Centenary Conference Communique
SHINING THE LIGHT OF CHRIST
NCCK CENTENARY CELEBRATIONS CONFERENCE
21ST – 23RD AUGUST 2013
COMMUNIQUÉ
Preamble
It is with joy and thanksgiving to God that we have met here at Kabarak University to celebrate 100 years since the founding of the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) in 1913. This Conference is a culmination of regional celebrations that have been going on since April this year. During these celebrations, we were guided by the theme “Shining the Light of Christ”, which is drawn from Matthew 5: 14 – 16:
“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
Looking Back
Way back in 1907, missionaries working in the Kavirondo area met at Vihiga and later held another meeting at Maseno in 1908 to discuss how to deal with local and practical difficulties such as unification of local dialects so as to have the same method of spelling and the same names for God. Yet, in the midst of addressing local issues, the participants in that meeting got a vision, and they passed a unanimous resolution that read:
“This Conference regards the development, organization, and establishment of a united, self-governing, self-supporting, and self-extending native church as the ideal of our missionary work”.
Five years after that Maseno meeting, in 1913, missionaries from all over the country met at Thogoto, Kikuyu, and decided establish the Federation of Missions through which they would consolidate their efforts. At the end of that meeting, four missionary organizations signed the constitution of the Federation, which marked the beginning of formal ecumenism in Kenya. The four Societies which signed the constitution were Church Missionary Society (Today’s Anglican Church of Kenya), Church of Scotland Mission (Today’s Presbyterian Church of East Africa), United Methodist Mission (Today’s Methodist Church in Kenya), and Africa Inland Mission (Today’s Africa Inland Church).
And so on 17th June 1913, the National Council of Churches of Kenya was born.
Propelled by the vision of having a united church in Kenya, missionary societies persistently worked to maintain fellowship within the framework of ecumenism. They overcame internal differences that arose with regard to doctrine, approach to work and church discipline by focusing on the vision they had of building fellowship and nationhood among the people they were preaching to.
By regularly reviewing the status of their fellowship and their achievements, the members of the NCCK routinely changed the nature, structure and name of their fellowship but retained the vision and the ethos.
It is for this reason that the name of the organization was changed to Alliance of Protestant Missions in 1918; Kenya Missionary Council in 1924; Christian Council of Kenya in 1943; National Christian Council of Kenya in 1966 and National Council of Churches of Kenya in 1984.
Since then, membership has grown to include 27 member churches and 17 Christian organizations registered in Kenya.
A Century of Impact
Over the last one hundred years, NCCK through the power and grace of God has greatly impacted the lives of millions of Kenyans through varied interventions that touch on every aspect of their lives. In highlight, some of the key achievements are:
One, NCCK has worked alongside the churches to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to the point where 80 per cent of Kenyans profess the Christian faith.
Two, more than 64 per cent of the education institutions and a number of universities were started and built by churches. It is notable that the leading schools in Kenya were founded by the churches. In addition, the NCCK has enabled thousands of Kenyans to access education through provision of scholarships.
Three, more than half of the health facilities in Kenya were established and are run by the churches.
Four, the NCCK pioneered the Village Polytechnics concept, the Cottage Industries that grew to become the Jua Kali industry, and initiated Rural Training Centers to promote modern agricultural practices.
Five, the Council initiated provision of credit facilities to the poor, which led to the founding of church owned micro finance institutions such as SMEP Deposit Taking Microfinance Limited and ECLOF Kenya among others.
Six, NCCK has made peace among the communities by championing healing and reconciliation in pre and post independence periods in Kenya.
Seven, the Council spearheaded the search for a new constitution for Kenya from the 1980s through different interventions that include the Ufungamano Initiative.
Eight, NCCK has facilitated millions of Kenyans to have stable families through extensive Family Life Education together with other churches and stakeholders.
Nine, for over 30 years, the Council has been the only national agency providing services to refugees in urban areas and at Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps.
Ten, the NCCK in collaboration with the Catholic Church and other institutions has been the leading provider of civic education and domestic elections monitoring.
This is just a part of our rich heritage that we are celebrating as we reflect on the last one hundred years. In all this, our focus and vision has been the development of the people of Kenya so that they live wholesome lives as Jesus said in John 10:10.
Nationhood
For the last one hundred years since NCCK was established, we have endeavored to promote the growth of the nationhood of Kenya. To us, nationhood implies the integration of ethnic communities into one indivisible nation. In this process, the Council has found that there are three obstacles that hinder the progress towards nationhood. These are Tribalism, Corruption and Impunity.
It is regrettable that after all these years, Kenya is today strong as a state but weak as a nation. The nation is divided along ethnic and socio-economic lines. Each ethnic community is seeking to pursue its self interests to the exclusion of others. On their part, the elite greedily exploit resources and opportunities at the expense of everyone else.
We believe that this status must be changed.
In our endeavors to resolve this problem, we believe that the “zero-sum winner takes all” approach to life needs to be changed to a “win-win” ethos. In this approach, Kenyans must realize that cooperation, even with former foes, must not be an abstract idea but be based on enlightened self interests. These self interests have to be identified and clarified through intra and inter ethnic consultations, whose goal is to facilitate the communities to agree to live with each other.
