School of Theology

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://192.168.4.170:4000/handle/20.500.12342/287

Welcome to School of Theology Sub-community

Browse

Filters

2016 - 20173

Settings

Has files: YesSubject: search.filters.subject.Pastoral

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Pastoral Solutions to the Obstacles in the Growth of Small Christian Communities in St. Massimo Parish – Meru Diocese, Kenya
    (Tangaza University College/Duquesne University, 2016) Muttai, Moses Muriira
    The concept of a community is very well understood by an African because that is the daily practical way of life. As many scholars have observed, Africans find value in life when that life is well shared. When the concept of Small Christian Communities was introduced especially within the AMECEA countries in 1973, the idea was received with a lot of enthusiasm and excitement. It is a fact that in the Catholic Church today in Africa, there are many good things happening. These include an increase in active Catholic Christian population, Christian marriages and growth of Small Christian Communities. According to Joseph Healey who lives in Nairobi, Kenya, there are over 180,000 Small Christian Communities in the nine AMECEA countries in East Africa. Kenya alone has over 45,000 Small Christian Communities almost as many as the whole of the United States. When Missionaries came to Africa to spread the good news, they brought with them many projects and programs. Schools and hospitals were started and built in different parts of the country. Devotional groups were also started especially the rosary of our Lady. This had a big positive impact to an African Christian, but with the introduction of the Small Christian Communities, life changed, a new way of life was introduced. Praying together, reading and sharing the word of God and eventually living the Gospel, was the best idea for the growth of Catholic Christianity for the Church in Africa. It is a fact however to note that Small Christian Communities are neither projects nor programs. Small Christian Communities are a new way of life that is to be understood and lived. Introduction and growth of Small Christian Communities within the Church brought with it many challenges in Africa. Among them is absenteeism especially within men and the youth, lateness to SCC activities, low participation to SCC activities including shared prayers and bible sharing, lack of knowledge on how to establish and run the SCC and lack of interest from some clergy and parish pastoral council members. However the major challenge I experienced at St. Massimo was the size of the SCCs. The members of each individual Small Christian Community were so large, numbers ranging between fifty and hundred families. Therefore, the objective of my paper is to identify these challenges and try to pinpoint the pastoral solutions to some of them especially at St. Massimo Parish, Meru Diocese in Kenya. This will help to strengthen the existing Small Christian Communities, uplift the awareness of the objectives and advantages of belonging and being active in the SCC and creating right attitude towards the establishment of SCC in our neighbourhood.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Pastoral Challenges in Marriage and Family Life: A Case Study of Parenting in Holy Cross Catholic Parish in Dandora, Archdiocese of Nairobi-Kenya
    (Tangaza University College/Duquesne University, 2017) Koroma, Emmanuel Batholomew
    The concept of marriage is very important and a concern of the society. For the society to continue to exist, its members have to marry and procreate, and this marry can be only between a matured man and a woman. Marriage between a man and a woman has Divine Origin. It was ordained by God that a man and a woman must come together in marriage to bring forth children. This is clearly captured in the bible that God is the Author of marriage and family, and He instituted it from the beginning of creation. In this account, God created everything including Adam, the first man on earth. However, there was no one like Adam, as a result of this God created Eve, Adam‟s wife as help mate. It is worth noting that God‟s observation that it was not good for Adam to stay alone led Him to the creation of his helper, Eve. She was the suitable companion to Adam because from Adam‟s own self, God created Eve. Adam‟s exclamation at the creation of Eve clearly shows the sexual attraction between men and women. (Cf. Gen. 2:18; 22-24) This particular Biblical passage refers to marriage and it means that it was instituted my God. Marriage ought to bring about together both the husband and the wife in love and with the primary aim of procreation. In this regard, the Council Fathers put it that: “Married love is an eminently human love because it is an affection between two persons; it can enrich the sentiments of the Spirit and their physical expression with the unique dignity and ennoble them as a special elements and sign of the friendship proper to marriage.” (GS, 49) Even though the institution of marriage is of Divine Origin, currently marriage and family life is under siege due to the fact that there are so many pastoral challenges in which this institution is face with like infidelity, parenting, alcoholism, separation, divorce and remarry among others. In this light, the Church cannot be silence seeing her children under going such challenges in their marriages. This is why I have set out to examine the causes of one of the above challenges, specifically parenting in order to give a pastoral recommendations and suggestions for families, pastors and pastoral agents in the Holy Cross parish Dandora which will help them in their marriage vocation and pastoral ministry. In the theological studies in Tangaza, the pastoral agent was exposed to courses which discuss marriage and family life such as: Moral Theology, Pastoral Theology, Social Doctrine of the Church, Sacramentology IV: Matrimony and Holy Orders, Catechetics, Sexuality, Marital and Family Morality, Canon Law: Marriage Processes, and Marriage and Family Pastoral Ministry. These made him also to be exposed to many Church documents dealing with marriage and family life like: On Human Life (Humanea Vitae), The Family in the Modern World (Familiaris Consortio), The Second Vatican Council, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church (Part Two: Chapter Five, which is entitled: The Family, the Vital Cell of Society), and many others. All these have raised my interest and concern for marriage and family life.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    How Active Participation of Men in SCCs Can Strengthen The Faith Of The Family In Kenya Today
