Pope Francis Appoints Priest Apostolic Administrator for Kenya’s Military Ordinariate

Nairobi, 30 January, 2024 / 9:00 PM

Pope Francis has appointed Mons. John Njue Njeru as the Apostolic Administrator for Kenya’s Military Ordinariate.

The appointment of Mons. Njue, a Lieutenant Colonel, was made public Tuesday, January 30 by the leadership of the  Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB).

He is to succeed Mons. Benjamin Kituto Maswili, who has retired from service in the military after attaining the mandatory retirement age of 60.  

Born in July 1972, Mon. Njue was ordained a Priest for the Catholic Diocese of Embu in April 2002.

Since his Priestly Ordination, he served in various positions including the coordination of the Military Ordinariate of Kenya Biblical Pastoral Ministry from September 2003 to July 2023, and Staff Officer from January 2008 to September 2011.

As Staff Officer, Mon. Njue coordinated operations at the Military Ordinariate secretariat, facilitated planning, implementation, and the monitoring of pastoral programs; he would also oversee recruitment and training of pastoral agents.

The Kenyan Catholic Priest served as Chaplain in various capacities, including at Kenya Navy Headquarters Mtongwe Base (Mombasa), and in the African peacekeeping Mission in Somalia. 

From 2020-2022, he served as a Roman Catholic Staff Administration Officer (SO2) at the office of the Apostolic Administrator of Kenya’s Defence Headquarters.

Mons. Njue becomes the second Apostolic Administrator of the Military Ordinariate, which was erected in January 1964 as a vicariate and elevated to an Ordinariate in 1981 to provide pastoral care to Catholics serving in the Kenyan Armed Forces (KDF) and their respective families.