ADDRESSES OF FRATERNAL DELEGATES AT THE XV ORDINARY GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE SYNOD OF BISHOPS ON YOUNG PEOPLE, FAITH AND VOCATIONAL DISCERNMENT
(3–28 October 2018)

Right Reverend Joel Waweru Mwangi
Bishop of Nairobi Diocese, Anglican Church of Kenya
(Anglican Communion)

Holy Father, Cardinals, Excellency Bishops, all protocols observed.

I take this opportunity to express my gratitude for the invitation to be a fraternal delegate to this synod. I bring greetings from the Most Rev and Right Honorable Justine WELBY Archbishop of Canterbury and the Patriarch of the Anglican Church, the Anglican Communion and especially the ACK.

                Holy Father, we still cherish the memories of your visit to Kenya.

                It is said that when you speak, you repeat what has already been said or what you have already said; but when you listen, you learn new things. It is very exciting to see how the Catholic Church is making every effort to listen to the youth and to also empower them.

                The Anglicans are fighting over human sexuality, an issue that could split us.

                We have a lot to learn from the Catholic Church.

                The challenges of the youth are the same, but the difference is only the context.

                Human nature is the same and hence we all need a saviour.

                A repeat of areas to be critically considered include:

1.   Parenting, the challenge of absent fathers and overworked mothers who all have no time for their children during the formation years.

2.   Schools, Colleges and universities curriculums to include christian spiritual/formation.

3.   The church to be the catalyst in family life issues and influence of government policy formulation.

                A leading family law judge once said “without being over-dramatic or alarmist, my prediction would be that the effects of family breakdown on the life of the nation and ordinary people in the country, will within the next 20-25 years be marked and as destructive as global warming. We are experiencing a period of family meltdown whose effects will be as catastrophic as the meltdown of ice caps”. God not only instructs us on how to live, but also provides provision to find a way back when we lose our way. We need to teach in the church, pressure governments and let the world know that when people leap God’s fences/boundaries we endanger the lives of each other.

                As many, youth look ahead and see nothing except economic gloom, unemployment and hard times, may the church be there to encourage them that they will succeed and to assure them that they will rise to prominence; to love them and motivate them in the right direction and to believe in them.

Thank you.