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By:
SIMON NGUGI | |||||||||
| Posted:
Aug,15-2018 16:25:05
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In a weekend of Celebration and communion dubbed "embracing my Catholic faith as an immigrant", the Kenya Catholic Community in America (KCCA) will celebrate its 7th Annual Swahili Mass and Conference to be held in our nation's capital starting on August 10th through the 12th 2018 free of charge and open to the general public. The event whose climax will be the Annual Swahili Mass will be graced by the Rt. Reverend Maurice Muhatia Makumba, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Nakuru, Kenya who will preside over the Annual Swahili Mass and Conference at the Basilica of the National shrine of the Immaculate Conception located at 400 Michigan Avenue, Washington DC.
This revival weekend is designed to bring together all Kenyan Catholics living in the United States and sometimes as far away as Canada in a bid to foster unity and continue the Church's mission of evangelization in a time and location where this is a herculean task. This year's theme however captures the national mood and outlook as most Catholics in the Diaspora continue to struggle to accommodate the faith as taught by their parents and the Church at home in a rapidly changing World that lives little room to the profession of faith and adherence to the Church's values and teaching.
It is interesting to note that as Kenyans encourage and invite each other from far and wide to attend this annual festivity, the American Church whose backyard the event will take place presents a rather bleak outlook and a picture of a Church in decline and disarray: A disappointing situation which I cannot overlook!
The 21st Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church also known as the Second Vatican Council was concluded some 53 years ago. In the case of those not familiar with the faith or those loosely referred to as "fox hole Catholics" who need rehashing of their Catholicism, the Second Vatican Council sought a spiritual renewal for the Church and as Pope John XXIII put it on January 25th 1959; "an occasion for Christians separated from Rome to join in search of reunion". While the concept was valid at the time, it is critical to note that it is twice as valid today especially in light of recent indicators that the Church's faithful numbers are dwindling worldwide and especially in Europe and North America. I assert that that the dwindling numbers are not an indication of a faith in retreat but rather one whose members are confronted with many challenges both within and without the Church. The regular American Catholic is for instance faced with an increasing number of clergy abuse scandals and while these are sickening, the major crime to the faith is the real and perceived cover up among the higher ups in the magisterial hierarchy of the Church. In the interest of transparency: I am Catholic and even as I write this, I have this lifelong assertion that if I was on trial for being Catholic, there would be no evidence to convict me. I proudly profess that faith, I stand by the very tenets that define Catholicism and I hope that when all is done and my time has come, I will exit this stage a Catholic with full rites and send off. I must point out that what defines my attraction to the faith is my background. I grew up in Sub Saharan Africa, where the tangible legacies that define Catholicism are commonplace. I also have had the personal opportunity to witness what an institutional joke the Church can turn out to be when those charged with disseminating its teaching fall asleep at the altar so to speak. I therefore understand the dwindling numbers and the reasons behind the same. The Church has been left behind in its teaching methodology amid a changing social dynamic.The Church continues to espouse seemingly moribund philosophies and messages couched with inaccuracies and contradictions in a fast changing World. In stating this, I am not in any way, shape or form advocating that the Church changes its teaching to accommodate a growing social clamor in the West, I am urging that the Church to fully implement the 2nd Vatican Council documents whose stated purpose was aggiornamento ( Italian for 'bring to speed'). Unlike the African Synod that defined the strength of the African Church in particular and ended the Church's Euro centrism, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops has failed to unify and present an American Church that invites growth, spiritual renewal and one that teaches Catechism without fear or favor of the crowd. There is however plenty of room for improvement which should involve plenty of soul searching and practical evaluations in a bid to tailor the Church's methodology and outreach in the United States to match those she seeks to keep and invite back to the fold. This is a time to look in the mirror and see what is working and what has failed and taking corrective actions will most definitely have positive impacts in the Church's well being and mission. Sincerely, Simon Ngugi Ajabu Africa News Contributor Lowell, Massachusetts Event Program Thursday Saturday August 9-Sunday August 12 Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception 400 Michaigan Ave, NE Washington DC View Full Program and times here >>>>:KCCA2-12.ORG | |||||||||
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Source:
AJABU AFRICAN NEWS
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