Browsing by Author "Gathogo, Julius"

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    Beliefs and Practices of the Kenya Roho Msalaba Church in Rachuonyo South and East Sub Counties, Homabay County, Kenya
    (CEDRED, 2025-05) Ariemba,Susan Kemunto; Mwaura, Philomena; Gathogo, Julius
    The study explored the beliefs, practices and community engagement of the Kenya Roho Msalaba Church (KRMC), an African Instituted Church (AIC) in Rachuonyo South and East sub-counties, Homabay County, Kenya, highlighting its role in blending Christian theology with African cultural practices. Emerging as a response to the cultural insensitivity of missionary Christianity, AICs like the KRMC emphasize pneumatology, healing and eschatological beliefs, fostering a unique religious identity that addresses spiritual and social. Guided by objectives that assessed the major beliefs and practices of the KRMC in Rachuonyo South and East sub-counties, Homabay County, examined the historical development of the KRMC within the context of the Roho movement in Kenya and explored the KRMC’s engagement with formal education affecting community development, the study drew on the theory by Turner (1967). A qualitative case study design, employing triangulation was used to collect data from n=228 respondents across three KRMC branches. Findings revealed that the KRMC’s Christocentric theology of adherents affirmed Jesus Christ’s centrality and its pneumatological focus emphasizing the Holy Spirit, drive practices like speaking in tongues, healing and vernacular worship, aligning with broader AIC trends. The church’s rejection of ancestral veneration and polygamy distinguishes it from some AICs, reflecting a selective cultural integration rooted in biblical principles. Historically, the KRMC, established in 2003, builds on the Roho movement’s legacy of spiritual autonomy, adapting to modern challenges while maintaining cultural resonance. Its engagement with formal education supports community development, though patriarchal gender dynamics limit women’s leadership roles. The study recommends on theological training to mitigate risks of misinterpretation and greater inclusion of women in leadership to enhance church growth, ensuring the KRMC’s continued relevance in addressing contemporary societal pressures like globalization and gender equality
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    Beyond Expectations in the Academic World: 17 Years of Publishing with Studia Historiae Ecclesiasticae (2006–2023)
    (Church History Society of Southern Africa and Unisa Press, 2024) Gathogo, Julius
    This research article aims to bring out the author’s 17 years of research and publications with the Studia Historiae Ecclesiasticae: Journal of Church History, abbreviated as SHE, from 2006 to 2023, and to establish its impact on his socio-scholarly formation. Methodologically, this drives the researcher to acknowledge the journal’s sharpening and preparatory role that has made it possible for him to be invited as an editor of an East African journal, an external examiner in various universities, and a conference speaker in diverse forums. The methodology also includes surveying the Church History Society of Southern Africa (CHSSA)’s annual conferences whose presentations since 2007—when the author attended for the first time—have enriched his engagements with SHE. Such presentations were later published in the journal. Key events that helped the author to come into contact with the first SHE copy have also been surveyed. The Mombasa Biographical Conference of April 2024, where the author was invited as the closing speaker, is viewed as one of the journal’s impactful events. The author was invited to address the gathering after his interest in biographical research was noted through his publications in SHE since 2006. Given this, the author seeks to usher in an East African perspective by drawing from the 17 years of his active participation in SHE publications and the CHSSA conferences. The latter provides the raw material for SHE’s publications.
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    Ecclesia Anglicana Conference of September 2020: Cooking Anglican ecclesiology in a Kenyan Pot?
