Forbidden Vocation

A young boy enters the room adorned in costumes befitting that of a priest. He walks to an imaginary altar, bows and makes a sign of the cross. He then stands at the self-made pulpit, welcomes the congregation - in this case, his roommates – and then shows them, by a sign of the hand, to take their seats. He proceeds to preach the mass, with enthusiasm; an animated farce. Meet Seth, the boy who will never see the priesthood because of his state of health.

When Seth Karinga* (not real name) was growing up he was only familiar to the Catholic practice and he brushed shoulders with the men of the collar, a thing that made him desire to adopt their lifestyle. Seth grew up in an orphanage and the only parents he knew were the priest, nuns and the employees who worked at the home.

Seth admired the priests greatly. He admired their humble, but philosophical talk, their saintly attire and their immense knowledge of the bible. He would constantly imitate them and often he would “preach” to the other children in the home. “I always imagined that priesthood is the life that God had intended for me to live,” he says, “I would have given my whole being to serve God and orphaned children like me. The priests always seemed so concerned with me because I always wanted to serve as an altar boy during mass and was keen in most of the church activities.” Unfortunately, Seth was denied entry into the priesthood program because his HIV test results came out positive. But what does it entail to join in the ranks of priesthood and why is health such a big deal?

According to Fr. Paco Gonzales of the Divine Word Missionaries, the requirements for one to join priesthood vocation are clear: he must have completed ordinary level education and attained a mean grade of C plain and above, he must be a Catholic of good morals and willing to join pre-college for 10 months, study Philosophy for three years and Theology for another four years. He adds that the candidate should also be able to train in a specific profession, such as communication, teaching or administration.

The candidate should be medically fit because there is a lot of rigorous training involved. When I asked about the HIV status he said that normally would lead to disqualification. A social worker, I spoke to at the orphanage, on condition of anonymity, said that she admired Seth’s dedication to the church and she tried to talk to the priests to help him pursue his calling. She helped the boy apply in all the seminary schools within Nairobi and the environs and he was given an opportunity for an interview in two of the schools.

Unfortunately, the two schools also denied him admission because of his HIV status. He withdrew from church activities, and kept to himself. “In our congregation we are very strict with issues of health because if one has severe allergies or any terminal diseases they cannot join,” Gonzales stresses when asked about the priesthood and HIV.

But the home, in which Seth is hosted, does not have professional counselors and so his condition is left to its own devise. Dr. Gordon Odundo says that Kenya has only 3 pediatric psychologists which is alarming given the high rate of children living with HIV.

“There are more than 117,000 children living with HIV in Kenya, but the doctors and facilities to cater for them are limited. The ones who are on anti- retroviral (ARVs) treatment are only 46,000 and so you can imagine we have a deficit of 71,000. Many social workers are faced with the challenge of managing the HIV status of the children in homes because they don’t have the expertise to do it.” he says.

Although HIV/AIDS seems to have reached a level of “acceptance” – in terms of management – the Catholic church seems to be a bit hesitant when it comes to it. A chat with Fr. William Owire as to whether his congregation would consider recruiting a person born with HIV virus was interesting. He pointed out that candidates are taken through a thorough medical check-up before being recruited. When in the vocation medical check-ups are conducted randomly.

“If one has HIV then the church may not consider him or her in the congregation because they may not be fruitful as expected. The church invests millions of shilling to educate and train one to become a priest and if they are terminally ill then this would be a waste because the person may die after the studies or shortly after serving which is a liability to the church.” he says.

Although a number of people have been known to have quit the vocation of sisterhood and priesthood in order to have a family or because they are overwhelmed with the celibate life they take an oath to pursue. Paul Odhiambo is one such person, but his reason for leaving was different. He says he was distressed with the discrimination and politics in the church so he chose to become a lay person.

Paul claims that his friend, who belonged to the Apostles of Jesus Congregation - a sort of congregational or priesthood community - was dismissed on grounds of poor health. He quit soon after that as well. His friend, he narrates, had secured a scholarship to pursue a Masters degree in the United States but started ailing while he was there and was put on medication.

“My friend’s illness became worse and he was given credit transfer to complete his studies in Kenya. He however became better, worked hard and was able to complete his studies after which he graduated. He was shocked when he got two awards; one for his Masters certificate and the other a letter of termination from his congregation.”

Paul feels that his friend – who had kidney problems – deserved support and care from the church. “Some friends and relatives advised him to sue the congregation, so he sought legal advice and a case was filed. But he later dropped the charges, which left his uncle and I baffled. We urged him to reconsider his decision but he was adamant.” Paul states that he always knew that when he joined the Jesuits fathers (another priesthood community) it would become his family and home. He was however disappointed in what he discovered during his 12 years in the congregation. He opted to serve God as a lay person and relinquish from the life of becoming a man of the collar. “I watched my friend fall into depression and slide into a state of hopelessness and then finally succumb to the sickness,” he shakes his head.

This tale is baffling because the church has always been seen as a symbol of peace, love, compassion and unity. Most people always run to the church for refuge in times of tribulation. Where would people run to next? The Catholic Church is always on the forefront in helping Orphaned and Vulnerable Children (OVC’S) and this obvious discrimination tests it’s compassion.

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