AFRICA : KENYA : RELICS OF ST. JOHN BOSCO HONOURED

CISA REPORT: NAIROBI November 6, 2011 (CISA) – Catholic faithful and other Christians paid homage to the relic of Saint Don Bosco during a special mass held on December 4 in Upper Hill, Nairobi. The relic, part of his right hand, has been in Kenya since December 1st.

In his homily at the Shrine of Mary, the Help of Christians, Bishop Peter Kariuki Kihara of Marsabit Diocese said that the world faces many cases of injustices and that the Church and its followers should confront the menace with love.

Bishop Kihara described the current Internally Displaced People (IDPs) situation as a result of such injustices in the world.

“Until those IDPs are finally resettled, justice will not be seen to have been done to them,” he pointed out.

“One of the best weapons to confront this is love, love for one another and ensure that we do not do to others what we would not want others to do to us,” said the Rt Rev Kihara, the current chairman of the Catholic Bishops’ Commission for Seminaries.

After the Mass, the congregation, lined up to view the glassed relic of Saint Don Bosco, the founder of Salesian priests of Don Bosco and the institute of Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians.

Bishop Kihara, IMC, thanked the congregation of Salesian family for their wise decision to bring the relic of their founder closer to the people.

“The hand that served them is back,” said Bishop Kihara, while referring to the relic.

Father Provincial for Eastern Africa region, Salesian congregation, Rev Fr Gianni Rolandi said, “We do not adore our founder, now Saint Don Bosco, but we honour him instead.”

Apostolic Nuncio to Kenya, Archbishop Alain Paul Lebeuapin said Saint Don Bosco did not exclusively belong to the Salesian family, but to each one of us.

“That is why we have come to join you in his historic pilgrimage of his relic,” he said.

The bones and the tissues of the right hand and arm have been taken and placed within the wax replica of St Don Bosco, which in turn is enclosed in a large urn.

The relic will be taken to 42 countries in Africa next stop-over being Tanzania.

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