Kenya: “Holy Cross heri, hodie… et cras”

Following the example left by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, three priests, surrounded by a community of pre-seminarians, respond to the growing needs of more and more faithful.

In Nairobi, people are familiar with this parish which did not close during the confinement, the only place where one can find a Tridentine Mass in Kenya, where a convivial tea is served after high Mass. It is also the only place where the catechism given to the faithful dispenses the clear teaching of the word of God.

For these reasons, and so many others, the parish continues to expand. Every Sunday, three Masses with confessions, as well as catechism classes for adults and children, occupy the whole morning. In one year, the number of faithful assisting at Mass went from two hundred and fifty to five hundred on Sundays.

The year 2021 was rich in blessings. Two magnificent projects were successfully completed. The new office, made of wood and glass, is a true place of the apostolate. Its talented architect, one of the faithful Kenyans, next tackled the construction of a much more imposing building.

With a double objective: to accommodate groups of young people wishing to follow a recollection, but also to welcome the growing number of potential vocations, the house was blessed by Fr. Henry Wuilloud, district superior, and placed under the patronage of the one who made everything possible: Saint Joseph.

Today, the community of priests is reinforced by three pre-seminarians – a fourth has already taken the cassock in Flavigny on February 2 –, and by three pre-postulants wishing to join the brothers of the Society of St. Pius X. They participate in community services and prepare for seminary life. Several courses are given to them: Latin, catechism, liturgy, and French. God willing, they will be sent to Flavigny after two years of probation.

In May, the school will transition to a new international curriculum, with Cambridge in the UK. The purpose of such a change is to ensure true freedom of education – of Catholic education – in many areas. The timetables, the calendar, the subjects studied will therefore be revised.

At the same time, a secondary school will open progressively. The buildings of the current school being too small for such a project, part of them had to be renovated. A new floor will accommodate this secondary school. On the ground floor: the secretary, the administration, and the commissary, a large room for the students’ meals, and the laboratories.

Stone, earth, wood and other natural materials will be used for all this construction. A budget of 80,000 euros should cover the costs. The work will take place during the summer holidays: two months of using just-in-time methods, working night and day. Without this, the building will never be ready for the start of the school year.

After the demolition of most of the right wall of the church to allow the many faithful to attend Sunday Mass, the building was given imposing sliding windows. They are closed during the week, to try to dampen the roar of the street. This solution remains transitional, and the plans for a new church have already been drawn up.

Several criteria are in play. The main goal is to allow the welcoming of a maximum of parishioners and their cars! To save space, the car park will take up the entire ground floor, and the church will be built over it, on a concrete slab. The church should hold a good thousand faithful.

God only knows when work will begin… but all these projects need your support and your prayers!

How to help the apostolate of the Society of St. Pius X in Africa:

In American dollars ($USD): by check payable to: “Society of Saint Pius X” sent to:

SSPX District of Africa - Kenya

Regina Coeli House,

11485 North Farley Road,

USA - Platte City MO 64079, USA

(tax receipt sent on request for US residents)