Pope Francis Appoints Coadjutor Bishop for Kenya's Meru Diocese

Reacting to his appointment during the lunchtime Mass at the Consolata Shrine, Westlands on Thursday, January 16, Mons. Murugara disclosed that the news of his appointment got him by surprise and called for support through prayers.

Born in April 1970 in Kamanyaki, Tharaka-Nithi County, in the Catholic Diocese of Meru, the Bishop-elect began his religious formation at Consolata Missionary Institute and completed his studies in Philosophy at the Consolata Institute of Philosophy in Nairobi and Theology at the Missionary Institute in London.

Mons. Murugara made his first profession in 1997 after Novitiate at Sagana in Kenya’s Murang’a Diocese followed by Perpetual Profession on 18 November 2000 and ordination to priesthood on 15 August 2001 at Matiri Parish of the Diocese of Meru.

Before he was appointed as the Parish Priest and Rector of Consolata Shrine in 2018, the Bishop-elect had served in various positions, Parish collaborator in Kagaene and Mujwa, in the Diocese of Meru and Parochial vicar in Chiga, in the Archdiocese of Kisumu.

The alumni of Teresianum University in Rome where he obtained a Licentiate in Spirituality has also served as Formator of postulants at the Consolata Seminary in Nairobi and Director of the pastoral centers Bethany House and Charity Home, in the Diocese of Murang’a.

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Pope Francis Appoints Coadjutor Bishop for Kenya's Meru Diocese

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Mons. Murugara will assist Bishop Mugambi who has been at the helm of the Kenyan Diocese since Episcopal Ordination in March 2002. 

The Diocese, which measures 9,546 square kilometers, was erected in March 1926 as the Vicariate Apostolic of Meru. It is part of Nyeri Metropolitan See, and has a population of 1,036,855 Catholics representing 31.1 percent of the total population in the Diocese, according to 2022 statistics.

Silas Mwale Isenjia is a Kenyan journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communication from Moi University in Kenya. Silas has vast experience in the Media production industry. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.