By Charles Muchiri
Nairobi August 16, 2013:
The soul of the Servant of God Maurice Cardinal Otunga must have drawn the
curtains of his magnificent window up in heaven, as he watched the proceedings
of the blessing and opening of an even splendid building at the compound of the
Holy Family Basilica.
Cardinal
Otunga Plaza, named after a man that many Kenyan expect will be beatified soon,
now stands magnificently, next to and almost matching the bells tower of the
Holy Family Minor Basilica, Nairobi.
According
to Cardinal John Njue, the new building will now be home to the Archdiocese of
Nairobi offices as well as a host of other affiliate church organizations. This will
go a long way into harmonizing the operations of the Church in Nairobi, the
seat of the Roman Catholic Church in Kenya.
The
Cardinal took time to thank all the Christians who have contributed towards
making this project a reality. “This is the Archdiocese of Nairobi Christians project. It
is our own project,” he told hundreds of faithful who had turned up for the
11am Holy Mass that preceded the official blessing and opening of the house whose main entrance faces a busy Koinange Street.
Noting
that there is more to come as the church engages a higher gear towards
self-reliance, Cardinal Njue guided the faithful in seeking God’s gracious
guidance as the church rolls up its sleeves “to emulate Christ, who extolled
the need for Christians to work.”
“The
church,” he noted, “is now more than ever involved in shaping the destiny of
the society.”
Speaking
on behalf of the Bishops who co-celebrated the Holy Mass, Bishop John Oballa
Owaa of Ngong Diocese noted that the opening of Cardinal Otunga Plaza was a
sign that the church is heading towards a dispensation of self-reliance. “This
is a sign of exceptional leadership, work and prayer and it is going to be a
source of inspiration to Kenyans and by extension to Africans that there is so
much to be done, so much to give for the mission of Christ,” he said.
Charles
Daniel Balvo, Apostolic Nuncio to Kenya specially thanked all Christians of the
Archdiocese for their efforts to make sure that the building was complete. His
message was read on his behalf by the Secretary to the Apostolic Nunciature in
Kenya.
Other
bishops who were present at the Holy Mass and the official opening event were
John Njenga Archbishop Emeritus of Mombasa, Raphael Ndingi Mwana’a Nzeki Archbishop
Emeritus of Nairobi, Bishop David Kamau Auxiliary Bishop of Nairobi, Bishop Dominic Kimengich of Lodwar, Bishop Alfred Kipkoech
Rotich of Kenya Military and
Bishop Joseph Ndembu Mbatia of Nyahururu.
And
as the Bishops released a dozen of balloons into the Nairobi skies, one of
these balloons may have just found its way into the hands of a smiling Servant
of God Maurice Cardinal Otunga.
/Send feedback to Author: muchirimuchoki@yahoo.com/
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