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• JAN / FEB

  2018 is a Year of Recovery and Growth

  Last year in November, while launching the 2018 Consolata Calendar at Our Lady Help of Christians Catholic Church, Upper Hill, I told the Christians that if there was a year Kenyans couldn’t wait to end, it was the year 2017.

  I went on to say that the best way to end the year was to buy our 2018 calendar, as it would make them feel like they were already in the New Year. The joke caused big laughter in the church and certainly translated into huge sales for the calendar.

  While it was said on a light note, it is a fact that like most election years, 2017 was a horrible year for Kenyans. It was a year full of drama, twist and turns as the heightened political situation held the country hostage for a major part of the year.

  The country was literally at a stand-still before, during and after the General Elections as Kenyans adopted a wait-and-see life.

  There was even a joke, that if you asked any Kenyan to do something for you, they would tell you to wait until after the elections. The, elections came, the results were nullified, and we had to wait for another ‘after the elections’.

  The country’s economy was hard hit by the political uncertainty. According to economists, the year 2017 cast a cloud of gloom over Kenya’s economy as it saw a number of businesses turn to life support through painful cost-cutting measures.

  While people will be talking of last year, the business community will be talking of the ‘lost year’.

  At the very tail end of 2017, the country was again in a sombre mood as road carnage claimed lives of Kenyans (more than 100 lives were lost in a span of three weeks in road accidents by the time we went to press).

  We hope the New Year will bring with it new blessings for our country.

  It will be a happy New Year if the new government puts in measures to ease inflation, reduce corruption and wastage of public resources, and ease the cost of living for taxpayers.

  It will be a happy new year if the leaders we elected put aside their personal animosity keep their promises of making the country a better place for all.

  It will be a happy new year if the government puts in place measures to reduce loss of lives on our roads.

  It will be a happy new year of the government provides job opportunities for hundreds of young people who are jobless.

  We hope 2018 will be a year of recovery and growth. May 2018 bring you peace, prosperity, and progress.

  Happy New Year to you all.

• MARCH/APRIL

  Nostalgic Memories of St. Gabriel’s Minor Seminary

  This time, my job took me back to my former school, St Gabriel’s Minor Seminary in the Archdiocese of Kisumu.

  As I entered the gate, I felt some goose bumps!  My mind raced back 26 years ago when I was a student. I saw myself as a form one, serving others at table, at form two working as a sacristan and later as head student.

  Memories of us running through the corridors, scrubbing the floor of the ablution block, and sliding on the rails as we went down the staircase at break time were rekindled.

  I felt nostalgic as I vividly visualized my rector, mentor, and friend, the late Fr Gabriel Okolla Cowelle in a cassock – him of fond memories -- walking around the school as he used to. The six-foot tall and dark Fr Okolla was a no nonsense man. He kept us on our toes.

  As we strolled around the school, I could remember him yelling from one corner of the compound, “Vijana! What are you doing there?”

  Fr Okolla hated idle sitting, what the students termed ‘collecting blood’. You had to be on your toes! Dressing smartly was not an option; the hawk-eyed priest would spot you from afar if you had not tucked in your shirt or your necktie was hanging loosely.

  Sainty, as we used to call it is the place where I learnt a few values in life: sharing, service to others, time keeping, and prayer.

  As we sat down to interview the rector, Fr Ben Didacus Opiyo ‘Abelo’ who was a class ahead of me as a student, we recalled our days at the school.

  Who would have imagined that Abelo would be sitting on the rector’s chair? This is the same office where Fr Okolla once caned us thoroughly with Abelo and now he is the rector!

  A reunion with my old cook, Alex Ogalo Ayieke whom we had nicknamed Alek was just as exciting. Alek would serve us with ugali and omena on Tuesdays and Thursdays. We had rice and beef only on Sundays for lunch and tea and bread at 4pm.

  Boys will always be boys and I recall some students ‘going for Opa’. You would sneak into the kitchen and have the cook scoop a jug of githeri for you and you would have to hurriedly take it a dark, tiny room attached to the kitchen.

  Woe unto you if Fr Okolla caught you. It meant automatic expulsion.

  I will never forget the day the rector caught a student sneaking in from cross country with half a sack of avocadoes meant to spice up his githeri. He was forced to eat them raw at the assembly ground.

  Since its foundation in 1982 by Archbishop Zacchaeus Okoth, Sainty has produced a number of prominent personalities.  It was in this academic giant where Larry Madowo, the famous TV presenter went to school. It is here where he wore a white shirt, black trousers and a black tie.

  Others include: Ambassador Peter Miyai, a senior attaché at the Kenyan Embassy in Washington DC; Dr Wire Weda, who works at Central Bank; Engineer Alloyce Godia, a consultant for Rwanda Government; the Principal of St Mary’s Teachers Training College-Bura, Mr Dennis Ombati, and many priests.

  We are who we are today, thanks to this great school that moulded us.

  Hail Sainty!

• MAY/JUNE

  Why We Must Learn to Forgive

  Sr Leonella Sgorbatti, the Italian Consolata Sister who will be beatified on May 26 lived and died like a saint.

