What Will Define the Extraordinary Missionary Month in Kenya?

“Our Slogan is if the people don’t come to the Church, let the Church go to the people,” he shared with ACI Africa and added, “It (slogan) is given to the Universal Church but will be adopted for Kenya.”  

The theme “Baptised and Sent, the Church of Christ on the Move in the World” will guide the worldwide EMMOCT2019.

“Pope Francis has given us four dimensions to live these faith as baptised people who are sent to gather, talk, form and do,” Fr. Luchidio said. 

He explained that in ‘gathering’, “a baptised Christian should congregate with others in breaking the word of God, sacraments and prayer” so as to encounter Jesus; “talk” has to do with recounting the testimonies of saints and martyrs. 

“We are encouraging people to get the zeal, passion of mission through the work of saints and martyrs,” he said and added, “We have people in our own parishes at home whose faith we admire. Can we use those stories to energize ourselves and live our faith well?”

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While describing form and do, the Kenyan Priest said it is important to “form our conscience to always choose the good against the bad.” 

“As we pray, then our faith should be seen in action,” he said.

Though October has been set aside as for EMMOCT2019, Fr. Luchidio explained that the program has no end.

“It is perpetual because you are not baptized and sent for a day, it is until you die because that is what will usher you into the kingdom of God or it will make you lose the kingdom of God,” he stated. 

“This call is for the entire church the clergy and the laity,” he noted and added, “Nobody was baptized as a priest, we were baptized as lay people and in our baptism we were given obligations.”  

In Kenya, EMMOCT2019 will be commissioned by the Bishops on October 5 during the county's National Prayer Day at the Village of Mary, a National Shrine, a property of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB).

Magdalene Kahiu is a Kenyan journalist with passion in Church communication. She holds a Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). Currently, she works as a journalist for ACI Africa.