: workers are not to be treated as slaves; the dignity of your workers' human personality must be respected; do not use people as things for gain; do not oppress the needy and wretched for your own profit.
Leo tells the wealthy the same thing he told the working poor: Christian morals must be re-established, for true dignity resides in moral living. Morality for the wealthy employers consists in coming to terms with their "proud spirit" and being "moved toward kindness". They are to be mindful of their duties, which mean that they are not to oppress workers with unjust burdens or inhuman conditions.
The encyclical Rerum Novarum is considered the first great social encyclical of modern times. It was published by Pope Leo XIII on May 15, 1891, a landmark date in the history of the Church Magisterium Forty years later, Pius XI commemorated it with the encyclical Quadragessimo Anno, and on the eightieth anniversary Paul VI issued his letter Octogessima Adveniens. Finally, John Paul II commemorated the ninetieth anniversary with the most recent of the great social encyclicals, Laborem Exercens.
All these encyclicals emphasize the important of the main fundamental rights which include the right to life, liberty, and security of person; the right to physical and moral integrity; the right to sufficient and necessary means to live in a becoming manner (food, clothing, housing, rest, health care, social services).
The right to security in case of sickness, disability, widowhood, old age, unemployment, and any involuntary loss of the means of subsistence; the right to due respect for one's person and good name.
The right to education; the right of assembly and of association; the right to form unions; the right to participate actively in public life; the right to personal participation in attaining the common good; the right to the legal protection of one's rights.
It is God's will that man should engage in work, an activity which encompasses all those human efforts which aim at improved conditions of life (or better still, the process by which man understands, cares for, superintends, and transforms the earth and its resources).
When man was created in the image and likeness of God, man received the command to rule the world, subduing the earth and all it contains, thus continuing and cooperating in the creative work of God.
Pope Francis I in his homily on the feast of St Joseph the worker emphasized this fact. The Book of Genesis tells us that God created man and woman by entrusting to them the task of populating the Earth and subjugating it, which does not mean to exploit it, but to cultivate and guard it, to care for it with their own labour (cf. Gen 1:28; 2:15). On St. Joseph the Worker | ZENIT - The World Seen From Rome.
http://www.google.co.ke/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CC4QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.zenit.org%2Fen%2Farticles%2Fon-st-joseph-the-worker&ei=XAmCUazKB4zJrQeX7oHoCw&usg=AFQjCNH0uirUdFU6_rhNpGgmFIz-4n_x8Q
The work is part of the plan of God's love; we are called to cultivate and safeguard all the goods of creation and in this way we participate in the work of creation! The work is fundamental to the dignity of a person.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.comFacebook-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
THE BIG DEBATE ON ‘GOOD CATHOLICS USE CONDOMS
from: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2013
Some of our readers have requested if I could make a comment on the Archbishop Peter Kairo of Nyeri’s statement on Sunday at St Cyprian Kagicha Catholic Church in Othaya that the position of the church was clearly against the use of condoms, when Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI encourages the use of it.
Although Benedict was quoted by some sections of media to have said that the use of condom in the case of prostitution was "first step" towards morality for the prostitute to use condom "in order to diminish the risk posed to another person is intending to reduce the evil connected with his or her immoral activity, the church hierarchy has maintained the pope was misquoted.
The media reported that the pope pointed out that the use of a condom 'with the intention of reducing the risk of infection, can be a first step in a movement towards a different way, a more human way, of living sexuality- An action which is objectively evil, even if a lesser evil, can never be licitly willed.
The pope made in an interview with journalist Peter Seewald regarding condom use in 2010. The interview attracted attention in the media. This explanation was interpreted by many as a change of tack by the Vatican which necessitated a clarification from the Vatican that "the pope does not morally justify the disordered exercise of sexuality, but maintains that the use of the condom to diminish the danger of infection may be “a first assumption of responsibility”, as opposed to not using the condom and exposing the other person to a fatal risk."
A number of Episcopal conferences have also been quoted to have suggested that condom use may be acceptable in some circumstances to prevent Aids. One of the first Episcopal conferences to take such a stance was the French Bishops Council which asserted in 1989 that, “The whole population and especially the young should be informed of the risks.
Archbishop Kairo while reacting to an advertisement which appeared on the Sunday Nation said: “As the Catholic Church we are not promoting use of condoms. I don’t agree with the advertisements on the billboards and newspapers that say Catholics believe in sex which is sacred and that they believe in using condoms.
The advertisement was run by Catholics for Choice movement advocating for use of condoms to save life. The advert attempts to redefine church teachings on condoms, saying- “Good Catholics use condoms.” Good because they save life.
According to Kairo the stand of the church on sex was that married couples must be faithful to each other and unmarried women and girls must abstain from sexual activities until marriage.
“We as Christians should learn how to live respecting each other in the holy sacrament of marriage and I urge the youths to respect and guard themselves in our day-today as the world is not the same as the olden times,” he said.
The Archbishop stated that the Catholic Church did not comply in any way with the campaign dubbed “Good Catholics Use Condoms.” In other words-‘Bad Catholics Use Condoms’.
While the Catholic Church hierarchy argues that the Church is concerned that promotion of condom use will lead to irresponsible, risky sexual behavior (promiscuity and prostitution), those who advocate for the use of condoms argue that if used during the intercourse it will reduce the probability of pregnancy and spreading sexually transmitted diseases.
They argue that as a method of birth control, male condoms put on a man's erect penis and physically to block ejaculated semen from entering the vagina, it has the advantage of being inexpensive, easy to use, having few side effects, and offering protection against sexually transmitted diseases.
Male condoms have been used for at least 400 years, having been one of the most popular methods of contraception in the world since the 19th century. Its disadvantage however is that, it may slip off the penis after ejaculation, break due to improper application or physical damage (such as tears caused when opening the package), or break or slip due to latex degradation (typically from usage past the expiration date, improper storage, or exposure to oils).
Some couples also find that putting on a condom interrupts sex, and therefore they can do without it during sex, and only to incorporate condom application as part of their foreplay to prolong erection and delayed ejaculation. This is because in some men use of condoms during intercourse make them loose sexual excitement.
In 1996, the Social Commission of the French Bishops' Conference said that condom use “can be understood in the case of people for whom sexual activity is an ingrained part of their lifestyle and for whom [that activity] represents a serious risk.”
In 1993, the German Bishops Conference noted: “In the final analysis, human conscience constitutes the decisive authority in personal ethics... consideration must be given...to the spread of Aids. It is a moral duty to prevent such suffering, even if the underlying behavior cannot be condoned in many cases...The church...has to respect responsible decision-making by couples.”
In April 2006, in response to a very specific question from the bioethicist Ignazio Marino, Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini opined that in certain cases, the usage of condoms might be allowable stating, "The use of condoms can, in certain situations, be a lesser evil".
Cardinal Martini, who used to be Archbishop of Milan, made the comments in an interview with the Italian weekly magazine l'Espresso. In it he says that the fight against Aids, which has caused more than three million deaths, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa, must be pursued by all available means-Cardinal backs limited condom use. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4929962.stm
This wa about the time the Agence France-Presse reported that a Roman Catholic newspaper in South Africa, The Southern Cross, has threw its support behind a local bishop who believes the church should lift its ban on condom use to prevent HIV infections in Aids-ravaged sub- Saharan Africa.
Bishop Kevin Dowling said that the Aids crisis in South Africa requires the church to permit the use of condoms to stop "transmitting death." The editorial backed Dowling's comments, explaining that this view should be seen as an attempt to balance Catholic doctrine with the compassion the Church should how toward the most vulnerable people in society.
The editorial went on to say, "Bishop Kevin Dowling's contribution to this debate articulates what many Catholics, including moral theologians, have been reasoning for a long time." One South African Bishop Supports Condoms To Prevent AIDS http://www.religiousconsultation.org/newsletters/January_2002/South%20African%20Bishop%20Supports%20Condoms%20to%20Prevent%20AIDS.htm
Zenit gives the statement by the Vatican reacting on pope’s remarks on condoms. The statement was released on November 21, 2010 by Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office. "STATEMENT ON PONTIFF'S WORDS REGARDING CONDOMS - "The Pope Does Not Reform or Change the Church's Teaching". http://www.zenit.org/article-31024?l=english
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
TOUGH QUESTION ON MARRIED ANGLICAN PRIESTS
From: Ouko joachim omolo
*The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images*
SUNDAY, APRIL 21, 2013
Following my homily on Vocations Sunday, some of you have raised a very tough and challenging question on whether Pope Francis may denounce married Anglican becoming Catholic priests, and whether this will pave way for married priesthood.
My answers to these questions are so simple; first, I do not know whether the pope has the plan to do that, or whether it could pave way for married priesthood. Second, I am not in position to answer these questions since I am not the authority of the Church. I am just a simple priest in the village there serving the people of God.
However, according to the structure, the Vatican's established: "Personal Ordinariates," in which Anglicans, including married priests can practice Catholicism, in my own opinion it may not be an easy task for Pope Francis to change this structure.