We therefore wish to call upon all Kenyans to appreciate the precarious situation our nation is in and return to the principles of true nationhood. Embracing these principles will enable us transform Kenya from a state bedeviled by corruption, impunity, tribalism into one where every individual practices and experiences “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Galatians 5: 22 – 23). These principles are:
One, The Rule of God
The Bible states explicitly that all power and authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus Christ as recorded in Matthew 28: 18, for He is the one who created all things (Colossians 1: 16). For this reason, all attempts at promoting nationhood must starts from submission to the laws and principles of God. Failure to embrace this leads to godlessness that we are experiencing in our country and which is characterized by
“sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies and the like” (Galatians 5: 19 – 21).
It is our prayer that we as the people of Kenya will humbly submit ourselves before God in repentance and reverence so that He may bind us together as one nation. Towards this, the NCCK will work with the member churches to promote effective ministry by facilitating evangelism, discipleship, fellowship and pastoral formation.
Two, Human Dignity
The Bible teaches us in Genesis 1: 26 that man was created in the image of God. Therefore all people have an inherent and inalienable dignity resident in them. However, we Kenyans have dehumanized ourselves and our neighbours. We call on each Kenyan to love his neighbor as they love themselves. The NCCK commits to continue promoting human dignity and to facilitate gender equity through provision of opportunities for women, youth and persons with disabilities to participate in church and social leadership.
Three, Justice
God in His word has clearly indicated what He expects of all people in Micah 6: 8
“… To act justly to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
Every Kenyan has a duty to exercise justice for all people in all things. Justice must be our shield and defender not only in the courts of law, but also in our homes, offices, roads, politics, shops, factories, and churches.
As the Council, we will continue to advocate for justice for all Kenyans and especially for the poor, the widows, the orphans and the differently abled persons.
Four, The Family
God ordained the family as the basic unit of society through which all values and beliefs are passed on from generation to generation. We commend the many Kenyan men and women who are trying their best to raise functional families. However, the family unit is experiencing challenges including increasing infidelity, broken marriages, diminishing masculinity, disoriented women, disillusioned youth, delinquent parents and poorly nurtured children.
The NCCK commits to work with the member churches to strengthen the family, uphold the sanctity of marriage, promote godly parenthood, and instill Godly values in our children. We will put special focus on restoration of the glory of manhood amongst other interventions knowing that when men play their role in the family, most of the other challenges will be resolved.
Five, Education
Over the last one hundred years, the church has been the primary provider of education in Kenya. NCCK on its part made its mark through the establishment of Alliance High School in 1926, and Garba Tulla High School in 1970, which went on to become national schools. We find great guidance in the Bible when it says Proverbs 22: 6
“Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it”.
In this regard, we call upon all Kenyans to educate their children. This is especially crucial in view of the falling quality of education in public schools, and so we urge every Kenyan to individually advocate for better quality education in our schools.
On our part, we reaffirm our commitment to providing quality, value based and relevant education to Kenyans. We have therefore initiated plans to build private schools of our own through the Jumuia Schools brand which will aim at producing well rounded citizens who have a heart to obey God and serve their fellow men.
Six, Wealth Creation
Over the last one hundred years, one of the most debilitating challenges we have found to face our people is poverty. Many Kenyans have been dehumanized and indignified because poverty denies them the power to make decisions that affect their lives. We therefore commit to promote productivity and optimization of resources through redemptive marketplace transformation, just as the Bible teaches in Proverbs 14: 23
“All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty”.
Understanding this, the Council will continue implementing programmes that empower individuals and communities to overcome idleness and laziness and the crippling dependence on handouts. Instead, we encourage hard work focused on establishment of big industries, agribusiness and value addition all aimed at creating wealth and employment for the people.
We further commit to continue working with like minded organizations to conserve the environment from the grassroots level so that wealth creation does not destroy our natural heritage.
Recognizably, Kenyans over the decades have fought and sought to share the “national cake”. However, this mentality must change. We all must accept to concentrate on baking the cake rather than just eating it.
Seven, Health
For the last one hundred years, the churches have been a major provider of medical services to Kenyans. However, this is not adequate, and many Kenyans are still suffering. We therefore commit to work with the member churches to expand the scope and quality of medical care for all accessible to all, just as the Bible records in Luke 9: 2
“…and (Jesus) sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick”.
Conclusion
We thank God that for the last one hundred years, He has sustained the fellowship of churches, and has enabled the NCCK to grow with and serve the people of Kenya. We celebrate His goodness and faithfulness. We appreciate the support and partnership the churches, the ecumenical and bilateral partners, the sister Christian organizations, other Christian Councils, and other faith groups have given the Council all these years even during the challenging times.
As we face the next one hundred years, we renew our commitment to continue Shining the Light of Christ in Kenya, to remain united in mission and fellowship, to continue engaging in self examination and repentance, and to respond to the needs of the people as they arise, as we await the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Signed on this 23rd day of August 2013 at Kabarak University.
Rev Canon Rosemary Mbogo
Chairperson
Rev Canon Peter Karanja
General Secretary
