Ongoing Synod on Synodality Call to “renewed zeal” to Christ’s Mission: Kenyan Delegate

Vatican, 25 October, 2023 / 9:30 PM

The ongoing 16th General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops Synod is a call to “a renewed zeal” to participate in the mission that Jesus Christ entrusted to his disciples, a Kenyan delegate participating in the October 4-29 conversations in Rome has said.

In a video recording shared on WhatsApp on Monday, October 24, Archbishop Anthony Muheria of Kenya’s Nyeri Archdiocese cautions against fear that makes followers of Jesus Christ not to “act like Christians”.

“What is called of us in this Synod time is a change, conversion, and a renewed zeal to do what Christ has sent us to do,” Archbishop Muheria says.

He adds, “We are called to feel more community; we are called to feel more like brother and sister, especially with the marginalized and those who may have been forgotten. We are called to participate more in the life of the Church, in the Sacraments.”

The Kenyan Catholic Archbishop hints to nature of the ongoing Synodal process that has non-Bishops among the delegates, saying, “We are also called to participate in decision-making so that we are able to bring the gifts and skills God has given us for the Church to grow.”

The Synodal process also calls on the people of God “to retake a pulse of our Christian faith”, he says in the video recorded inside St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome in which he addresses Kenyans, and adds, “We all need to find out whether we are responding to our baptismal calling and one of the areas we in Kenya must revisit is corruption.”

The Chairman of the Commission for Social Communications of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) goes on to caution against fear. 

He says, “We say we are Christians but we don’t act like Christians; we are not supporting Christ-like in the Church, in the society because sometimes we are fearful.”

“We seem to fear the attacks and threats of the society around us. Some of the new ideologies, instead of confronting them, sometimes we fear and run away from the challenges,” he continues.

Archbishop Muheria, who is representing Kenya at the ongoing Synodal conversations alongside Archbishop Martin Kivuva Musonde of Mombasa Archdiocese challenges Christians to give good witness by rejecting all forms of evil in society, and adds, “This journey is for all of us. May we as a Church in Kenya profess that faith, not only with our mouths but with our lives; not only with our lives but with our witness. May this moment be a renewal for all.” 

In a separate video recording inside St. Peter’s Basilica, Archbishop Kivuva describes the ongoing Synodal process as “an awakening, calling on us all to move together as Church and to know what is going on in the world and we need to involve everyone.”

The Local Ordinary of Mombasa who doubles as the Chairman of KCCB acknowledges the reality of challenges across the globe, and highlights Kenya, where he says the people of God are experiencing economic challenges characterized by a high cost of living. 

“We remember those who are facing various challenges, and nations that are at war. We pray that the Lord may give them lasting peace,” Archbishop Kivuva says in the video recording in which he expresses himself in Kiswahili.

He continues, "We are praying for you; we are praying for the Church in Kenya; we are praying for all of Africa and all of our world."