Opus Dei

Sunday, 7th August. A chilly, overcast morning at St Peter’s Church, Kinoo, a bustling suburb of Nairobi, just off the main Nakuru Highway, made warmer by the animated, expectant crowd gathering to witness the first solemn Mass of Father James Mwaura in his home parish. Made warm too by the friendly welcome of the parishioners, excited at this the first Mass of their first local boy to be ordained.

Torreciudad is the name of a Marian shrine in Aragon, Spain, built by St. Josemaría Escrivá, the founder of Opus Dei, and consecrated on July 7, 1975, under the title of Our Lady of Torreciudad. Spiritual activities at the Shrine are entrusted to the Opus Dei Prelature. The shrine is open every day of the year.

"Monsignor Fernando Ocáriz, the first Auxiliary Vicar in the history of Opus Dei, welcomed me into his home at the Opus Dei headquarters in Rome. We talked about what being Auxiliary Vicar means with regard to the governance of Opus Dei, in the context of the 41st anniversary of the Founder’s death, Sunday June 26, 2016.

For Oscar Mwangi Waiyego, the smart young man in academic gown and mortar board, it has been not so much a story of rags to riches, but rather of squalor to scholar.

58 years after those first members of Opus Dei arrived at the port of Mombasa, the message of St. Josemaria has spread to more than 13 cities and towns in East Africa including Kigali in Rwanda, Kampala in Uganda and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. Here are some snippets on the various public Masses that were celebrated in these different cities on the feast of St. Josemaria.

At an international seminar held in the shrine of Torreciudad, scientists and religious leaders from 15 countries and 8 religious faiths have discussed the role that science and religion can play in caring for the environment.

Intrigued by "The Newman Guide to Choosing a Catholic College" recommendation of this university for Americans, journalist Adam Wilson recently visited it and gives his impressions.

Alvaro del Portillo, the first successor to St. Josemaria as the head of Opus Dei was beatified in Madrid, Spain in 2014. His feast day was established on 12th May. On 7th May, a public Mass was celebrated in Strathmore University in his honour.

Fr. Martin Onyango was ordained a priest of the Opus Dei Prelature with 26 others from several countries by Bishop Javier Echevarria on 23rd April 2016 in Rome.

Generation Y is a local production by TV-Cosmopolitan (TVC). They recently took a specific focus on the boy child empowerment problem that has seen a society of men who seem to have lost identity and purpose. Among the interviews they carried out were a few in Eastlands College of Technology that focuses on empowering the boy child, enrolling male students from humble backgrounds and equipping them with technical skills.