    (Jumuga Journal of Education,Oral Studies, and Human Sciences, 2020) Gathogo, Julius
    Asthe first wave of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (Covid-19)was beingexperienced in Kenya since 13 March 2020,when a 27-year-old Kenyan woman became the first person to be diagnosed with it, some Anglicans in Kenya were contrariwiseovercomingthe shock,that went with it, as they undertook nobleintellectual activities. As numbers went on soaring,andassome celebrated artists, scholars, clerics, and other cadres of society became early casualtiesof Covid-19, an Ecclesia Anglicanawas boldly entering the ecclesiastical market-place with new rhythms hitherto unknown in Kenya’s historiography. In other words, atheo-ecclesial creativity was cooking inan African pot, and cooking well from the nethermost depths of the Ocean floor, rather than from thetopstratums. While the revolutionary trigger was set on 6 August 2017, it had to await the worst pandemic since the Spanish Flu of 1918-1919 before it pickedupits momentum. Put it differently, the momentumpickedup astoundingly during Kenya’s Covid-19 lockdown,as two major conferences were successfully held during this chillingmoment. The first major webinars’conference was held on 26 August 2020;while the second one was held on 16 September 2020. Characteristically, the two conferences made a bold attempt at understandingthe Anglican ecclesiology by cooking it from the local resourcesand spiced itupthrough the modern science and technology. Was it a protest against theo-intellectual lockdowncutting across the continent, a phenomenon where a casual observation shows that social and ecclesial leadership has largely attractedthe less intellectually-inclined sons and daughters of the land? Methodologically, this article seeks to explore, and indeed make a survey of Ecclesia Anglicanaand attempt to understand it beyondthe founders’perspectives, after interviews with some of them, and make an informed analysis. Second, this article will attempt to show how Ecclesia Anglicanais usheringina new rhythm,as it beats the drums of science and technology, modern communicationand social mediaplatforms,and hopefullychange the status quo for the better. It appears that nothing will slow down this rapid tempo; for if the pandemic has not, what else can do so?Third, the article will focus more on the 16 September 2020 webinar conference which, in my view, was the most climactic moment for Ecclesia Anglicanasince 2017 when the idea was mooted and subsequently released to the public squarefor broaderconsumption.Will Ecclesia Anglicanahelp in buildinga more informed and/oran intellectually engaging Kenyan Anglican society?
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    Settler-Missionary Alliance in Colonial Kenya and the Land Question
    (Church History Society of Southern Africa and Unisa Press, 2020) Gathogo, Julius
    This article sets out to demonstrate the hugger-muggers that oiled the existence of an unholy alliance between European settler-farmers and missionaries—the Anglicans and Presbyterians and/or the Protestant wing in particular—in 20th century Kenya and East Africa, and especially on land policies. With land for settlement being the key factor to both missionaries and settler-farmers, the land question undoubtedly became one of the major factors that glued them together in colonial Kenya (1895–1963). Was the settler-missionary alliance meant to hurt the same people whom the missionaries had come to convert to the God of Christendom? Most importantly, how did the missionaries relate with the African chiefs regarding the land question, especially with reference to Kirinyaga County of central Kenya? This further drives us to wonder: Was the Devonshire White Paper of 1923 and/or the Indian Question related to the land question? The article sets out on the premise that while land remained the most prized commodity in colonial Kenya (1895–1963) and the entire 20th century, the 21st century has seen the church—and especially the afro-Pentecostal wing of the church—focusing on money and wealth without necessarily focusing on land. In its methodology, the article has heavily relied on archival resources, unpublished works, and field work materials, especially with regard to Kirinyaga County of central Kenya where oral sources on missionaries and land acquisition were sought. It also reviewed existing literature regarding settler-missionary alliances, especially on land-related matters.
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    The Great Commission and Presbyterianism Showcasing Tumutumu Parish, Mathira Sub-County, Kenya
    (Jumuga Journal of Education, Oral Studies, and Human Sciences, 2025-05) King’ori, Monicah; Gitome, Josephine; Gathogo, Julius
    The research article examines the implementation of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16–20) in the Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA), and focuses on Tumutumu Parish in Mathira Sub-County, Nyeri County, Kenya. It explores the way in which baptism, spiritual growth, and Christian education contributes to the fulfilling of the Great Commission, from conversion to mature discipleship, as theoretically guided by David Bosch’s mission paradigm theory. Using a descriptive design, the study targeted 882 individuals, with 89 participants selected through stratified random sampling. Data were collected through questionnaires, interviews, and Focus Group Discussions, and then analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively using Statistical Package for Social Sciences. Findings revealed that, despite the presence of mission oriented activities like baptism, spiritual growth initiatives, and Christian education in PCEA Tumutumu parish, these efforts have not led to a meaningful spiritual transformation among the congregants. This disconnect is mainly due to structural weaknesses, including inadequate discipleship, poor baptismal preparation, over-dependence on a single evangelist, and a lack of diverse, structured Christian education programs. It recommends improved baptismal preparations, implementation of structured discipleship, diversifying Christian education, empowering more leaders, and enhancing congregants’ engagement so as to bridge the gap between ecclesiastical activities and spiritual transformation.