KENYA: Episcopal Consecration of Mons. Mwongela Postponed to August 29
Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA
The Episcopal consecration of the Bishop-elect, Rt. Rev. Joseph Mwongela that was already announced to take place on August 8 at St. Charles Lwanga Secondary School grounds has been postponed to Saturday, August 29, due to the steady rise of new Covid-19 cases in the country which will limit the attendance of congregants to 100.
“We have waited with great longing for the day of the consecration of our new bishop, Rt. Rev. Joseph Mwongela which was set for 8th August 2020. We continue to pray for him and for the gifts of the Holy Spirit to come upon him, as we prepare to receive the special graces as a diocese on this occasion,” Archbishop Anthony Muheria the Apostolic Administrator of Kitui Diocese stated in a statement dated Thursday, July 30.
“However, we have seen that the spread of Covid-19 unfortunately continues to rise. In view of the recent pronouncement of His Excellency the President Uhuru Kenyatta and of other considerations, it has become clear that we can only hold our celebrations as planned on the 8th of August, with a maximum of 100 people attending,” the Archbishop explained.
In regard to this development which will limit the number of people to attend the consecration, the concerned authority has done consultations and agreed to wait for some more time so that the consecration can continue as was arranged.
“After due consultation with all concerned and especially with the bishop-elect, we have seen it prudent to delay the date of consecration to 29th August 202,” Archbishop Muheria who is the Local Ordinary of Kenya’s Nyeri Archdiocese explained adding that with the postponement “we would be assured of an attendance of about 1,000 people as planned, following social distancing.”
In the statement, the Archbishop asks the Christians to abide by the request and promises a bigger celebration later on when the situation allows.
“We know that even 1,000 is a small number for such a big celebration, but we are asking you all to make this sacrifice because of the Coronavirus situation,” he said requesting members of the Diocese to send only a delegation of 25 people per parish to attend the occasion at St. Charles Lwanga Secondary School grounds.
“This change will certainly inconvenience many of you, and may be, make us feel a bit discouraged. However, we are living in very special times and we need to adjust constantly so as to make the best choices at every moment.” the Archbishop’s statement reads in part.
