Hold on to Cardinal Lavigerie legacy

Celebration in Malindi

Report by Sr Redempta Kabahweza, from Malindi, Kenya

For the bicentenary of the birth of our dear Founder Cardinal Charles Lavigerie many events were programmed in our communities and I am grateful to God for having given me opportunity to attend a number of them.

In November 2024, we had the launching of bicentenary here in Malindi diocese at our brothers, the Missionaries of Africa’s Parish in Tarasaa. As we did not have a chance to travel to Nairobi for the same function, we were happy as a community to have the launching of the bicentenary here in Malindi.

In December 2024 I was invited by our brothers to give sessions to the parish youth on Child Protection (including risk of sexual abuse, early marriages and early pregnancies). The youth were happy with the sessions though some of them were emotionally down as they were reminded of their past abuse experiences and had to work on it. The youth requested the same sessions to be given to their parents since some parents contribute to the causes of abuse of their children.

In March I was among the speakers on the fight against Human Trafficking at an event at the Queen of Peace parish, in South B Nairobi, where I shared our experience at Pope Francis Rescue Home in Malindi. And in July I was again invited by Lavigerie Family Kenya (MSOLA, M.AFr and the Lay associates) to give a session on Safeguarding of Minors and Vulnerable Adults.

In September I was again among the speakers at a symposium at Tangaza University. I spoke on Women Empowerment, using the MSOLA experience of women empowerment here in Malindi.

In October we had a webinar entitled: “Bicentenary Lavigerie” A number of MSOLA and M.fr Communities shared their apostolic experiences and I was again given another opportunity to also share our apostolic experience here in Malindi.

The bicentenary celebration is significant within Kenya today, as Kenya experiences political and economic crisis which has led to loss of lives, abductions and hunger as the poverty has increased. Child sexual abuse and human trafficking have also increased as these are used as commercial activities.

As we celebrate the bicentenary of our founder, we hear his voice clearly speaking:

Stop human trafficking, safeguard minors and vulnerable adults, protect mother earth, deepen your relationship with God.

This is the main message I have been hearing in almost all the bicentenary events I have attended here in Kenya. I believe that since these events were attended by different people of different social status, (like political leaders, civil workers, religious leaders of different religious denominations including traditional leaders etc.) Cardinal Lavigerie’s message of protecting the vulnerable including mother Earth has been heard in the whole country and I strongly believe that it will not leave Kenya the same, it might take long to see the change, however the seed has been planted.

And for us as a Congregation, I feel the message that the bicentenary leaves us with is to hold on to Cardinal Lavigerie’ legacy;

to always invite Humanity and the whole Creation to OUR BANQUET OF LOVE, that is to say; to be messengers of God’s love, God’s compassion and God’s care towards the needy including Mother Earth who is being destroyed by humanity today and is crying for protection.

The bicentenary event that touched me most was the symposium that was held at Tangaza University in Nairobi. I was touched listening to other people talk about Cardinal Lavigerie.

I love Cardinal Lavigerie and I like reading his history, however, sitting back and listening to others tell his story, felt as if I was listening to this story for the first time, and there was a fire burning inside me, a fire to keep his legacy alive, a fire to protect the vulnerable, a fire to be love, compassion and care to those in need and a fire to be healing to the broken hearted.

I was touched by different apostolic experiences that were shared by different people, as the tough experience of the Missionaries of Africa in South Sudan and the experiences of our many Sister Congregations. I was touched by an ex prisoner who shared her testimony of being accompanied by MSOLA during and after serving her term in prison.

As I listened to all these, I had an image of Cardinal Lavigerie smiling with an expression of gratitude and fulfilment.

In conclusion, I would like to say that as people who are following the footsteps of our dear founder Cardinal Charles Lavigerie, let us always invite humanity and the whole creation to the BANQUET of our love whenever an opportunity is given.