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI made availed this structure on Tuesday October 20, 2009, a new structure to welcome some married Anglican priests into the Roman Catholic fold. This is a canonical structure within the Catholic Church established in accordance with the apostolic constitution *Anglicanorum Coetibus* of 4 November 2009. Click here to read full text- *Apostolic Constitution Anglicanorum coetibus* providing *for* Perso
This canonical structure enables Anglicans to enter into full communion with the Pope, while maintaining some degree of corporate identity and autonomy with regard to the geographical dioceses for other Catholics of the Latin Church, and preserving elements of their distinctive Anglican spiritual and liturgical heritage.
In December 2009 Cardinal Levada responded to each of the bishops of the Traditional Anglican Communion who signed the October 2007 petition for corporate union with the Catholic Church, stating that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith had completed its long and detailed study with the aim of making available a suitable and viable model of organic unity for their group "and other such groups".
The Traditional Anglican Communion then undertook discussions with those other groups and with representatives of the Catholic episcopal conferences and planned to give a formal response after a meeting of their bishops in Eastertide 2010. A number of Anglican groups soon petitioned the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith for acceptance into ordinariates.
In Kenya the Anglicans reacted angrily upon learning that Pope Benedict had allowed married Anglican priests to join the priesthood in the Catholic Church. ACK Archbishop Eliud Wabukala rejected the papal offer arguing it was ill-timed-Row over Pope's move to court *married Anglican priests* - Daily Nation
http://www.google.co.ke/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=8&ved=0CF0QFjAH&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nation.co.ke%2FNews%2F-%2F1056%2F676610%2F-%2Fuo33jf%2F-%2Findex.html&ei=RZdyUdbOHc6IrAfBs4CIDA&usg=AFQjCNEfA4SstFQRlgXkRX0rkbzW4pfUVA&bvm=bv.45512109,d.bmk
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The news came at the time the Catholic Church had been battling with rebel priests who have broken away to form splinter groups against the principle of celibacy. Fr Daniel Kasomo, a leading member of Married Priests Now! splinter group who openly admitted to having a family for 20 years. Other splinter groups include Ecumenical Catholic Church of Christ and Reformed Catholic Church.
While ordination of married men to the episcopacy is excluded in the Catholic tradition, the Apostolic Constitution's Complementary Norms include provisions which take into account the position of married former Anglican bishops.
Recently Britain's most senior Catholic suggested Catholic priests should be able to marry and have children, saying the demand for celibacy was not of "divine origin".
In one of the most significant breaks with Catholic orthodoxy, Cardinal Keith O'Brien said many priests found it "very difficult to cope" with the celibate life and suggested lifting that ban could soon happen in the wider church-*Marriage* ban for *priests* should be reviewed by next *pope*
In an interview with the BBC
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-21552628
, he said there were some elements of Catholic teaching which were "basic dogmatic belief" – such as opposition to abortion and euthanasia. But the proscription against priest's marrying was not one of them.
While there are people who believe that as Pope Benedict XVI resigned as leader of the Catholic Church, the future of the ordinariate he established regarding marriage in the priesthood is now uncertain, some people believe that by accepting married Anglican priests in Catholic fold it will pave way for married priesthood in the Catholic Church-*Married* Catholic *priest * is a sign of changing times - Features
http://www.google.co.ke/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=8&ved=0CHIQFjAH&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ubspectrum.com%2Ffeatures%2Fmarried-catholic-priest-is-a-sign-of-changing-times-1.2992343&ei=IWRyUanKIaHm7Aam_4C4BQ&usg=AFQjCNHmyp9MhkTTz9V0d5ik2GvJ86_k7g
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It is at the same time Archbishop John Hepworth, the twice-married Primate of the Traditional Anglican Communion, who led negotiations with the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome, said he was “profoundly moved” by the Pope’s decision and would immediately seek the approval of the group’s 400,000 members worldwide to join.
In a similarly case, Father Ian Hellyer a Roman Catholic priest expressed the desire of making it a come back to the Catholic fold- click here for further readings-The *Catholic priest* with nine children | Life and style | The Guardian
http://www.google.co.ke/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=6&ved=0CE4QFjAF&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.guardian.co.uk%2Flifeandstyle%2F2011%2Fdec%2F17%2Ffather-hellyer-catholic-priest-nine-children&ei=RZdyUdbOHc6IrAfBs4CIDA&usg=AFQjCNErj6tCm-Y1hZdEx8s5R-4tQQQ9Fw&bvm=bv.45512109,d.bmk
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*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: GOD FINALLY HEARS THE CRY FOR JUSTICE BY BUTERE GIRLS
From: Ouko joachim omolo
*The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images*
THURSDAY, APRIL 18, 2013
At last the High Court has lifted a ban on the controversial play ‘Shackles of Doom’ by Butere Girls High School saying the move by the government was unlawful. Justice David Majanja ordered that the play must be shown because the Constitution does not allow a ban and it is not enough for the ministry of Education to ban it without reason.
Banned without reason because what the play depicts is real in Kenya. The play captures national ills of nepotism and tribalism which has tempered with development in Kenya since 1963 when Kenya got independence. The play was allegedly banned by the Kenya Schools and Colleges Drama Festival Executive Secretary Patrick Sirengo Khaemba.
The suit was filed by human rights activist and a long time friend of mine Okiya Omtatah.
The Permanent Secretary for Education George Godia and Attorney General Githu Muigai were listed as respondents.
Shackles of doom is play that depicts a film shoot set in the land of the Kanas, who refer to themselves as the TRUE KANAS, their land is oil rich but they are ignorant of the treasure that lies beneath their soil….a delegation arrives to their land and offer a beautiful lady – Wamaitha, to be married off to Lopush who is “Kana” in exchange of land where they settle.
Wamaitha is 3 weeks pregnant when they come and Kimani who is purported to be her guardian is responsible, she is married off against her will and her community with great determination and strong will construct “Mafuta Oil Refinery Company”.
During appointing of human resource, job opportunities are given with biasness and nepotism! The people of Kana demand for equal opportunities but are dismissed; only one person is considered from the marginalised community but as a watchman.
On the eve of Lopush and Wamaitha’s wedding, Kimani who is the CEO of the refinery company has an order to deliver 600 barrels of oil and dictates that everybody works on the night shift including those who were on duty during daytime. Lopush is not spared either because of his wedding that is coming up at the break of dawn; he is forced to be on duty as a security officer.
Kimani invades Lopush’s house demanding for intimacy from Wamaitha, of which she declines and they are caught up in the argument by Lopush who has absconded his duty in rebellion. Kimani hides in the children’s bedroom but unfortunately Lopush finds him, Wamaitha insists that the daughter can bare her witness that she did not fornicate.
As a matter of bad fortune she finds the daughter dead, still and lifeless when she goes to wake her up. Kimani is accused of her demise. A technical hitch occurs in the Mafuta Oil Refinery Company and there is a fire breakout at about the same time, angry villagers are summoned and just when they want to deal with the accused murderer (Kimani), his wife calls and says they are trapped in an inferno and Lopush has the keys to all the exits.
The whole village rush to help but they find a tragic scene, everyone has been consumed by the inferno, Wamaitha breaks news that her dead daughter was Kimani’s child.
The film director calls for cut and signifies end of their shooting, one member of the cast however retorts that the film has no credible resolution and cannot compete favourably, she suggests that all the communities be equally represented in employment opportunities for good relations, harmony and peaceful coexistence. Cameras were rolling in the meantime and the director terms the resolution to be credible.
The play is* written by award winning play-wright Cleophas Malalah, the Kakamega MCA for Mariakalo Ward. The play won Zonal, Divisional, District, Regional levels but banned from being staged at the National Drama Festivals set for Mombasa this month on claims that play is hate speech.*
* *
*The play calls for a thorough clean up of the mess in government key position jobs awarded to one particular ethnic and regional community. It calls for clean up in the *Ministry of Internal Security and Provincial Administrative beginning with Permanent secretary post, CID Director, GSU post, NSC – Peace and Conflict Management, Government Printer and Senior Director Administration/Internal Security.
Other messes that the play calls upon for a clean up include the Finance Ministry beginning with Permanent Secretary, Pensions secretary, ERD director, D/Finance secretary, and Controller and Auditor General.
Another key position the play calls upon for a clean up include Central Bank beginning with its Govern, Deputy Governor, Kenya Revenue Authority Commissioner General, Board Secretary, Senior Deputy Commissioner, Investigation and Enforcement, Deputy Commissioner, Administration and Deputy Commissioner Procurement.
Other key positions that need clean up include Commissioner for customs services, Senior Deputy Commissioner (Customs), Deputy Commissioner, Finance and Commissioner Domestic Taxes (LTO).
Senior Assistant Commissioner, Security, Senior Deputy Commissioner, Southern Region and Commissioner of Investigation and Enforcement post- Kenya Airports Authority MD, and General Manager Finance.
