Beyond Century of Endeavour A History of the Catholic Church in Kenya

Author : Fr. Lawrence Njoroge

In Beyond Century: A History of the Catholic Church in Kenya, Prof. Fr Njoroge tells the story of a community of faith established in the country over a century ago. The founders of this faith community in a new land had to interact with indigenous religious beliefs and practices, and also with other Christian denominations. While there was co-operation at times, in other instances the scene bore the marks of fierce denominational rivalry, causing confusion among potential converts.

Chapters 1 to 6 tell the story of the early exploits of Islam and Christianity in the early days of the 20th century. In an eloquent manner, the author brings in the experiences, escapades, and sometimes brutal methods used by the foreigners on the local people. He interweaves African culture, Islam and Christianity to bring about a hybrid of Africans who could be seen as local and yet they had taken an international flavour. Within those chapters one finds gems of individuals who brought about social change through administration, leadership, governance, land acquisition and the conflicts between Church and state.

Another intriguing yet realistic presentation of the story is the planting and watering of the Christian faith. The seeds may have been differently selected, adequately watered but the plants found their space and nourished by the ethos obtained in the 20th century. It is at this point that one starts seeing the growth of the early Catholic Church through the catechists, the schools, the hospitals and the skills that were given to the young believers.

Chapter 7 tells the story of a faith that has been cultivated, refined and almost symbolises our mother earth: solid and ready to fight even the vagaries of climate change. Fr Njoroge tells the story of the Servant of God, Maurice Michael Cardinal Otunga. To augment this story, he presents live voices through interviews with 32 experts. These experts give information on the challenges that face the Catholic Church in Kenya. They bring with the challenges a ray of opportunity for the growing Church. They have captured the hopes, the fears, aspirations and expectations of the youth, the elderly and people with special challenges. Indeed they become the voice of the voiceless. This is an excellent way of ending a story that started with Vasco da Gama through a whole century of trials, tribulations, many misses, failures but also many successes. The Church is called the pilgrim church. It is a journey of faith, hope and love.