3. Otunga’s Christian Personality and Christian Leadership.
Now to our second question: what is the essential quality that marked Otunga’s Christian personality and what is its linkage to an understanding of Christian Leadership?
The story of Cardinal Otunga reminds me of a story by Plato, the ancient Greek philosopher who has never ceased to mesmerize the world with his revolutionary thinking. Said Plato, “Spirits of the other world came back to find bodies and places to work. One took the body of a poet and did his work. Finally, Ulysses came and said, all the fine bodies have been taken and the grand work done. There is nothing for me.’ “Yes ‘said a voice, ‘the best has been left for you –the body of a common man, doing a common work for a common reward.”
In one word, modesty is the standard quality I can ascribe to my elder brother-in-the-church’s hierarchy, Maurice Otunga. And I am not the only one to ascribe him this quality. Bishop Philip Sulumeti of Kakamega Diocese has spoken as much when he describes how, “it was difficult for Otunga to be accepted in Kisumu as Bishop “due to prevailing prejudices against black priests and that he succeeded because “of the humility in him”. His own personal driver, Samuel Ntabo describes Otunga as possessing “extraordinary humility”.
Modesty, as the “Encyclopedia of Biblical and Christian Ethics” points out “is one way of behaving and is characterized by assuming conduct, self –depreciation, and inconspicuousness’”. Otunga possessed these three attributes. In spite of his position in the church’s hierarchy, he never advertised himself or exerted his weight everywhere he stepped. In this way, he became powerful by appearing powerless.
In this way, he taught us that power as defined by Christian discipleship can only be arrived at through powerlessness, the final act of surrender of human pride before the majesty of God. It is only after we have succumbed to our own folly and risen out of the mud that we can welcome God’s power to work in us. I believe this is what St. Paul means when in the letter to the Philippians he utters these immortal words: “I know what it is to be in need and what it is to have more than enough. I have learnt this secret , so that anywhere ,at any time, I am content, whether I am full or hungry, whether I have too much or too little . I have the strength to face all conditions by the power that Christ gives me”. (Philippians 4:12-13 Good News Bible)
3.1. Otunga’s Love for Life
Otunga’s self-depreciation was not a variant of mechanism; he valued life and was at the forefront in opposing abortion and the use of condoms. He loved life and that is why; he appreciated the human body and was passionately involved in the pro-life movement. He also had a deep regard for our Mother Mary. I believe this regard for our lady permeated in to his relationship with Religious Women in particular and women in general , all of whom he regarded with candid respect. He was a traditionalist and that is why he approached each one he met with paternalism. This did not mean that he was dictatorial as we are wont to characterize paternalism indeed; he was benevolent father, approaching his charge with compassion and love. In deed his biographers have described him as” a man with real desire to serve”.
Many a priest in Nairobi Archdiocese will confess how he reprimanded them with deep paternalistic love and thus strengthened their resolve to be good servants of the people. Thus, his self-depreciation was trained in the University of Christ’s discipleship, which has as its guiding philosophy the words: YOU MUST DECREASE SO THAT I CAN INCREASE. This thinking is best exemplified by St. John‘s Gospel where we hear Jesus saying: “I am the vine, and you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will bear much fruit: for you can do nothing without me” (John 15:5 Good news Bible).
Otunga was inconspicuous in the sense of not summoning interest towards himself. He was a Cardinal, a potential Pope to be precise, yet he never made it his habit to call to attention everything that he did, because of this defining quality, he was able to touch non-Catholics as well as Catholics. Even more curious, he was able to settle among the Kikuyu people in Kiambu and Nairobi and learn their language and way of life. Never at any one time did he dangle his Bukusu-ness to anyone or the fact that he was royalty! He had made a personal choice to be a missionary of Christ and one of the conditions for the mission is to forsake everything and everyone and embrace Christ and this mission in toto.
He had scaled the defining line of a true Christian-one who subscribes to the principle that spirit is thicker than blood. Where many Christians succumb at the blood level, refusing to be good Samaritans to others who are not of their blood and tongue, Otunga scaled the fence ,and tried as humanly as he could and as inspired as he was, to touch others with love . Thankfully, there was never a time that he was mentioned of engaging in corruption or immoral behavior. He was a transparent man, servant of God who gave his life in the service of God. He was a humble man, almost to the point of doubt.
4. Otunga’s Contribution to society
And now to our third and final question for our discussion today: What is Otunga’s contribution to the Socio-political process in Kenya?
As far as I can recollect, Otunga was not a physical builder in the sense of development work. This should not be construed to imply weakness. Rather, I suppose that in his range of responsibilities, the option to build was not attractive to him when compared to other options. One such ‘other option” where he excelled was in furthering agape love in the form of spiritual re-awakening. Towards this end, he initiated the construction of the famous, “Resurrection Garden ostensibly to be a place of reflective prayer and meditation. Today, this vision has been realized.
Because Otunga subscribed to a belief that compassionate justice is due to all marginalized peoples and communities , the decried extreme materialism” in both public and private spheres . hence, he never tired reminding his listeners that extreme materialism was the enemy of genuinely human growth and development. Of course it may be argued that Otunga was extreme in his views of what constitutes materialism and what does not. I will leave this question to historians.
But I will hasten to add that Otunga was a human being and as such he was limited in the range of possibilities available to him at a given time. This is the fate of all of us humans. Thus, while Otunga was not entirely disinterested in infrastructural development, yet he was not keen to expend most of his energies in this regard He was passionate about evangelization through teaching of the word and that is why he excelled in sending many of his priests for further studies. But to his credit, while he was not entirely interested in physical development in pastoral terms, yet he did not stand in the way of his priests or missionary groups who felt drawn towards this other side of evangelization effort. Today, the Karen area of Nairobi is known as “little Vatican”, a covert recognition of his openness in accepting countless missionary congregations to set base in Nairobi.
But he spoke and when he did, the state took him seriously. Since he was not one to be bribed by state organs to turn the other eye to injustice, he became the resounding voice of the prophets or yore, them that uttered these ominous words to kings and their hirelings: THUS SAYS THE LORD ……To Otunga’s credit, he made the church to have a good name during his tenure. This is not to mean that the church does not have a good name now, but only to emphasize his sterling performance as a spiritual head. Though not confrontational by nature, he was tough when he felt he was speaking on the side of truth and justice. Thus, he led from the front in matters of Faith and Doctrine!
5. Conclusion Remarks
Fire “says an old Eastern proverb “destroys wood but strengthens iron.” The story about Cardinal Maurice Michael Simiyu Otunga is a story about a soul filled with fire for love of people and God. Indeed his middle name Simiyu means “one who is born in a dry season” put in an African perspective, this is a time when ground is fiery, thirstily awaiting to be quenched by the long awaited rains, which for African mean: new growth, new life, new production and re-birth.
Hence, I can say to us today that the story of Otunga is a story of African renaissance in terms of understanding power in service to the people and power as servants of the people. And this lesson is as applicable to African leadership in the church as it is in the state and civil organizations.
In conclusion, I can only say with the local as well as the universal church…ON 01.10.2008 Thank you lord for giving us the gift of Otunga, a genuine leader of your flock!
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT——–AMEN.