General Manager Marketing and Business Development, General Manager Information and Communication, Technology, General Manager Security Services, Head of Corporate Communications / PA to the MD, and Head of Procurement and Logistics.
Ministry of Industrialization, Chairman of the National Standards Council, Permanent Secretary, and Chairman of the Board-Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC)- Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.
Company Secretary, Chief Manager, Energy Transmission, Commercial Services, Distribution Chief Manager, Planning, Research and Performance Monitoring; Eng. Kenya Petroleum Refineries General Manager, Finance Manager, Human Resource Manager and Engineering Manager.
It is Kenyan people’s hope that after Sunday performance by Butere Girls High School Drama Club, current government headed by Hon Ohuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William Ruto would have heard the cry of these tender girls, crying for their beloved country Kenya-to act and made balance in these key posts among other posts.
*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*
* *
THE BIG DEBATE ON CLERICAL CELIBACY
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
MONDAY, APRIL 1, 2013
Some of our News Dispatch readers have asked me to comment on the letter
Catholic peers and MPs wrote to Pope Francis asking him to consider permitting bishops in the United Kingdom to ordain married men as priests- British Catholic legislators ask pope to relax priestly celibacy rule.
The parliamentarians, led by Rob Flello MP and Lord Alton of Liverpool argue in their letter that it is anomalous that married Anglican priests can be received into the Catholic Church and ordained as Catholic priests but married Catholic men cannot do the same.
The 21 parliamentarians from all political parties suggest that “if the celibacy rule were relaxed, there would be many others who would seek ordination bringing great gifts to the priesthood.”
I do not see this happening given that in a 2012 interview, Pope Francis (then Cardinal Bergoglio) said that he favoured maintaining priestly celibacy. He said: “In Western Catholicism, some organizations are pushing for more discussion about the issue.
For now, the discipline of celibacy stands firm. Some say, with a certain pragmatism, that we are losing manpower. If, hypothetically, Western Catholicism were to review the issue of celibacy, I think it would do so for cultural reasons (as in the East), not so much as a universal option.
“For the moment, I am in favor of maintaining celibacy, with all its pros and cons, because we have ten centuries of good experiences rather than failures. What happens is that the scandals have an immediate impact. Tradition has weight and validity.
There are many reasons, both practical and theological, why the Church insists on clerical celibacy. It is a wise practice that was gradually codified in light of centuries of accumulated knowledge and experience.
Early on, it became obvious to many bishops that a married priesthood doesn't work and that the Church needs men who are willing to embrace a higher spiritual state. Starting with the Spanish Council of Elvira in 305, regional churches began to ask of the clergy what many priests had already spontaneously chosen.
The early Church Fathers—Tertullian, Augustine, Ambrose, Jerome, and Hilary—wrote in favor of clerical celibacy, and at the end of the Dark Ages, great reforming popes like Leo IX and Gregory VII insisted that henceforth the priesthood would be celibate. This decision greatly strengthened the Church and still does so today.
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI wrote eloquently about how Mary's virginity is really a condition of spiritual fruitfulness. At one point, the disciples ask Christ if it is "expedient not to marry?" He replies that "not all can accept this teaching; but those to whom it has been given. For there are eunuchs who were born so...and there are eunuchs who have made themselves so for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let him accept it who can" (Mt 19:10-12).
Although in Africa and elsewhere childlessness was seen as a curse, one has to sacrifice the best of him self to remain celibate for the best part of serving the people of God. The love to serve the people of God overshadows the curse.
There has always been a deep human intuition that celibacy brings great spiritual gifts, a heightened sensitivity to divine things. Even under the Old Covenant, a married priest had to observe continence while he served in the Temple—in other words, when he was acting as priest.
Moses asked that the Jews abstain from conjugal sex while he ascended Mount Sinai, and the prophet Jeremiah was forbidden by God to take a wife in order that he might fulfill his ministry.
And although the apostles and their successors had freedom of choice in this matter—at least until the fourth century—a large number of the clergy during this period did choose celibacy.
The exaltation of celibacy does not in any way denigrate marriage. Nobody can outdo Pope John Paul II in praising conjugal love. And yet, as he points out in his famous talks on the theology of the body, marriage "is only a tentative solution to the problem of a union of persons through love."
The final solution lies only in heaven, where, as Christ explained to the Sadducees, there is no marriage. Those who live celibately are, in effect, "skipping" the sacrament in anticipation of the ultimate reality, the "Marriage of the Lamb."
According to Catholic peers and MPs, the Church's requirement of continence is a primary cause of the sex scandals, arguing that it is the lack of sexual outlets which drives priests into pedophilia, even though the recent scandals have little to do with pedophilia.
Concerning priests, including Fr Peter Kinyanjui, who was the parish priest at Ngewa Catholic Church in Kiambu who have left priesthood to marry, cannot be the measure that celibacy is failing.
Fr Kinyanjui has requested Pope Francis I to review the celibacy rule and allow priests to get married. Kinyanjui who practiced celibacy for 10 years got married three years ago saying he did so after realising he would not win war with nature.
“I had lived a celibate life for 10 years and at one time I realised I could no longer remain celibate or even sojourn on with the fight against nature,” says father Kinyanjui. Kinyanjui is now married to Emma Mungure-click here for further reading- Married Priest Who Views.
Father Kinyanjui says he believes this is the right way to go and urges Pope Francis to listen the cry of many other priests who would want to tie the knot. Kinyanjui also looks forward to a second wedding although he is yet to fix the day. His wife will give birth later in the year.
According to Fr Kinyanjui who lives in a rented house in Ting’ang’a in Kiambu, many other priests live in denial. “Many of them have partners but since the church doesn’t allow it, they court secretly.
Some have secret families, which I believe should not be the case. It was God’s intention for all of us to get married when he creates a man and a woman,” says Kinyanjui. His wife Emma Mungure describes her husband as a loving and caring.
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
THE LAST SUPPER
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
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
- - - - - - - - - -
THE LAST SUPPER BEFORE JESUS’ PASSION-DEATH AND RESURRECTION
SENT BY FR MAGNUS KOBI, AJ FROM AUSTRALIA
THURSDAY, MARCH 28, 2013
Jesus says “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you” (Lk. 22:15). He spoke these words at the beginning of His last supper, right before his death on the cross. And Jesus is speaking these same words to me and you again today.
Truly, the desire of Jesus had always been the same, on that very evening he wanted to be with His disciples, both the disciples of yesterday and of today including you and me. It is the last day of Jesus’ life, his last evening, and the last time he would be with his disciples. He had chosen them, cared for them, loved them and defended them.
Similar question we ask: Do we want to be with Jesus at least a little? Do we know how to give him the little companionship and affection that our hearts are capable of? If we look reality in the face we will see that Jesus has always been the one who was doing everything to be near us and to connect us to the Gospel.
As the old ancient hymn says: “Quoties querens me sedisti lassus?” (How many times Lord, did you sit down exhausted from searching for me?) This evening Jesus is lovingly binding himself to us his disciples with one burst of love.
At the table with the Twelve, Jesus took bread and gave it to them saying, “This is my Body, which is given for you.” He did the same with the cup of wine, “This is my Blood, which is poured out for you.” These are the same words we are going to repeat in this Eucharistic celebration.
Jesus becomes food for us, flesh of our flesh. The bread and wine are the food that has come down from heaven for us men and women who are pilgrims on the roads of this world. The bread and wine are medicine and sustenance for our poor lives, they heal every illness, free us from sin and they lift us up from anguish and sadness.
What is even more, they make us similar to Jesus; they help us to live as He used to live, to talk as He talked and to desire what he desired. The bread and wine also make feelings of goodness, service, affection, tenderness, love and forgiveness. They make the feelings of Jesus flow from us.
The Gospel message of the foot washing we witness today shows us what it means for Jesus to be broken bread and poured-out wine for us and for all people. At supper time Jesus gets up from the table, getting the necessary things kneels down and washes the feet of his disciples, including Judas who is about to betray him.
Peter not understanding that Jesus is not interested in the kind of dignity that the world wants asks “Lord are you going to wash my feet?” We know the answer of Jesus to him. “You will have nothing in common with me is I don’t wash you.”
For Jesus dignity is not standing straight and tall in front of his friends but kneeling before them in order to serve them. His dignity comes from loving his disciples to the end, providing humble service to them.
This is the last great teaching to them before His death on the cross. So at the end Jesus says to them and to us His current disciples on earth, “Therefore, if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.”
So let us start washing each other’s feet, starting with the weakest, the sick, the elderly, the poorest and the most defenceless refugees and migrants among us.
Let us start walking with our Pope Francis who takes upon himself the virtues of St. Francis of Assisi says: “Let us not be afraid of goodness, let us protect one another and the environment through genuine love and service.”
Some Easter Quotes to mull over
From: Caroline Nderitu-Benjamin
Happy Easter!
“Could life so end, half told; its school so fail?
Soul, soul, there is a sequel to thy tale!”
