“Being young is a resource”: Catholic Bishop Urges Patience among Kenya’s Youths amid Multiple Challenges

“I would ask that as youths, let us have a moment of reflection; let us have a moment of looking at our lives and asking ourselves: what is it that we want the government to do for us?” said the Catholic Bishop who has been at the helm of Embu Diocese since his Episcopal Consecration in November 2024.

He challenged Kenyan youths participating in the Gen Z-led protests to give the government time to process their demands. He said, “We have expressed what we want the government to do for us, but when we find that the response is not as immediate as we would wish it to be, let us also ask for the spirit of patience,”

Bishop Kimani urged youths to reflect on: “What is the Holy Spirit saying to us at this critical moment? Are we on a path that leads to the destruction of our lives and property?”

Instead of destroying a future built over generations by their parents and past leaders, he called upon young people to reflect on how they “can generate constructive ideas and meaningful responses to the events unfolding around us.”

“We may be having challenges, yes, that is true, and there are quite many, but it is something that we can be patient about and be able to overcome,” he said in the audio recording.

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Bishop Kimani went to appeal to youths, “Let us reflect and respond to the status and to the challenges that are coming there constructively and in a consultative way so that we do not destroy our future and we do not destroy our lives.”

“We are having a lot of desperation amongst the youth, as expressed in words and in actions, where people no longer fear death, they no longer fear injuries, and to be injured, to die is like heroism,” he said.

He reminded youths that “life is precious; life is God-given, and God has a purpose for each and every one of us.”

“Let us protect life, let us protect ourselves, and let us take care of the things that God has given us. We have invested a lot in our education, we have invested a lot in the skills that we have,” he said.

Bishop Kimani urged faith leaders in Kenya to be mindful of not only the spiritual health but also the pastoral and mental health of young people so that “when they are deemed to be losing hope, we can rush very fast and uplift their hope.”