"Wamwari or Nyakinyua?" Understanding Consecrated Life as African Marriage in the Light of Inculturation

Abstract

This study explores three important areas in relation to the inculturation of religious life in Kenya; (i) the way congregations of Catholic women religious integrate aspects of African Traditional Religion (ATR) into their profession rites; (ii) the perception and the use of the term 'bride of Christ' (the bridal metaphor) in the church and among religious women and (iii) the way ordinary people conceive of consecrated persons in Kenya who have integrated some African rituals into religious life in particular, the rites of profession.It focused on two indigenous communities: The Sisters of Emmanuel (Murang’a Diocese) and the Assumption Sisters of Nairobi. Semi-structured interviews formed the key methodological technique of data collection. Twenty one religious women (eighteen from indigenous congregations and three from international congregations) were interviewed and four sets of recorded videos were analysed. In addition, the author has personally observed at least six profession ceremonies. There were three major findings. 1. Traditional matrimonial rituals have been integrated into the profession rite so as to foster understanding of the concepts that underlie consecrated life, of which the majority of ordinary Kenyans have little understanding. However, this integration has not led to consecrated women being considered as married persons, but rather as unmarried and barren, people who have escaped from the greater responsibilities of married life. 2. Kenyan religious women have been content with the use of the bridal metaphor which empowers them in their lives and ministries, despite its drawback with respect to non-religious people. 3. Most ordinary Kenyans have little understanding of what consecrated life entails and view it as a wasted life. This study has attempted to resolve the misunderstanding that most ordinary Kenyans have about religious life by interpreting the traditional matrimonial rituals, deeply and thoroughly, by highlighting the possible causes of the misunderstandings, and by giving recommendations. These include: change of European dress (habit) to African dress; change of the lifestyle in order to guard against living beyond the economic standards of their people; and adjustments in the church’s liturgy in order to allow a religious woman with adequate knowledge of the African tradition to teach about religious life prior to the profession rite. The study has concluded that further inculturation is needed, since it is partial at present; that is, every aspect of consecrated life needs to be inculturated for it to be comprehensible to the ordinary people and to the religious women themselves for effective evangelization. In the light of inculturation, the study has therefore concluded that religious women in Kenya should be understood as Nyakĩnyua, married women and Co-creators/Moulders, for they too are givers life through their life-enhancing ministries.