- Robert Mowry Bell
“The great gift of Easter is hope ... which makes us have that confidence in God, in his ultimate triumph, and in his goodness and love, which nothing can shake.”
- Basil C. Hume
“It is the hour to rend thy chains, The blossom time of souls.”
- Katherine Lee Bates
“Do not abandon yourselves to despair. We are the Easter people and hallelujah is our song.”
- Pope John Paul II
“On Easter Day the veil between time and eternity thins to gossamer.”
- Douglas Horton
“The stars shall fade away,
The sun himself grow dim with age,
And nature sink in years;
But thou shalt flourish in immortal youth,
Unhurt amid the war of elements,
The wreck of matter, and the crush of worlds.”
- Joseph Addison
“Where man sees but withered leaves, God sees sweet flowers growing.”
- Albert Laighton
“Chocolate causes certain endocrine glands to secrete hormones that affect your feelings and behaviour by making you happy. Therefore, it counteracts depression, in turn reducing the stress of depression. Your stress-free life helps you maintain a youthful disposition, both physically and mentally.
So, eat lots of chocolate!”
- Elaine Sherman
“Easter tells us that life is to be interpreted not simply in terms of things but in terms of ideals.”
- Charles M. Crowe
“There's nothing better than a good friend, except a good friend with CHOCOLATE.”
- Linda Grayson
“Forget love - I'd rather fall in chocolate!!!”
-Author Unknown
Season's Greetings from CCL!
www.publicspeaking.co.ke
EMERGING ISSUE JUST IN
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27, 2013
Father I am one of your readers who like your News Dispatch very much. There is one question which has been bothering me so much and I would like if you can answer me-
Was it possible for Jesus to have been romantically attracted to Mary Magdalene?
Answer
If I may answer you correctly and firmly, the issue here is not whether Jesus was romantically attracted to Mary Magdalene or other women, the issue here is the fact that every normal human being is romantically attracted to the opposite sex and this is very normal human emotion.
As Jesus was fully man, it was within the realm of possibility that he experienced it just as all of us do. Scripture tells us that Jesus experienced normal human emotions such as anger (John 2:14–17), love (John 11:5), grief (John 11:32–35), and joy (Luke 10:21). He also experienced normal human desires such as hunger (Matt. 21:18), thirst (John 4:7; 19:28), and the desire for rest (John 4:6).
The only different is that Jesus did not suffer disordered romantic attraction. This is because Jesus’ mission did not include marriage to a human being—his bride is the Church (Eph. 5:25–33)—so there was no apparent purpose for him to feel romantic attraction to form a family of husband and wife.
Secondly Jesus could not be romantically attracted to or involved with a single woman for sexual purposes since his mission was focused on saving mankind. Another input here is that women loved Jesus because he cared for them unlike other priests who distanced themselves from them according to Jews customary law that required that no priest would associate with women.
On the way of the Cross Station six we see Veronica caring for Jesus as she took a cloth and began to wipe the blood and sweat from his face. She could not do much, but she offered what little help she could in appreciation for what Jesus cared for women.
The 8th Station, we see the women of Jerusalem mourn over Jesus. The women were just wondering what could happen to them when Jesus dies. Who would be closer and care for them?
Another explanation here is that despite the popularity of the DiVinci Code alleging that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married with children, the women weep because they know Jesus is about to die and leave no offspring.
This is because the two greatest values of life in ancient times were the maintenance of your ancestral land and your family; your ancestors behind you, your unborn descendants before you.
“Woe be it if your generation cuts that because you don't have kids and all of your ancestors behind you are anticipating an unlimited eternity of descendants but that stops because you were infertile."
Jesus loved women in their weaknesses and flaws that is why he was quick to forgive them no matter how serious the sin, showing mercy and grace instead of judgment and condemnation. In deed Jesus respected women. They discovered Jesus was one of the few men they could fully trust.
The best example here is the adulterous woman Jesus forgave. As he was teaching in the Temple in Jerusalem some scribes and Pharisees interrupted his teaching as they brought in a woman who had been taken in the very act of adultery. The man was not brought in along with the woman.
After a time of silence, Jesus stooped down and wrote with his finger on the ground. It was unlawful to write even two letters on the sabbath but writing with dust was permissible (m. shabbat 7:2; 12:5). The text includes no hint of what he wrote.
The woman's accusers were trying to entrap Jesus, not just the woman. To them she was a worthless object to be used to "catch" Jesus on a theological legal issue.
Finally, Jesus stood up and said to the accusers, "Let the one among you who is without sin cast the first stone.
He stooped down once more and again wrote on the ground. In his answer Jesus did not condone adultery. He compelled her accusers to judge themselves and find themselves guilty—of this sin and/or others. No one could pass the test, and they slipped out one by one, beginning with the eldest.
The Gospels record several instances where Jesus reaches out to "unnoticeable" women, inconspicuous silent sufferers who blend into the background and are seen by others as "negligible entities destined to exist on the fringes of life.
The issue here is that people were not happy that Jesus associated with women. That is why they were not happy when Jesus chatted with Mary as Martha cooked. Luke relates the story of tension between Martha and Mary on the occasion of the visit of Jesus to their home (Lk. 10:38-42).
While Martha prepared the meal, Mary sat at the feet of Jesus and "she was hearing his word. Martha became distracted and frustrated over having to serve the meal without any help from her sister.
Finally she openly shared her feelings, stood over Jesus who was either seated or reclining, and complained: "She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" Jesus gently rebuked Martha for being so distracted and troubled over many things, when only one thing was necessary.
"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."
Mary's choice was not a conventional one for Jewish women. She sat at the feet of Jesus and was listening to his teaching and religious instruction. Jewish women were not permitted to touch the Scriptures; they were not taught the Torah itself, although they were instructed in accordance with it for the proper regulation of their lives.
A rabbi did not instruct a woman in the Torah. Not only did Mary choose the "good part," but Jesus related to her in a teacher-discipleship relationship. He admitted her into "the study" and commended her for her choice.
In the tradition of that day, women were excluded from the altar-oriented priestly ministry, and the exclusion encroached upon the Word-oriented ministry for women. Jesus reopened the Word-ministry for woman. Mary was at least one of his students in theology.
Jesus vindicated Mary's rights to be her own person—to be Mary and not Martha. He showed his approval of a woman's right to opt for the study and not be compelled to be in the kitchen. Jesus established his own priorities in declaring, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word proceeding out through the mouth of God.
Apparently, Martha and not just Mary had benefited from the study. Mary stayed in the house until Jesus called for her. When Martha went to get her, Mary came quickly fell at Jesus' feet.
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
CHALLENGES FACING PRIESTS IN DEVELOPING WORLDS
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
TUESDAY, MARCH 26, 2013
On Holy Thursday all the priests are required to attend Chrism mass presided over by the local bishop. During the Mass the bishop will bless the oil of catechumens, the oil of the sick, and the oil of chrism.
We use the first for adult catechumens and infants, the second for anointing the sick, and the sacred oil of chrism for baptism, confirmation, the ordination of priests, and the consecration of altars.
All three are basically an olive oil; chrism spices the air with the scent of a perfume, traditionally balsam. For pastoral reasons, another vegetable oil and perfume may be used.
The mass is to be presided over by the bishop because he is the only minister in the diocese who can consecrate chrism. The bishop will then invite priests to renew the commitments they made at their ordination.
In developing worlds this day is being celebrated at the time priests are faced with lots of challenges. It means that beyond matters of doctrine, the rapid growth of the Church in the developing world means that many of the faithful are now to be found in countries where poverty is common and where human rights may be lacking because of bad governance in most developing worlds.
Poverty is caused because political leaders in developing worlds, especially in Africa fail to act in the best interest of the people, mainly because of corruption. Some instances are where multinational companies have bribed local officials and leaders end up not acting in the best interest of the people.
Because these multinational companies are so powerful and they finance politicians it makes them not to be accountable to anyone in the countries they invest in, and sometimes even in their own countries.
Africa's political and economic failings are a proof that Africans are incapable of ruling themselves. This is due to a lack of capacity for good governance. It is one of the reasons why African nations suffer from poor administrative, inadequate judicial infrastructure and insufficient numbers of expertise.
Bad governance comes about when the people in power and those who seek power use all means to attain their goal. This includes fostering ethnic sectarianism and political repression and competition for control of the state.
As long as African political rulers and administrators are drawn from this class of predators, no amount of preaching the virtues of good governance or tuition on public administration will fundamentally alter the quality of governance.
Priests who speak against such ills are marked. Last year August Zambian authorities had to deport a Rwandese Catholic priest after he was detained for two days and questioned for preaching about poverty and justice for the poor during a Mass.
Father Viateur Banyangandora 40 years old was picked up at his residence at Lundazi parish by police at about 5 p.m., July 30, and taken to Lusaka, the Zambian capital, for questioning.
In his sermon during Sunday mass the father said that poor people were becoming poorer while the rich were getting richer, a move he said was tantamount to injustice which the Catholic Church detests. He had been preaching in Zambia since November 2006.