  At the imitation of Christ on the cross, her last words were forgiveness for those who killed her -- the most authentic Christian testimony that a martyr can give, showing the victory of love over hatred and evil.

  Forgiveness is one of those things we easily talk about but find hard to do. We often say we have forgiven, when in fact we haven’t.

  It is normal that in life, we find it hard to forgive someone who makes us feel vulnerable and violated. Emotions of anger, fear, frustration, and resentfulness run high when someone wrongs us, or betrays our trust. We feel like we should revenge.

  The word ‘forgive’ literally means “to send away, to let off.” To forgive means to surrender your right to seek revenge. Simply put, forgiveness is letting go of my right to hurt you for hurting me.

  As human beings I know that forgiveness is hard, even the disciples struggled with forgiveness. That’s why Peter in Matthew 21:18-22 asks Jesus, Lord, "How often must we forgive?

  I would like to invite you to ask yourself this question: Are you currently holding a grudge against another person? Is there someone who has hurt you so bad that you have not been able to forgive? Does the thought of that person raise your blood pressure; cause you to feel depressed, or angry?

  As hard as it often is to forgive, remember the words of Jesus as he hung on the cross, when he said “Father, forgive them, they don’t know what it is that they do.

  Jesus is telling us that the hardest, most torturous thing on earth is to bear an attitude of hateful un-forgiveness.

  In the Gospel of Matthew 5:43-45 he tells us “You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.

  To love our enemy we must learn to forgive them first.

  Who are your enemies? Pray for their well-being. Pray also for God to give you the supernatural ability to love them as he does.

  Holding on to grudges can leave us with lasting feelings of anger, bitterness or even revenge. Therefore learn to forgive. There is joy in forgiveness. There is peace in forgiveness. There is contentment in forgiveness.

  When we are not able to forgive, we are the ones who pay the price. Joyce Meyer, a Christian author once said, harbouring grudge is like drinking poison and hoping your enemy will die.

  According to health professionals, forgiveness can lead to: healthier relationships, greater spiritual and psychological well-being, less anxiety and stress, lower blood pressure, fewer symptoms of depression, a stronger immune system, improved heart health, and higher self-esteem.

  Forgiveness needs courage. It is the most adult act there is, but it is essential to our mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical health.

• JULY/AUG

  Fake News! The New Evil in our Society

  A day after the Vatican announced the transfer of Bishop Norman King’oo Wambua of Bungoma diocese to Machakos, another ‘news’ circulated online, that Fr Peter Maingi Mutune had been appointed bishop for the catholic diocese of Kitui.

  The news caught many by surprise, I included. It was a Sunday night; I called my editorial team and planned how we were going to run the news the following day as breaking news.

  Turned out it was fake news!

  The social media is today flooded with fake news stories. Whether it is a falsification about an archaeological discovery, an allegation of criminal activity by a company, or a ploy to demean a political figure, it is amazing the lies people will tell – and believe.

  These fake stories, often with very convincing details, spread like wildfire.

  Ideally, fake news, is a term is used to refer to fabricated news, which can be found in traditional news sources, social media or fake news websites. These kind of news have no basis, but are presented as factually accurate. This term came into fashion after U.S. President Donald Trump used it to describe any news he found unfavorable to him.
  Many have fallen victims of fake news, the Catholic Church included.

  In April this year, Archbishop Romulo Valles, the president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines fell victim to fake news, which quoted him as warning priests and nuns not to interact with politicians. Monsignor Dario Edoardo Vigano resigned earlier this year as head of the Vatican communications office over a fake news controversy.

  Fake news is detrimental. This kind of news have already brought down families, associations, governments, and even destroyed many innocent lives.

  Out of this concern, Pope Francis made “fake news” the focus of this year’s World Communication Day, marked on May 13 under the theme: “The truth will set you free’ (Jn 8:32). Fake news and journalism for peace.”

  In his message, the pope compared the use of fake news to the Bible story of the devil, who, disguised as a serpent, persuaded Eve to eat the fruit of the forbidden tree. He said she was fed wrong information by Satan.

  Fake news is here with us, it is the new evil in our society.

  Governments and private institutions should come up with laws to curb fake news and come up with ways to unmask what could be called the 'snake-tactics' used by those (purveyors of fake news) who disguise themselves in order to strike at any time and place.

  There should also be initiatives by the media and technology companies to verify the identities of people who are hiding behind these digital profiles.

  As we use social media we need to confirm that what we are sharing or consuming is credible. As Christians we must refuse to be purveyors of fake news whether on social media, by word of mouth, or through any other form of public expression.

  ***

  The news of the transfer of Bishop Norman King’oo Wambua from Bongoma diocese to Machakos, threw our editorial team off balance. It came at the time we were getting ready to go to press for this issue.

  We had interviewed him earlier in May and there was no clue he would be transferred.

  It would be worthwhile to note that he still remains the bishop of Bungoma until he sets foot in Machakos.

• SEPT/ OCT

• NOV/DEC