KENYA: Church launches 2019 Lenten Campaign With Call To ‘Shake Our Hearts’
Kenyans have been called to seek all that is good and shun evil in all its manifestations. At the same time, Kenyans have been urged to reflect and reach out to the less fortunate in society during this lent season.
Delivering the homily at our Lady Consolata Cathedral Grounds in Nyeri during the launch of the National 2019 Lenten Campaign, the Archbishop of Nyeri, Most Rev. Anthony Muheria, said evil has permeated the society and is being glorified while good deeds are frowned upon.
the launch of the of the National Lenten Campaign 2019
“Today, evil is celebrated and good condemned,” said Archbishop Muheria. “The evil doers are praised and the rightful are condemned. Today we witness the glorification of evil. We the Christians and citizens reward those who do evil and laugh at those who stand by the good, calling them foolish.”
The Archbishop decried the growing culture of gambling and corruption that has engulfed Kenya, saying these vices risk destroying the moral fabric of the country and becoming a society that detests hard work and believes in short-cuts.
“How much longer is our nation going to be labelled as a nation of gamblers?” asked Archbishop Muheria.
“Our families have been broken because parents spend their money in gambling. In all our cities and towns, advertisements are about gambling. It looks like our children know only one secret about success – gambling. But how much longer can we be a nation of gamblers when our own children are gambling away their school fees? This is not the way towards success. Success is sweat; it is work; it is skills; it is reward.”
He has called upon Kenyans to shun greed, which he said is the root cause of all the corruption being witnessed in the country.
“In order that good may thrive, we must uproot the evil in our hearts. We must not be enslaved by greed for money and wealth. I know every human being loves the comfort that money and wealth brings. All of us want to be praised, to be recognized, to belong to a certain status. However, this is a virus that is captivating our heart, paralyzed it. During this Lenten period, let us reflect on the flaws of greed that have made Kenya a nation of gamblers, a nation of thieves and a nation of corruption.”
The Archbishop also noted that corruption has nearly brought the country to its knees so much that there is need to confront it by taking individual responsibility before pointing fingers at others.
“If everyone of us in this country who is Christian and Catholic says, ‘Let my hand shake when I take a bribe,’ we’ll stop feeding the corruption monster. The monster will be weakened enough to be slayed.”
The Archbishop further decried the destruction of natural environment through irresponsible cutting of trees and pollution of water sources by the industries, which is turning rivers into what he described as ‘supu ya uchafu’ (gravy of dirt).
“We are destroying our environment by burning charcoal to get a bit of black money, firewood and furniture. Owners of industry no longer care about the generations to come, and so all the pollution is going down into the river. And when you take them to court, they get out.”
He further cautioned that building a nation does not only mean building the ecology of the rivers and trees but also the ecology of the heart and speech.
“How can we breed a nation that loves God when our speech stinks and is rotten,” said the Archbishop. “Any speech that spreads ill will and hatred, is rotten and polluted. We must learn to speak with respect. We must learn to love the way our God loves, even those who do us ill. We must learn to say ‘you are my brother, you are my sister, although I don’t agree with you.
In this time when Kenyans are appreciating the handshake between the rival political leaders, Most Rev. MuherIa said that the gesture of the hands is not enough but rather ‘a shake of the heart’.
“In this Lenten Season, let us pray to God to give us a heart that is colour-blind, tribe-blind, rich or status-blind,” he said.
“Let us tell God that we do not wish to know whether one is rich or poor, learned or not, which ridge or county they come from – for we are all brothers and sisters. This way, we’ll build a nation that is united and renewed with a true heart-shake.”
Also present for the launch was the KCCB Chairman, Most Rev. Philip Anyolo; the Chairman of KCCB – Catholic Justice and Peace Commission and Bishop of Ngong, Rt. Rev. John Oballa Owaa; Bishop of Machakos, Rt. Rev. Norman King’oo Wambua; Archbishop Emeritus of Nyeri, Most Rev. Peter Kairo; the clergy, Religious, KCCB staff and CJPC Diocesan Coordinators; and the laity from various dioceses.
Others dignitaries included the Deputy President, Dr. William Ruto; Opposition leaders Hon. Kalonzo Musyoka, Hon. Musalia Mudavadi and Nyeri Governor, Mutahi Kahiga, among other political leaders.
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By Samuel Waweru
