Nyeri, 21 February, 2025 / 9:55 PM
Archbishop Anthony Muheria of Kenya’s Catholic Archdiocese of Nyeri has called on learners at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) to embrace the Holy Spirit as a source of renewal in their Christian life.
In his homily during the Catholic Community (CATCOM) Mass at the Kenyan institution on Wednesday, February 19, Archbishop Muheria underlined the role of the Holy Spirit in strengthening faith, comparing its transformative power to oxygen reigniting a glowing splint.
“With a gust of oxygen, a glowing splint bursts into a flame. We need to come to the mouth of the test tube; we need to come to the oxygen source to rekindle the glowing embers of our Christian life,” the Kenyan Archbishop said in his homily at the event that was held at St. Augustine Chaplaincy.
Just like a glowing splint pops up with flame after being exposed to oxygen, Archbishop Muheria said the Holy Spirit has the power to drive out “our lazy state, our passive state, and our complete laxity,” enabling Christians to “pop back as pilgrims of hope.”
He challenged the learners to abandon spiritual complacency and seek nourishment from God. Drawing from the words of the prophet Isaiah, he said, “Stop searching for food that does not satisfy. Come, find the grace.”
He described the Holy Spirit as the “oxygen of God,” essential for strengthening the students’ faith and conviction as Catholics.
The Local Ordinary of Kenya’s Nyeri Archdiocese emphasized that Catholics can deepen their Christian life by seeking God’s presence and allowing Him to “fill them up” through the graces of the sacraments.
“We stop being cowards; we stop hiding away; we stop pretending,” he said, and added, “The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth. He shows us as we are, in our wicked weaknesses and vulnerability. But He is also the healing Spirit.”
Archbishop Muheria said that the Holy Spirit remains the corrector of Christians even in the midst of human vulnerability and weakness, as He realigns them back to God’s will.
He explained that the Holy Spirit, as a consoler and empowerer, brings new creation through baptism and the sacraments, forming Christians to be more like Christ.
“If you haven't opened yourself to the oxygen of God through the sacraments, if you are still in a passive state, a state of just rolling on in your Christianity and have not dared to truly come to draw waters from the wells of salvation, to put yourself before God, then you haven’t given time to God,” he warned.
The Archbishop also addressed the struggles Christians face in aligning their lives with God’s will. “The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth. He shows us as we are, in our weaknesses and vulnerability, but He is also the healing Spirit,” he said.
In his February 19 homily at the Kenyan higher institution of learning, Archbishop Muheria also appealed to the learners to fight for the purification of their thoughts, dreams, and relationships.
He cautioned against distractions that he said pollute thoughts and hinder spiritual growth. “There is so much competition for time that, instead, we receive venom and poison. It’s time to turn that around,” he said.
The Archbishop highlighted the transformative role of the Holy Spirit, stating, “He changes the heart of stone into the heart of flesh of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit is transformative in the mind and heart, giving wisdom to understand things in their proper context.”
He further urged the learners to embrace the fruits of the Spirit, including chastity, modesty, and generosity. “The Spirit helps us defend what is good and strengthens us to live out our Christian faith,” he said.
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