In a similar case, this year February, the bishops of Tanzania called on the local people to work and pray for peace after the murder of Father Evarist Mushi on the island of Zanzibar on Feb. 17. Reports indicated that the priest was killed on his way to Sunday Mass by two men on a motorcycle, who shot him in the head.
While Christians and Muslims have traditionally lived side-by-side peacefully in Tanzania, of recent various churches have been apparently set on fire by Muslim extremists and numerous priests were the targets of violence.
In San Salvador, six prominent Jesuit priests, including the rector and vice rector of El Salvador's most prestigious university, were killed early along with two other persons at the house where they slept in the capital.
The priests were the most prominent victims of Salvadoran violence since 1980, when eight leftist politicians were gunned down by the military, three American nuns and a lay worker were shot dead and archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero was assassinated as he said mass.
Some of these priests and religious have been killed because of advocating for good governance in the countries they served. They wanted the effective exercise of power and authority by government in a manner that serves to improve the quality of life of the populous and not individuals or particular tribes.
The priests wanted political leaders who would use state power to create a society in which the full development of individuals and of their capacity to control their lives is possible.
The priests realized that as long as politics is dominated by predator elites it is difficult to see how meaningful democracy or economic development can be sustained. That is why they advocated for better governance where those in power are held accountable.
Good governance has 8 major characteristics. It is participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the rule of law.
It assures that corruption is minimized, the views of minorities are taken into account and that the voices of the most vulnerable in society are heard in decision-making. It is also responsive to the present and future needs of society.
Good governance also requires fair legal frameworks that are enforced impartially. It also requires full protection of human rights, particularly those of minorities. Impartial enforcement of laws requires an independent judiciary and an impartial and incorruptible police force.
It means to be transparent. It requires that decisions taken and their enforcement are done in a manner that follows rules and regulations. It also means that information is freely available and directly accessible to those who will be affected by such decisions and their enforcement. It also means that enough information is provided and that it is provided in easily understandable forms and media.
It means that elected leaders set institutional systems and processes that try to serve all stakeholders within a reasonable timeframe. It requires mediation of the different interests in society to reach a broad consensus in society on what is in the best interest of the whole community and how this can be achieved.
It also requires a broad and long-term perspective on what is needed for sustainable human development and how to achieve the goals of such development which can only result from an understanding of the historical, cultural and social contexts of a given society or community.
Leaders who will ensure that a society’s well being depends on ensuring that all its members feel that they have a stake in it and do not feel excluded from the mainstream of society. This requires all groups, but particularly the most vulnerable, have opportunities to improve or maintain their well being.
Good governance means that processes and institutions produce results that meet the needs of society while making the best use of resources at their disposal. The concept of efficiency in the context of good governance also covers the sustainable use of natural resources and the protection of the environment.
Accountability is a key requirement of good governance. Not only governmental institutions but also the private sector and civil society organizations as well as Non Governmental Organizations (NGO) must be accountable to the public and to their institutional stakeholders.
Some of these priests are not supported by their bishops or superiors in their endeavors. This is because some bishops think that priests who appear to be supporting revolutionary change seen as a form of social action tinged with Marxism.
Holy Thursday is also being celebrated when there are shortages of priests in many developing countries, especially in India where the shortage is now being felt, especially in some dioceses and religious congregations. Some priests have to look after a number of sub-stations and institutes. It is not always possible to have Sunday Mass in every church.
With the challenges facing the rapidly growing economy of India and the impact of globalization on Indian culture, the priest is called to serve for full human development. He has to face all present challenges and problems with the people ? the financial crisis, economic inequality, poverty, corruption, workers’ rights, unbalanced development, war, violence ? all of which touch India.
The globalized market economy that enhances individualism and competition challenges each priest to help the poor against the onslaught of such economy. The priest is challenged to love all and share resources equitably with all Indians.
Priesthood is also an adventure and a greater challenge than ever before in Brazil, the country with the largest number of Catholics. Religious practice in Brazil is often highly hybridized. Brazil’s fertility rate for example, is one of Latin America’s lowest at about 1.83 children per woman, below the level needed to keep the population stable.
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
THE PASSION SUNDAY BY FR MAGNUS KOBI, AJ
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
SUNDAY, MARCH 24, 2013
NEWS JUST IN FROM AUSTRALIA
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
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THE PASSION SUNDAY BY FR MAGNUS KOBI, AJ
Readings: Isaiah 50:4-7- Philippians 2:6-11- Luke 22:14-23:56
A principal of a prominent high school in Kampala Uganda has an old elders’ stool sitting in his office. When someone asks him about it, he said it belonged to his grandmother. She used to baby-sit with him a lot because he had poor health as a child. The old elders stool used to stay in his grandmother’s living room, only a few feet away from a crucifix that hangs on the wall above a chair.
One night his grandmother told him the story of Jesus and how he died nailed on the cross. The boy was moved by the story and that night he did not sleep well. Throughout the night he kept turning left and right thinking about Jesus nailed to the cross above the chair in the living room, of the house he was sleeping in.
Early the next morning he got up and went straight to the living room. Climbing up on the chair he took the crucifix down from the wall and laid it on the floor. And there he was trying to remove the nails out of the hands and feet of Jesus.
But he failed to remove them then he began to cry loudly. His grandmother heard him and came out of her bedroom. Seeing the crucifix on the floor and grandson crying besides it she said: “Honey what’s wrong?” “Grandma, Grandma I am trying to get Jesus out of his nails, because it is not right for him to be in his nails, it’s not right.”
His grandmother reached down, picked him up and walked over to the elders stool sat down on it and held him in her arms. Then she began to rock him. When he calm down and was quiet she said to him: “Honey, I know right now you are too young to understand why Jesus was nailed to the cross. But someday you will understand.
When the day for you to understand why Jesus was crucified comes; “The crucifix will no longer be something ugly to you. Rather it will become something beautiful, because it will remind you of how much Jesus Christ loves you.” So the principle said: “That was the morning sitting in my grandmother’s lap on the elders stool I got my first insight into the deeper meaning of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.”
This story is simply beautiful, but more importantly it is theologically sound. This is because: “It focuses not on the suffering of Jesus but on the love of Jesus that led him to suffer.” It focuses on the deeper meaning of the crucifixion as the principle said. Indeed, what is the deeper meaning?
We can summarise the deeper meaning in three simple statements.
(a)The crucifixion is a sign of Jesus’ love. It indicates how much Jesus loves us. It confirms in a very dramatic way what Jesus said often in his lifetime that: “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
(b) The crucifixion is an invitation to love. It invites us to imitate Jesus in loving not only our friends but also our enemies. It invites us to love one another as Jesus loves us. It confirms what Jesus said: “Love one another as I love you.”
(C) The crucifixion is a revelation about Love.
It reminds us of something that we not always tend to forget but want to run away from that is: “That true love entails suffering.” It reminds us about what Jesus said often in his life that: “Whoever wishes to come after me, must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.”
So our story of the little boy and his grandmother focuses on these important messages of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Let us today discover the limitless love of God for each person, for you and me, revealed in the crucifixion of His Beloved Son Jesus Christ.
In the old liturgy, before Vatican II, the reading of the Passion was greeted with total silence. There was no homily. Even the concluding acclamation: “This is the gospel of the Lord” was omitted. On a day like this, I sometimes feel that the most eloquent response to the word of God we have proclaimed is silence.
Even the best of homilies could be a distraction from the deep meditation in which many of us find ourselves at the end of the story of the suffering and death of our Lord Jesus Christ.
But then also, a homily might be useful to direct and focus our meditation in the right direction. Otherwise we might be like little Johnny who was failing all his exams in the public school until his parents decided to send him to a Catholic school. At the end of the year Johnny came out on top of the class.
When his parents asked him what made him change so dramatically Johnny replied, “You see, the moment I walked into that new school and saw that guy hanging on the cross, I knew that the people here were damn serious; so I decided not to take any chances.”
The crucifix might have helped Johnny to improve his score but it is easy to see that Johnny has misread the crucifix. The man on the cross is not there to scare little boys but to show them how much he loves them.
He is not there to show them what would happen to them if they misbehaved; he is there to show them that he has already paid the penalty for their sins. He is not dying on the cross for what he has done but for what you and I have done; because he loves us. He died for us.
“He died for us:” Many of us have heard this phrase so many times that it now carries with it neither the shock of someone dying on account of what we have done nor the good news of our being delivered from death. For us to hear this message again today as for the first time, the story of a man who literally died for the misdeeds of his brother might help.
Two brothers lived together in the same apartment. The elder brother was an honest, hard-working and God-fearing man and the younger a dishonest, gun-toting substance-abusing rogue. Many a night the younger man would come back into the apartment late, drunk and with a lot of cash and the elder brother would spend hours pleading with him to mend his ways and live a decent life.
