Is the Church Jazzed or Jaded by the Defeaning Political Drumbeats?

Is the Church Jazzed or Jaded By The Deafening Political Drumbeats?

By Liz Omondi | Email: timestodayke@gmail.com

Political drumbeats in Kenya just got louder and are deafening to the ear that is used to a much quieter environment. Or is it? Perhaps we are jazzed and have become acclimatised to the noises by the drummers in each band trying to outdo the next day after day, week in, week out .

Each band leader seems to have mastered enviable crowd pulling tactics that easily match or outnumber those attracted to Jesus during His time on earth.

The leaders move through streets, one town after another, from county to county, traversing the landscape to more appreciative audiences who sing along to their tunes.

Never mind that we are still in a pandemic that has claimed millions of lives worldwide and protocols to wear masks and social distance have been completely ignored.

However, none of these Kenyan politicians have shown the kind of compassion Jesus had for the crowds.

Apart from talking to them about the kingdom of God, Jesus, met their needs by healing the sick and feeding them when they were hungry to the point of having leftovers enough for each of His disciples to take back to their homes and families.

Though there was no pandemic, Jesus easily handled whatever issues presented to Him wherever He went. Peoples lives were transformed. Jesus set the perfect example for everyone, including aspiring leaders, to imitate.

The intrigues, alignments and re-alignments, shifting loyalties, accusations and counter accusations, tensions that roil the landscape are the norm during each election year in Kenya.

Hot-button issues of negative ethnicity are spoken in undertones and leaders who get carried away are tamed by the watchful eye of bodies such as National Cohesion and Integration Commission.

Though times have changed, the characters are similar, the scenes are not any different. We could easily be pressing re-play on the player of political drama.

We have been in election mode for a very long time. Long enough to feel nauseated every time the televisions or radios are turned on, or when scrolling up and down the twitter trends on our smart gadgets.

Every where we turn, including the market places where we meet the ordinary mama and baba mbogas, the talk is politics.

Approximately seven months ago during the Church and Politics summit, organised by the Kenya Church in conjunction with Hesabika Trust, Kenya Christians Professionals Forum and the Catalead it was asked, ‘To engage or not to engage in politics?’ It was clear that the Church needs to engage.

In about seven months time, we shall be going back to the ballots to cast our votes. How is the church engaging? Let us remember the words of a very wise man who said in Proverbs 29:2, “When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan. What kind of prayers are we asking God to answer with regard to the elections in August?

Perhaps, for peace, unity, love, tolerance, in the run-up, during and after the elections? What about the leaders? The majority of leaders who have expressed interest for the top leadership are the same people we have had in previous elections. Are the people happy with the current crop of leaders? Which committed Christians have entered the race and how is the Church supporting them? What choices do we have as Christians in electing the right people to lead the country so that we may rejoice?

Some of the proposals that were presented during the conclusion of last year’s Church and Politics summit were firstly, the need to recover our identity. Dr. David Oginde, the immediate former presiding Bishop of Christ is the Answer Ministries (CITAM), asserted that if we are going to make a difference in the political arena, we must first recognise who we are;

1 Peter 2:9, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God.” We are a people belonging to God. You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God. So that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.

Secondly, we needed to reclaim our space. It was agreed that it was time for the church to arise and reclaim and reshape the Nation’s narrative so that we speak the blessing of God into this Nation.

Thirdly, we needed to renew our mandate. It came out clearly during the Summit that politics is too dirty to be left to the politicians. Only the Church has the power and the mandate to transform politics.

We therefore need very clear strategies for renewing our prophetic and transformative mandate as salt and light.

In a separate interview with Reverend Dr. Nelson Makanda, the General Secretary of the Evangelical Alliance of Kenya (EAK), he said,

“We should encourage good Christians to take an active role in politics if we are looking for good leadership. In fact, this time round, in praying for good leaders we must shift to encouraging Christian people to offer themselves for leadership. Then we pray for and support them to win. The result is good leadership.”

So is the Church in Kenya jazzed, or jaded by the ongoing political drumbeats and how can her voice be heard above the ongoing noise as she engages in politics?

By Times Today | Email: timestodayke@gmail.com