Catholic Archbishop in Kenya Calls for Joint Efforts to Care for Seafarers

Archbishop Kivuva cautioned against the temptation to offer services in silos, saying, “That is where problems begin. It should be a joint effort, one Church working as a team.”

“Justice and Peace asks, why are the poor poor? Caritas asks, where can we find food to feed the people? The medical department, what are they suffering from?” he said, explaining that the Mombasa Archdiocese adopted the integrated approach because “we are all addressing the same person, though with different needs at different times.”

In his November 19 address, the Kenyan-born Catholic Church leader also encouraged the other ecclesiastical jurisdictions in the East African nation whose people depend on the blue economy for their livelihood to collaborate with Stella Maris Kenya, an initiative of the Archdiocese of Mombasa that cares for the “spiritual, social, and material welfare of all seafarers and fishers without distinction of color, race, or creed.”

“What you are doing in the Archdiocese of Kisumu, Diocese of Malindi, or the Diocese of Homa Bay is the same mission of the Church that we are called to carry out,” he said, and went on to emphasize the need to “deliberately” incorporate interfaith and interreligious partners “because they come to us as well.”

Archbishop Kivuva noted that other Dioceses could draw lessons from the Stella-Maris initiative, saying, “The initiative here grew because we had the opportunity to train people and send them out. I even sent a Priest to serve as chaplain on a cruise ship.” 

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“He created a ‘floating church’ and joined the crew in planning daily activities. Our world has people living in lakes, on mountains, and in deserts, and all these places are part of our area of mission,” the Kenyan Catholic Church leader said.

He went on to say that he felt honored to acknowledge that, through Caritas and other partners, the initiative, now a global effort—had its origins there.

"We take this with pride and thank God. This is the mission of the Church: to go out into the whole world and make disciples. A disciple is a human being in need,” he said.

The Catholic Archbishop of the Archdiocese which is located at the Kenyan coastline, recounted that on a few occasions ships had been stranded in the harbor, and the Church stepped in to feed the crew and help them reconnect with their families.

He said, “You may think it is a small thing; it is not. Imagine being stuck in the middle of nowhere, unable to speak the local language, and a stranger comes asking, ‘What can I do for you?’ That is not easy.” 

“That is the reality of our mission: it is not limited to a small corner. It requires partnering with others, sometimes known, sometimes unknown, beginning from where we are, step by step,” Archbishop Kivuva said in his address on November 19.

Nicholas Waigwa is a Kenyan multimedia journalist and broadcast technician with a professional background in creating engaging news stories and broadcasting content across multiple media platforms. He is passionate about the media apostolate and Catholic Church communication.