But the young man would have none of it. One night the junior brother runs into the house with a smoking gun and blood-stained clothes. “I killed a man,” he announced. In a few minutes the house was surrounded by police and the two brothers knew there was no escape. “I did not mean to kill him,” stammered the young brother, “I don’t want to die.”
By now the police were knocking at the door. The senior brother had an idea. He exchanged his clothes with the blood-stained clothes of his killer brother.
The police arrested him, tried him and condemned him to death for murder. He was killed and his junior brother lived. He died for his brother.
Can we see that this story of crime and death is basically a story of love? Similarly the story of the suffering and death of Jesus which we heard in the Passion is basically a story of love – God’s love for us. How should we respond to it? Well, how would you expect the junior brother to respond to the death of the senior brother?
We would expect him to respond with GRATITUDE. Gratitude to his generous brother should make him turn a new leaf and never go back to a life of crime. He would be a most ungrateful idiot if he should continue living the sort of life that made his brother die. Gratitude should make him keep the memory of his brother alive. No day should pass that he should not remember his brother who died for him.
Finally, if the dead brother has got a wife and children we should expect the saved brother, out of gratitude, to love and care for them. What God expects from us today is gratitude – gratitude strong enough to make us hate sin of every shade and colour; strong enough to make us translate our love of God into love of all God’s people.
KENYA: MY HOMILIY ON PALM SUNDAY
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
SATURDAY, MARCH 23, 2013
There will be no network where I will be for mass tomorrow so I have decided to send my homily in advance.
Tomorrow is Palm Sunday. It commemorates the triumphal entrance of Christ into Jerusalem. Jesus chose to ride a donkey when he entered Jerusalem instead of a horse which was usually ridden by Kings. He chose the donkey to demonstrate his humility and to fulfill a prophecy in Zechariah 9:9:
“The Coming of Zion’s King Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey”.
Jesus thought of people he served dearly than himself because he practiced humility (Phil. 2:3). Jesus did not only put the well-being of others ahead of their own well-being (Phil. 2:4) but also wanted us to be ministers and servants instead of kings and princes (Matthew 20:25-28).
In other wards, what Jesus wants from us is to be servants instead of masters (Matthew 23:10-12). Jesus was not hypocrite. He always practiced what he preached and preached what he practiced.
Jesus walked on this earth with no place to lay his head, he walked on foot hundreds of miles to preach the gospel, he ate what his disciples ate, he stood in the background, did not advertise himself, he placed other interests above his own, he wrapped a towel around his waist and washed his disciples feet.
Jesus was moved with compassion when he saw crowds of people who did not know God, he was moved with compassion over the plight of an adulterous woman, a widowed bereaved woman whose only son had died, a Samaritan immoral woman, Mary a demon possessed sinful woman, a lying thieving tax collector.
Jesus lived for others, not for himself or his comfort. Many times he was interrupted by crowds on his way to prayer and he took time to give them the good news. He taught his disciples that whoever wanted to be great must be the servant of all, if anyone wanted to be first he must be the slave of all.
Though the word of God gave him the right to be supported financially and fed through his ministry, he gave up this right and worked and toiled and even helped others with his sweat. Instead of walking on a red carpet he decided to walk on palm branches placed in his path, before his arrest on Holy Thursday and Crucifixion on Good Friday.
He gave an example of two men who went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.'
But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other, for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted." (Luke 18:10-14)
And when the hour came for him to dine at table with his Apostles he took the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide among you”. And he took bread, he gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them saying, “This is my body given for you, do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:14-23).
It demonstrates that Eucharistic celebration is not only a symbol of unity but also as one people of God should divide the little things we have as a community justly. In other wards we should not allow the seeds of tribalism and nepotism to be planted in us.
When we come together to celebrate the Eucharist we express who we are as Church. The liturgy, especially the Eucharist, "is the outstanding means whereby the faithful may express in their lives and manifest to others the mystery of Christ and the real nature of the true Church" (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, 2).
Pope John Paul II explains the Roman Catholic position regarding intercommunion in his encyclical letter on ecumenism, That All May Be One. He says that Vatican II's Decree on Ecumenism (#22-23) "pointing out that the post-Reformation Communities lack that 'fullness of unity with us which should flow from Baptism.
He observes that 'especially because of the lack of the Sacrament of Orders they have not preserved the genuine and total reality of the Eucharistic mystery,' even though 'when they commemorate the Lord's Death and Resurrection in the Holy Supper, they profess that it signifies life in communion with Christ and they await his coming in glory' (#67).
We see these seeds of tribalism and nepotism planted among early Christians (Acts 6). “In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food”.
So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”
This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.
So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith. These good leaders destroyed these seeds of tribalism and nepotism what was being planted in the people.
Those who did not want these seeds of tribalism and nepotism destroyed accused Stephen of insulting other tribes and so they tried to kill him all the times he condemned leaders who only favoured their tribes and relatives when it came the time of distribution of common cake.
Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen. But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke.
Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.” So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law.
They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.” All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.
Condolence message:
On behalf of News Dispatch and my own I would like to send my condolences to the priests, Christians, religious, family and relatives of Bishop Akio Johnson Mutek, Bishop of Torit following his death at the Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi on Sunday night and was laid to rest on Friday March 22, 2013.
Mutek who was also my college mate at Fordham University in Bronx, New York was rushed to the hospital in Juba in Nairobi as a result of serious kidney complications. Mgr. Mutek was 55 years old and had undergone two kidney transplants in India.
Mgr. Mutek was ordained a priest on December 18, 1988, and appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Torit on May 18, 1999. He was ordained a Bishop on August 15, 1999 and appointed Bishop of Torit on June 9, 2007. He worked closely with People for Peace in Africa, the organization I worked with for 13 years.
May Almighty God rest his soul into eternal peace-AMEN.
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
TOUCHED BY HUMILITY OF POPE FRANCIS I
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
TUESDAY, MARCH 19, 2013
Pope Francis has demonstrated his humility in practice. He has chosen a modest papal ring in silver rather than gold, and one designed decades ago rather than one created specifically for him. It is here that I am touched.
"Ring”, which originally served as both a symbol of the papacy and a seal, is usually cast in gold for successors to St Peter’s chair. “The pope’s decision to renounce precious things and avoid materials such as gold is very much in keeping with his desire to emphasise the religious symbols themselves, not what they are made of.
Pope Francis is already distinguishing himself from his predecessors by shedding embellishments and calling for a “poor Church for the poor.”
It explains why Catholics and the curious flooded St. Peter's Square to greet Pope Francis on the day of the ceremony to officially install him as pope Tuesday. It explains further why he was applauded as he issued an appeal for the protection of the weak, the poor and the world environment.
His homily touched a crowd of up to 200,000 gathered in front of the Vatican: “I would like to ask all those who have positions of responsibility in economic, political and social life, and all men and women of goodwill: Let us be protectors of creation, protectors of God’s plan inscribed in nature, protectors of one another and of the environment.”
Pope Francis gave a new example of his preference for simplicity when the Vatican unveiled the symbols of his papacy on Monday. The pope decided to keep the coat of arms and the motto he chose when he was archbishop of Buenos Aires.
Besides this change, Francis chose to keep his old symbols, which allude to the Holy Family and to his membership in the Jesuit order: a sun inscribed with the letters "IHS," a star to represent the Virgin Mary and a nard flower to represent St. Joseph, Jesus' earthly father.
There was a ripple of applause through a packed St. Peter's Square, and tears in the eyes of the some of the faithful, as Francis spoke of humility and the need for advocacy on behalf of the poor – themes he has already established as the hallmarks of his papacy.
“Let us never forget that authentic power is service,” he said. “Only those who serve with love are able to protect, defining his idea of protection as “respecting each of God’s creatures and respecting the environment in which we live.”
It means protecting people, showing loving concern for each and every person, especially children, the elderly, those in need, who are often the last we think about. It means caring for one another in our families: Husbands and wives first protect one another, and then, as parents, they care for their children, and children themselves, in time, protect their parents.
It means building sincere friendships in which we protect one another in trust, respect, and goodness. In the end, everything has been entrusted to our protection, and all of us are responsible for it. Be protectors of God’s gifts!
Pope’s message is that “one should never confuse simplicity and humility with weakness.”
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: IT IS MY PROPHETIC ROLE TO ENSURE NEGATIVE ETHNICITY IS BURIED
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
TUESDAY, MARCH 19, 2013
Some of our readers misunderstood my homily of fifth Sunday of Lent. In fact when my niece asked me why only Kikuyu want to rule Kenya and why do they hate other tribes, particularly the Luos I tried to convince her that it is not the case, in other wards, Kikuyus do not hate Luos or other tribes, it is the political system in Kenya that exclude other tribes and make them feel they do not belong in decision making and development platforms.
My homily was based on the fact that we must work as Kenyans to kill negative ethnicity. We need to feel that all of us are Kenyans, politically and religiously- A country that all national cakes are distributed equally among 42 tribes in Kenyan, including the Ogiek community.
