Five Issues Catholic Bishops Want Kenyans to Deliberate on During Lenten Season

“To contain conflicts, mistrust, and selfishness, all community, members must be involved in decision making through regular dialogue,” KCCB members further say, and add that by so doing, human relationships will be enhanced and Kenyans will become more focused on addressing common national challenges. 

They identify the electoral process in Kenya as one of the national issues that need to be looked into, and say, “In the last five years, Kenya's elections, presidential elections, have left a scar in our national cycle.”

“Political players in the process have often inhaled radical possessions in the three instances the Supreme Court adjudicated on who in its verdict won the presidential elections as we saw in 2013, 2017, and 2022. The voters have remained divided,” KCCB members say in the Lenten Season 2013 booklet, and call on Kenyans to pray for the electoral process during Lent. 

The Catholic Church leaders urge the people of God in Kenya to understand reconciliation from the point of view of Scripture.

They quote Matthew 5:23-24, saying, “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First, go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.” 

“It is in this context that we must admit that the political calls we have made in the past on political reconciliation seem to be short-term solutions which include lowering political temperatures, creating a ceasefire, and allowing for some form of dialogue,” KCCB members say.  

Kenya needs long-term solutions to the recurring political challenges that include politicians listening to grievances, fair arbitration, taking responsibility for harm committed, and reparation for the offended parties, they further say. 

For the second week of Lent, KCCB members invite the people of God in Kenya to reflection mental illness, which they say is on the rise in the country.

“Economic hardships, changing family dynamics, intensifying secular values that draw people to pleasure and consumerism, and a sweeping case of hopelessness, among young people and families are driving people into anxieties and depression that make them even contemplate murder and suicide,” Catholic Bishops in Kenya say.  

While the Church leadership has to strengthen good relationships in our neighborhoods and other interactive spaces as a deliberate measure to slow down incidences of mental illness, KCCB members say Kenyans need to work together towards mental wellness for everyone.

Mental wellness can be achieved “by creating favorable and acceptable living conditions including taking care of mother nature that gives us a sense of security and addressing rising cases of depression and being overstressed,” they said. 

During the third week of Lent, Kenyans will be guided by the theme, “Youth: The Hope of Our Society”. 

KCCB members say, “Another critical question we must ask ourselves is what is the present and the future of our youth.” 

“Positive social change is meted out by people who had a desire from their youthful age to make the world a better place to live in. These are the people who start to seek justice and peace from a tender age. They want to see everyone around them as fellow human beings regardless of tribe, race, or social status,” Catholic Bishops in Kenya say.

On Economic Justice, the theme for the fourth week of Lent 2023, KCCB members say they find it regrettable that Kenyans are finding it hard to make ends meet.

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Kenya, they say, has “a huge wasted resource in the form of unemployed but educated men and women.”

“As we reflect on economic justice, we also note with concern that corruption in Kenya is deep-rooted, even small children may be contaminated by the virus even before they know what it is. Corruption is a vice. Every year the auditor general released a report showing corruption thrives not only at a national level but also in some counties,” KCCB members say.

They call on all Kenyans, especially the youth, to fight graft. 

“All of us have to fight corruption, in particular, it is in your interest as a youth to start fighting corruption at your own level. It might be the beginning of saving and improving your future,” KCCB members say. 

During the final week of the 2023 Lenten Season, Kenyans have been asked to reflect on Ecological Education. 

“Climate justice is a strong global call to look at the environment around us, the protection of the ecosystem, and the appreciation that nature deserves as a matter of right and not simply a choice. Destroying forests, logging, destroying bushes, dumping, and all forms of environmental carelessness impact negatively on human life and that of other living things,” KCCB members say. 

They add that humanity continues to contribute to climate change and its effects are seen in the flooding, unpredictable droughts, swelling of lakes and oceans, and the drying of rivers. 

There needs to be “continued education on ways to ensure proper agricultural methods including seed production, food storage, distribution, and consumption for a healthy nation,” Catholic Church leaders in Kenya say.

“Bring this education to the grassroots where the impact of an ecological education is most needed,” they add.  

KCCB members also urge the Kenyan government to address continued land subdivisions. They say, “Land does not grow and therefore continued land subdivisions in densely populated areas call for an urgent response.”

“Appropriate land use contributes immensely to food security,” they say.

KCCB members add, “The graces of our Lenten campaign should be seen in the little actions we do throughout this period of prayer, fasting, and committing to actions within our abilities.”