Kenya Mennonite Church

As of last weekend, we have now visited all seven dioceses of Kenya Mennonite Church (KMC). Most of the Mennonite churches in Kenya are in the southwest, in Nyanza Province. The first churches were the result of evangelism by believers from Tanzania Mennonites who were touched by the East African revival movement and their fellow Luo tribespeople across the border in Kenya about their newfound vibrant faith. The growth of the church was also strengthened by families who had moved to Tanzania for jobs, returned to their homeland after Tanzanian independence.

An early Mennonite church near Muhoro Bay, Kenya, built by missionary Clyde Shenk in the 1970's

Kenya Mennonite Church became formally independent in the 1970’s and has continued to grow. From reports I have gathered from the bishops, the present membership in KMC is about 6,000 members. The churches are located across Kenya, from a small congregation in Malindi on the Indian Ocean, to Siaya District in the west, near Uganda.

With bishop Elisha Osewe and pastor Charles at Kigoto Mennonite Church

In all the churches we visited, the bishops spoke of the need to train leaders for their churches. It is 20 years since the TEE (Theological Education by Extension) training program was offered in KMC, and many of those who participated in that have now retired. A few persons have studied at a residential theological college, either the Mennonite Theological College in Tanzania, or a college in Kenya. But it does not provide enough leaders to meet the need.
We are encouraging the bishops to consider “grass-roots” training that is locally led and focuses on the practical aspects of ministry, instead of relying on resources and “experts” from outside. We are preparing training sessions to equip the local pastors to train their lay leaders, following the example of Jesus training his disciples, and Paul, as he wrote in 2 Timothy 2:2, encouraging Timothy to pass on what he learned from Paul, to “faithful men who will teach others.” It is a new way of looking at leadership development for most of the present leaders, because the normal educational models emphasize academic learning based on lectures. We expect to begin the program in early 2013.

Children gathering for worship on Sunday, October 14 at Kigoto Mennonite Church, Victoria Diocese

Now we are ready to move on to Tanzania and begin a similar round of visits to the Tanzanian dioceses. We are encouraged to see the commitment of the bishops and pastors to strengthen the church through leadership development. Continue to keep these efforts in your prayers. Pray for the leaders in Kenya Mennonite Church. Most are bivocational and are supported by other jobs, since the church does not have funds to pay them, so they often feel stretched and tired. But they are not giving up. We are looking forward to walking with them for the next few years.