One of my colleagues even went as far as suggesting I should distinguish Sunday homilies are news dispatch, advising me that on Sundays I must gear my homilies towards saving souls. My colleague is still thinking in Vatican 1, the time that when Christians were in church they were souls, and only to reunite with their bodies after mass.
That is why those days we did not have toilets in church compounds because souls cannot go to toilets. Church doors were closed so that no one was allowed to come out because what you could see outside was rendered sinful.
Yet still, as a priest and prophet I will be failing in my prophetic role to condemn anything that can divide us as Kenyans. I must condemn politics based on loyalty to tribe. I must condemn it because loyalty to tribe is given much relevance than loyalty to country.
I will be failing in my role if I did not condemn political party system anchored on ethnic groupings. This type of system denies other tribes equal opportunities when it comes to development. Political system based of tribal groupings offer platforms for leaders to elaborate their development policies entrenched on the tribal sense.
Our tribalism has ascended worrying heights, especially to our children who we want to see growing up as children of one nation called Kenya. If we do not work together as Kenyans to destroy such systems then we will be perpetually embroiled in small messy tribal conflicts to the extent that the problem seems inexorable.
We must stop this cancer which has eaten deep into our social fabric, permeating every nook and cranny of our society from spreading. We must not allow our political leaders to continue compounding the problem– using ethnicity as stepping stones to their power-seeking ventures.
Tribalism cannot be vanquished by the National Commission on Integration and Cohesion alone. We need – as a people – to pivot our energy and reorient our strategy towards cohesiveness.
We must condemn tribalism because it is inimical to development. It bores retrogressive policies – much of which crippled this country for decades. We need to detribalise our politics – cease using tribe as a means to power and access to resources. The rhetoric and diplomacy will not help suppress the vice.
Like my niece Irine, the young generation have a responsibility to slain the dragon of negative ethnicity that rear its ugly head every electioneering year. It is their role to see unto it that elections in Kenya must not be based on tribal groupings to ascend to power.
We do not want to see other elections in Kenya like the recent one which have exposed and exacerbated negative ethnicity. It has left no doubt that our electoral math, maps and voting patterns are largely ethnic. Seemingly, our politics have little to do with ideology and issues but to ascend to power.
We need to stop this system in order to prevent conflict and help Kenya meet its growing economic needs. We must come together and engage in collective initiatives to rid our country of negative ethnicity.
We do not want a country where elections are stoking ethnic hatred among Kenyans. The elections cannot be said to be free, fair and peaceful if the system excludes other tribes.
We must not pretend. Negative ethnicity is a major problem in Kenya. It is a threat and a burden to our democracy and development. Children grow up imagining Kenya through tribal impulses, especially our young people who are used by some politicians to fight other tribes who are not loyal to particular system.
We need a country where the youth can develop a new vision for Kenya where everyone feels that they belong. If this is done then it will take the agility of young visionary Kenyans to slay the dragon of negative ethnicity that impedes our growth and development as a country. Until we tackle negative ethnicity that is rife in Kenya, peace and stability will be fragile.
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
MY HOMILY OF FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
SUNDAY, MARCH 17, 2013
Fifth Sunday of Lent is the final week prior to Easter. Today I celebrated one mass. The first reading was taken from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, 43:16-21. It talks of God’s promise to restore His people after they have suffered in exile.
The second reading is from the Letter of St. Paul to the Philippians, 3:8-14, and is a warning to the Philippians about false teachers; Judaizers who would try to hang on to the old ways while at the same time claiming to be Christians.
The Judaizers taught that in order to be a Christian, you first had to be a Jew: to be circumcised and to obey all 613 Old Covenant commandments. This question, whether or not Gentile converts to Christianity must first become full and legal Jews, prompted the Council of Jerusalem.
The Gospel is from St. John, 8:1-11 and is about the woman caught in adultery. God wants to prove to us that all of us are sinners. "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her."
When Jesus and the woman were left alone, he looked up and said, "Woman, where are they?" Has no one condemned you?” She replied, “No one, sir.” Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”
Specific theme for the Kenya Episcopal Conference Justice and Peace commission Lenten Campaign is the child and the family as the basic unit of society. As the second reading puts it that in Christ there should be no Jew, circumcised, or uncircumcised, in Kenya where tribalism or negative ethnicity as media refer to it nowadays is the order of the day children are faced with lots of challenges as they grow up.
Recently I was challenged by my 11 years old niece when she asked me how comes that Kikuyus do not want other tribes to lead this country, and why specially Luos. That they think they are the only tribe who matter in Kenya as if they own it. No matter how much I tried to convince her that it is not the case she insisted it is.
The question of my niece is the question other children and Kenyans ask about other tribes. It demonstrates how negative ethnicity is tearing Kenya apart. Each tribe in Kenya thinks it is the best.
This is seen specifically when a particular tribe becomes the president. It favours its own tribe mates when it comes to the appointments of key positions in the government since independent. Jomo Kenyatta favoured his tribe mates when he became the president. Daniel arap Moi did the same and now Mwai Kibaki.
This makes tribalism and nepotism to be one of the deadly cancer diseases in Kenya which will take time to heal. Children are growing seeing this and that is why they ask such challenging questions.
Children are aware that this type of bad governance has not only been the main factors hindering Kenya from achieving important development milestones, it is also affecting children emotionally.
Nepotism is the showing of favoritism for relatives or friends based upon that relationship, rather than on an objective evaluation of ability or suitability, for instance by offering employment to a relative, despite the fact that there are others who are better qualified and willing and able to perform the job.
Children need to be told clearly that such type of bad governance and leadership can no longer be entertained in modern society. This can be done in schools and churches. In Kenya this is currently being done in form two through three literature set books, Betrayal in the City, the Caucasian Chalk Circle and the River and the Source.
Betrayal in the City by Francis Imbunga tries to help students understand that power is in the hand of the people and can be used to throw away bad leaders. The play starts by cutting a clear distinction between leaders and the mass.
It opens by showing the life of Nina and Doga who mourn for their lost child, who was killed on an organised demonstration, which was focused on African dictatorship and corruption.
The play portrays Mulili an illiterate soldier who was employed and given high post because the president was his uncle. On the same scene we also meet Jere who is a faithful soldier and he adores African style of life, he and Mulili fell into a fight since they take different courses of reasoning, here Mulili represent the ruling class and its common habits of bulldozing the society.
It demonstrates how the whole country is proven rotten and how harmful speaking the truth is, we see how those dared to open their mouths and the reveal the truth face difficulties, and sometimes going to the extreme of being imprisoned for example Jusper and other prisoners.
Finally some people gather courage and plan a revolution on which now Mulili betrays the president and he realizes how bad he is. It calls for peoples powers to demonstrate against such leadership, to remove them from the office and replace them with leaders who are patriotic-leaders who consider Kenya to equally belong to other Kenyans.
On respect and protection of human life, the Caucasian Chalk Circle fits. This is a play by the German modernist playwright Bertolt Brecht. The play is a parable about a peasant girl who rescues a baby and becomes a better mother than its natural parents.
To demonstrate that all children are equal, whether boys or girls the River and the Source by Margaret A Ogola fits. The novel tries to convince readers that a home without daughters is like a spring without a source. It kills the culture in some societies that think that only boys are valuable in the home.
It is a sweeping story following the lives of three generations of women, from Akoko, born into a traditional Luo community, to her grandchild Awiti, whose children live into the late twentieth century.
Yet still, far from being the cradle in which the life of an individual is nurtured, family can be a source of personal identity in providing the template of social norms and values that go into shaping the individual’s personality.
These values have been however challenged. This is because traditional family structure has been put under pressure from rapid social change, undergoing erosion, and is generally splitting up to such an extent that it is failing to fulfil its primary role of socialization affected by urbanization and modernization.
Today is not as easy as in the past to provide children with the same amount of care and attention they automatically receive in the extended family set-up. Urbanization and modernization directly cuts across ancestry-based residence and mutual social, spiritual, and economic co-operation.
In the modern era the family has gradually shrunk to become the nuclear family, consisting solely of parents and their children - thus denying many parents the assistance they once received from extended family support networks. As a result, many parents find it increasingly difficult to carry out all their work and family responsibilities.
Due to high cost of living children often have to devote most of their day to helping the family in its income-raising ventures. Even if they should manage to attend school, regularly, eventually, the lack of suitable clothing, footwear, or money to buy the basic school equipment and needs encourages them to drop-out voluntarily.
Yet still, marriage has gradually become the individual's concern rather than a concern of two extended families. The divorce rate has risen sharply. The number of single parent families has increased dramatically despite the fact that for growth and development of a child's personality, it is desirable for both parents.
More still, a child whose mother is repudiated by the father, or where life at home becomes intolerable due to threats, quarrels, even physical violence, where a father resorts to drinking heavily to drown his sorrows, or abandon his family altogether because of his inability to meet the family needs, develops psychological problems in empathy with the abandoned mother.
