Catholic bishops denounce Wamuchomba’s polygamy campaign as unchristian
The Catholic Church has opposed polygamy in Kenya as had been proposed by Kiambu woman representative Muthoni Wamuchomba.
Speaking to journalists on Friday, the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) rejected the suggestion that wealthy Kikuyu men should marry multiple wives in order to prevent the prevalence of single mothers and fatherless children in the county.
“It is not proper for some of our leaders to purport to propose solutions by suggesting alternative forms of family. That is why we strongly oppose such attempts to introduce gay unions and promote polygamy,” said Rt Rev Phillip Anyolo, the chairman of KCCB.
Though the bishops recognized that the practice of having multiple wives was the norm in traditional Kenya, they said that the Christian faith does not allow it and hence it should not even be an issue for discussion now.
BETTER IDEAS
“It is not the will of God and we must desist from it. Let our leaders engage in proposing better ideas of promoting and protecting family values,” Rev Anyolo said.
Reverend Martin Musonde, the archbishop of Mombasa diocese, added that because taking on multiple partners is happening and being done by ‘everybody’ does not make it right.
“If everybody is stealing, does that mean we have to make it legal?” he posed during the meeting.
According to KCCB, the church is an institution that believes in the sacredness and sanctity of the family unit and has asked citizens to respect the family as well as the dignity of the woman.
Rev Musonde also urged the church, parents and other stakeholders to ensure that their children are not exposed to immorality through the internet, following the trending topic on social media #ifikiewazazi, whereby indecent photos taken by teenagers were shared in a bid to get parents and guardians aware of what their children are doing on social media.