Comment on Kenya's unrest

I want to share just one story about the violent social unrest ealier this year in Kenya. Before coming to Kenya, I had read some disappointing articles about how the churches in Kenya had not spoken out or acted out against the atrocities of the political parties or been catalysts to stop the conflicts surrounding the elections. Apparently this is quite unlike what the church's role had been in the early 2000s, when it was a very vocal leader for justice and peace amid troubling times. So it seemed that the church was loosing it's credibility on social issues. Thus, it was interesting to hear some follow up on that point from one missionary here.

She shared some about what the western media will probably never pick up on, because it is in the spiritual realm to which Africans are often more attuned than most westerns. A few months ago it came out that some of the political parties had called in witch doctors from other countries to cast spells on specific places in the country to claim them for their party in the coming election. So, it was no wonder to some that these specific areas were where the major violence broke out after the elections. When this became well-known, a coalition of churches spanning all denominations, ethnicities, and regions of the country decided to have marches to each of these places and re-claim them for Christ, casting out the powers of darkness that had been invited into their midst. They also committed to only using each other's first names and only speaking in Kiswahili or English so that their tribal identities wouldn't be an issue for this coalition. This was quite a symbol of unity for a divided country, and hopefully it is a sign of renewed focus for the church on maintaining a strong witness to God's peace and justice.