    (Tangaza University College, 2017) Ngala Karani, Joseph
    The ecclesiology of communion which developed from the Vatican Council’s model of the Church as People of God was the force behind the African Synod image of the Church as Family of God. This image of the Church makes it easy for the understanding of the creation of Small Christian Communities as a New Model of Being Church. Richard Currier and Francis Gram begin the first chapter of their book, ‘Forming Small Christian Communities: A Personal Journey’ with these words: “It is surprising how much we can learn about Small Christian Communities (SCCs) in the first chapter of Genesis, the first book of the Bible.” 1 There is no doubt that this statement refers to the friendship that existed between God the creator and the creatures, Adam and Eve, a community of love and caring for one another, since the writer tells us how God used to take a stroll with Adam in the garden in the evenings (cf. Gn. 3:8). From this remote source of the first community, originated the aspect of communion which runs throughout the scriptures, showing the relationship between God and His people, the chosen race (cf. Gn. 17:1-11; Ex. 12; 20:2-11), as well as a relationship between the people themselves (cf. Gn. 4:1-16; Ex. 20:12-17). It is believed that the very precise initiation of SCCs was by Jesus himself in the New Testament. The first instance was when he called the first four disciples and later appointing the twelve apostles as his companions (cf. Mt. 4:18-22; 10:1-4; Mk. 1:16-20; 3:13-19; Lk.6:12-16). Though this first community of Jesus and his disciples/apostles seemed to be of only men, there were also women who followed Jesus and who were counted among the disciples as well (cf. Lk.8:13;23:55;24:10). These disciples when left behind by Jesus after his Ascension into Heaven, they came to be known as ‘The Community of Disciples in Jerusalem’ (Acts 1:12-26). These are the ones who followed the instructions of Jesus to wait for the Gift of the Spirit in the upper room in Jerusalem. Again, the twelve were not alone, since they were in the company of Mary the mother of Jesus and other women (Acts 1:14). After the Pentecost, the day the Gift of the Spirit descended upon the apostles, Peter led the group of the eleven, raised his voice and preached to the people (Acts 2:14ff). This provoked the listeners who asked what to do, and Peter told them ‘to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus.’ Here, the four pillars of SCCs were well stipulated, that is, ‘devoting to the teaching of the apostles, communal life, breaking of the bread and prayer’ (Acts 2:42). These have remained as foundation of SCCs up to date, since any SCC should draw its strength and devotion from the above four pillars. Thanks be to Pope Saint John XXIII for his great move of calling the Vatican Council (19621965) which acknowledged the images of the Church as People of God (LG. 4), the Church as Communion (LG. 32), and the Church as Body of Christ (1Cor.12:12-27). “These images bring out the fact that the Church is a community of believers that participates in God’s love as Father, Son and Spirit.” 2 This is the image/model the AMECEA bishops while meeting in 1973 promoted and decided to make SCCs a new way of evangelization. However, the implementation of it was not until 1976. This was meant for the laity to participate fully and actively in church matters through participation in the SCCs. The African Synod which was initiated by Pope Saint John Paul II between 1994 and 1995 developed the theme/image/model of the Church as Family of God. According to ‘Ecclesia in Africa,’ this model is made possible through the values and roles of each family member, just as in the SCC where each member has roles to play. The communion aspect is very strong since this is basic for African communities. On this, Rev. Joseph Healey, a Maryknoll Missionary and a Small Christianity Community animator in Eastern Africa since 1968, has the best term for it –‘a New Way of Being Church.’ He says, “Our African SCCs are a communion of families that are often called domestic churches.” 3 In this paper, the researcher is going to look specifically as to whether more participation of men in SCCs can be a way of strengthening faith in families. This research is also going to give special attention to the participation of men in SCCs in Our Lady of Heaven Karen parish in Nairobi Archdiocese. In African tradition, men are regarded as heads of their families while women are regarded second class or weak beings. This is however changing very fast since women are becoming equal partners. In SCCs they take leadership roles and are very active. They talk of equity and equality in responsibilities. St. John Paul II quoting Paul VI affirms that, “If the witness of the Apostles founds the Church, the witness of women contributes greatly towards nourishing the faith of Christian communities.” 4 Though women are taking lead in Church leadership, men should be aggressive. They should reclaim their headship, not negatively, but in a positive manner so that they act as role model to the family. Active participation of men in SCCs is therefore very vital since it will enhance, motivate and encourage all family members to participate, including their children. In the last chapter of this paper, the researcher will share about the participation of men in SCCs in the Diocese of Malindi, the diocese of his origin. Lastly, the researcher will suggest some practical pastoral recommendations as a way forward to motivate men’s participation in SCCs. All this is aimed at strengthening the faith of the whole family. At the end of it all, Small Christian Communities must be a place where the family finds the Church, and the Church finds the family, since SCCs are places of evangelization for the benefit of the bigger community.