Today we rode just a few kilometers to an area of Nairobi called Kangemi, where one of the Jesuit priests David met in the course of his time at JRS was going to be preaching. I don't know much about the Jesuits, but it seems they are a rambling bunch, and always very busy.
This particular Jesuit priest, of Irish descent, had spent several years in Tanzania before becoming the parish priest in a parish in Kangemi called St. Joseph's in 1991. He was returning for a near yearly visit to the parish to meet with the current church leaders and marvel how the church has grown and thrived under the leadership of his former students.
Kangemi is very expansive and is one of the euphemistically called "unplanned communities" within Nairobi. We only saw a small portion of it, but we were thankful to be able to walk with the current parish priest and see all of the work the parish is doing in the community, from providing a pharmaceutical dispensary for those in need, housing and caring for people living with HIV/AIDS, income generating activities for women, vocational and IT training, and remedial schooling for young, particularly vulnerable children whose families could not pay for school fees and are behind in school (and socialization).
We learned on our walk that many of the informal settlements in the past housed people who provided casual labor on a large coffee plantation in the area of the neighborhood. When the owner of the plantation closed it and sold the land, only people with lots of money could afford the plots. So, right abutting the "village" is an area of Kangemi, now called Mountain View, that has gated homes and security barriers to keep some people from passing. (Notice in the map below how Kangemi is rusted out and Mountain View in the upper left is more organized, with homes containing yards and green space.)
View Larger Map
We have a lot of thoughts about the morning in Kangemi -- we felt very blessed to be welcomed into their community and have a great deal of respect both for the Kenyans now living their faith in action in this neighborhood and for this Irish fellow, near perfect Swahili speaker, who connected with the congregation in his sermon (which was in Kiswahili) and shared his joy and a sense of peace with us.
The church was very alive and very full--at least 150 people, if not many more--and we went to the second of three services! We kept up as much as we could and were thankful that the few words of Kiswahili that we do know featured prominently in the Father's sermon -- chakula (food), chapati (a form of bread taken straight from the subcontinent), and Mungu (God). He was talking about the part in the gospels where Jesus is explaining that he is the bread of life.
As is a matter of course in these kinds of situations, we were asked to stand up in front of the congregation and introduce ourselves. I (Darlene) always find that--especially in settings connected in some way to JRS or the Jesuits--it is easier to introduce myself after David is introduced, since I can say something basic like, "I'm here with David and also working here in Nairobi but not at JRS." Since the priest had a very gallant ladies first mentality, I didn't have that easy out, so I ended up introducing myself first. Looking out at the 150+ people and getting a bit nervous, I introduced myself saying, "I am Darlene, and I'm with this one" -- pointing at David. Everyone laughed and clapped. I went on to continue a bit about what I'm doing here and how thankful we were to worship with them--but it was the perfect set up for David's introduction, so he went next. I handed him the microphone, and he said, after a Kiswahili greeting, "Nimeitwa this one." (or "My name is this one") The congregation roared with laughter. We were glad to have been able to make a Kiswahili joke together. All in all, it was a very blessed day.
This particular Jesuit priest, of Irish descent, had spent several years in Tanzania before becoming the parish priest in a parish in Kangemi called St. Joseph's in 1991. He was returning for a near yearly visit to the parish to meet with the current church leaders and marvel how the church has grown and thrived under the leadership of his former students.
Kangemi is very expansive and is one of the euphemistically called "unplanned communities" within Nairobi. We only saw a small portion of it, but we were thankful to be able to walk with the current parish priest and see all of the work the parish is doing in the community, from providing a pharmaceutical dispensary for those in need, housing and caring for people living with HIV/AIDS, income generating activities for women, vocational and IT training, and remedial schooling for young, particularly vulnerable children whose families could not pay for school fees and are behind in school (and socialization).
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| This is not our picture (but we did walk down this street). |
We learned on our walk that many of the informal settlements in the past housed people who provided casual labor on a large coffee plantation in the area of the neighborhood. When the owner of the plantation closed it and sold the land, only people with lots of money could afford the plots. So, right abutting the "village" is an area of Kangemi, now called Mountain View, that has gated homes and security barriers to keep some people from passing. (Notice in the map below how Kangemi is rusted out and Mountain View in the upper left is more organized, with homes containing yards and green space.)
View Larger Map
We have a lot of thoughts about the morning in Kangemi -- we felt very blessed to be welcomed into their community and have a great deal of respect both for the Kenyans now living their faith in action in this neighborhood and for this Irish fellow, near perfect Swahili speaker, who connected with the congregation in his sermon (which was in Kiswahili) and shared his joy and a sense of peace with us.
The church was very alive and very full--at least 150 people, if not many more--and we went to the second of three services! We kept up as much as we could and were thankful that the few words of Kiswahili that we do know featured prominently in the Father's sermon -- chakula (food), chapati (a form of bread taken straight from the subcontinent), and Mungu (God). He was talking about the part in the gospels where Jesus is explaining that he is the bread of life.
As is a matter of course in these kinds of situations, we were asked to stand up in front of the congregation and introduce ourselves. I (Darlene) always find that--especially in settings connected in some way to JRS or the Jesuits--it is easier to introduce myself after David is introduced, since I can say something basic like, "I'm here with David and also working here in Nairobi but not at JRS." Since the priest had a very gallant ladies first mentality, I didn't have that easy out, so I ended up introducing myself first. Looking out at the 150+ people and getting a bit nervous, I introduced myself saying, "I am Darlene, and I'm with this one" -- pointing at David. Everyone laughed and clapped. I went on to continue a bit about what I'm doing here and how thankful we were to worship with them--but it was the perfect set up for David's introduction, so he went next. I handed him the microphone, and he said, after a Kiswahili greeting, "Nimeitwa this one." (or "My name is this one") The congregation roared with laughter. We were glad to have been able to make a Kiswahili joke together. All in all, it was a very blessed day.
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