Cross-Cultural Ministry in Kenya, Part Four
There were about 150 in attendance. The church was packed. The service lasted for 2 1/2 hours and the people did not want to leave when it was over. What a contrast to Christians in America who complain if services last over an hour.
We were introduced at the end of the service and were warmly received. The congregation has a new young pastor. He was ordained just 4 weeks ago.His name is Rev. Erick Peter Omondi. He is a very bright person and speaks excellent English, Swahili, and several tribal languages. In Kenya, men enter the seminary right out of high school and the curriculum last 5 years. Pastors are about 23 years old when they graduate and are ordained.
He invited his best friend and classmate from the seminary to be guest preacher. The district pastor (equivalent to our district president) was guest celebrant. After the service, the women of the congregation cooked dinner and all the guests were invited to the pastor's house for lunch. Besides us, there were several other visitors as well.
They sing beautifully. Can you imagine a congregation of about 200 that have a choir of 20 members who all could sing solo? Even the congregation sings beautifully. Their hymnbook is a translation from the Anglican hymnbook. The congregation sings in four-part harmony. There is no organ. The liturgy is chanted and responses are sung in harmony. The liturgy is from the Finnish Lutheran Church. The music was out of this world.
After lunch, we went to the market near David's rural home. We met his other mother. The Luos practice polygamy and David's father has 2 wives. The first wife is always the senior wife and all other wives report to her. It is the responsibility of the senior wife to find other wives for the man. The practice is not as common among the younger people because of Christianity. It is still a big problem because the Luos also practice wife inheritance. The wife is the responsibility of the family because she was paid for with a dowry. If her husband dies, it is the responsibility of the next oldest male to marry her.
Luos do not distinguish between members of extended families. In the Luo language there is only words for mother, father, sister, brother so all aunts, uncles, cousins are mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters. The next in line within the extended family would marry the widow. If the husband died of AIDS, then the wife, too, is most likely infected even if she shows no sign it. She infects the new husband who would infect his first wife. So you can see how big a problem polygamy and AIDS are in this country.
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