Many of these children end-up in the street to earn a living and to support their mother and siblings. Street-children are becoming of great concern of late. They roam the streets, offering their services as load carriers, ice water vendors, scrap metal sorters, wooden toy makers, peanut, orange and banana sellers. The boys chase cars with their wares - a risky business life.
Adolescent girls drift naturally into early marriage, unplanned teenage pregnancies/abortion, frequent childbearing and a new generation of impoverishment. Others may take up prostitution.
The issue of abandoned babies and infants is gradually becoming a problem in this country and may continue to be worse unless measures are taken to redress the fundamental factor of a supportive family system in the modern society.
We have not even talked about over 50 percent of orphaned children as a result of HIV/Aids; either from their parent(s) dying from it, or abandonment as a result of having it. HIV children need three things: Good nutrition, love, and adequate medical care.
Another big problem with our children is sexual abuse which includes the employment, use, persuasion, inducement, enticement, or coercion of any child to engage in, or assist any other person to engage in.
Any sexually explicit conduct or simulation of such conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct; or the rape, and in cases of caretaker or inter-familial relationships, statutory rape, molestation, prostitution, or other form of sexual exploitation of children, or incest with children.
There is also a problem with emotional abuse, a pattern of behavior that impairs a child’s emotional development or sense of self-worth. This may include constant criticism, threats, or rejection, as well as withholding love, support, or guidance.
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
Key political risks to watch in Tanzania
From: Abdalah Hamis
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Jobs in Africa - www.wejobs.blogspot.com
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(Reuters) - Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete has said his government will not tolerate any attempts by extremists to stoke religious tension following a spate of violent attacks on clerics.
The government has said rising religious tensions pose the biggest threat to peace in East Africa's No. 2 economy, which has enjoyed relative political stability since independence from Britain in 1961.
RELIGIOUS VIOLENCE
Two Christian leaders were violently killed in the predominantly Muslim islands of Zanzibar over the past month in separate attacks. The government has launched an investigation into the incidents and has vowed to prosecute those involved in the violence.
A separatist Islamic group in Zanzibar, Uamsho (Awakening), is pushing for the semi-autonomous island to exit from its 1964 union with mainland Tanzania, which is ruled as a secular country. Supporters of the group have engaged in running street battles with the police in the past, but authorities have not linked the group with the attacks on Christian clerics.
Rioters have also torched several churches in Zanzibar and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania's commercial capital, in recent months, and Kikwete warned about the rising religious tension in a televised state of the nation address at the end of February.
What to watch out for:
- Will a widespread flare-up of religious tensions occur?
PIPELINE POLITICS
Tanzania wants to become a regional energy hub following major discoveries of natural gasoffshore. But residents of a gas-rich region are threatening to block a major gas pipeline project until they see a bigger share of the benefits. The government has accused opposition leaders of inciting residents of the southern region of Mtwara to reject the pipeline.
The country's cash-strapped power utility, TANESCO, hopes the 532 km (330 mile) pipeline being constructed with a $1.2 billion Chinese loan will boost generation of cheap electricity and fix the country's chronic energy shortages.
What to watch Out for:
- Further demonstrations against the pipeline?
- Will the unrest derail gas investments?
OIL AND GAS SEARCH
Opposition politicians and activists have been calling for a halt to the issuance of new oil and gas exploration licences until Tanzania revamps laws regulating its fast-growing energy sector. The government has unveiled a draft national gas policy and plans to have new legislation in place this year.
Tanzania has called for an international mediator to resolve a long-standing territorial dispute over Lake Malawi. Tanzania claims the shared border runs down the centre of the lake, while Malawi says the border lies at the shores of the lake.
Tanzanian officials say any significant oil or gas finds in the lake could escalate the border issue.
What to watch out for:
- Will there be a delay in issuing more exploration blocks?
- What will happen if the border dispute talks fail?
RULING PARTY RIFTS
Tanzania's governing Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party has been split by a race to succeed Kikwete, who must step down in 2015 at the end of his second term in office.
The CCM party, in power for over 50 years, is grappling with infighting as rival politicians look to succeed the president, but the squabbles are not along religious or tribal lines. However, several senior ruling party members are jostling for the job, causing a rift in the party.
What to watch out for:
- Will divisions in the party weaken the government? (Editing by Catherine Evans)
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/03/14/tanzania-risks-idUKRISKTZ20130314
WHY GHANAIAN CARDINAL PETER MAY NOT BE ELECTED POPE
From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2013
If we are to go by Andrew Sullivan’s comment on Sunday's The Chris Matthews Show that among Catholic cardinal voters are gays then automatically it means Ghanaian Cardinal Peter Turkson may not stand a chance to be elected first black pope.
This is because of his recent comment that African priests are not homosexuals because African traditions and cultures do not allow homosexuality.
Cardinal Peter may not stand a better chance because most homosexuals need affirmation for their sexually-active 'lifestyle' and they need affirmation from everyone in order for them to keep their disordered life 'normal', a fact that Peter has denied them.
As if Sullivan’s comments are not enough, as Cardinals gather to select the next Pope, the Vatican has been found to have made a €23 million investment in an apartment block that contains "Europe's biggest gay sauna," Europa Multiclub according to reports in Rome and the UK Independent newspaper.
Even though the College of Cardinals must not have been pleased late Tuesday when reports circulated that the Vatican shared a block with Italy's top gay sauna, the fact remains that it is indeed it shares the block.
The Holy See purchased a $30 million stake in the apartment block that houses the Europa Multiclub. It was also Benedict XVI's former right hand, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone that picked the spot in 2008.
On the Vatican's side are 18 apartments, most of which are occupied by priests, and the home of Cardinal Ivan Dias, the head of the Congregation for Evangelisation of Peoples.
On the Europa Multiclub side is fun palace "create by males for males only." Italy's hottest gay sauna has everything: a king turkish bath, a Finnish sauna, a waterfall whirlpool and "surprises," to name a few amenities listed on its website.
It explains why it didn't take long at all after Pope Benedict XVI announced his resignation in late February before folks started speculating that his holiness was brought down by "a cross-dressing priest sex ring" that was detailed in a 300-page report given to Benedict on December 17, the day he reportedly decided to retire.
Reports also said that the priests implicated in the report were being blackmailed. The Vatican spokesman said at the time the report was released, "Neither the cardinals' commission nor I will make comments to confirm or deny the things that are said about this matter." He added that they would also not be commenting further on the report either.
Although much of what has eroded the church's authority cannot be addressed due to its addiction to secrecy and rejection of transparency, public attention to the final chapter of Pope Benedict XVI's reign dominated by talk of leaks and liaisons and wiretaps and dossiers has sent a signal that Roman Curia must be cleansed by all means.
The 76-year-old Cardinal Ivan Dias does not only enjoy a 12-room apartment on the first-floor of the imposing palazzo, at 2 Via Carducci, just yards from the ground floor entrance to the steamy flesh pot, he is among the cardinals electing the new pope.
According to the report there are 18 other Vatican apartments in the block, many of which house priests-an embarrassment to the Roman Catholic Church indeed.
According to the sauna’s website which promotes one of its special “bear nights”, with a video in which a rotund, hairy man strips down before changing into a priest’s outfit, “a hairy, overweight pastor of souls, is free to the music of his clergyman, remaining in a thong, because he wants to expose body and soul”.
"The primary objective is to make you appreciate the beauty and satisfaction of meeting other men in a unique and special place," the sauna's website says.
Ivan Dias is not only one of the cardinals to elect the pope, in fact he is one of the major papal candidate from the Indian sub-continent. He is fluent in several languages and the fact that he comes from a third world nation would speak in his favor, though.
On May, 2011, the pope, Benedict XVI accepted his resignation as the Prefect, Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, per Canon Law 354 which requires curial cardinals to resign upon reaching 75 — it being up to the pope as to when he accepts such retirements.
Cardinal Dias who had held this post since May 2006 just turned 75 on April 14, 2011. Typically it is not the norm for a retirement, especially of a curial head, to happen so quickly after the 75th birthday — most staying on till they are 77 or 78.
It was rumored that Cardinal Dias, who was created in February 2001, is experiencing health issues. He is the seventh cardinal to retire in 2011 per the 75 year Canon Law retirement age.
His retirement does not change the composition of the College since at 75 Cardinal Dias continues to be an elector. The number of cardinal electors has been reduced from 117 to 115, among them Cardinal Dias who believes that homosexuality can be cured of their "unnatural tendancies" through the Sacrement of Pennance.
Pope Benedict XVI is believed to have resigned, the first Papal resignation since 1415, after receiving the report of an investigation into events surrounding the leaking of documents by the Pope's butler. The lengthy report is said to contain detailed evidence of factional infighting.
According to La Repubblica the cardinals were said to have uncovered an underground gay network, whose members organise sexual meetings in several venues in Rome and Vatican City, leaving them prone to blackmail.
They included a villa outside the Italian capital, a sauna in a Rome suburb, a beauty parlour in the centre, and a former university residence that was in use by a provincial Italian archbishop."
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
Tel +254 7350 14559/+254 722 623 578
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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