News
November 21st, 2018
Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Lectionary: 499
►Readings retrieved from http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings
First Reading
I, John, had a vision of an open door to heaven,
and I heard the trumpetlike voice
that had spoken to me before, saying,
“Come up here and I will show you what must happen afterwards.”
At once I was caught up in spirit.
A throne was there in heaven, and on the throne sat one
whose appearance sparkled like jasper and carnelian.
Around the throne was a halo as brilliant as an emerald.
Surrounding the throne I saw twenty-four other thrones
on which twenty-four elders sat,
dressed in white garments and with gold crowns on their heads.
From the throne came flashes of lightning,
rumblings, and peals of thunder.
Seven flaming torches burned in front of the throne,
which are the seven spirits of God.
In front of the throne was something that resembled
a sea of glass like crystal.
In the center and around the throne,
there were four living creatures
covered with eyes in front and in back.
The first creature resembled a lion, the second was like a calf,
the third had a face like that
…
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November 6th, 2018
Central Deanery Family Day Celebrations 2018 update
The Archdiocese of Nairobi, Central Deanery, will be celebrating its annual Family day on 24th November 2018, at Shrine of Mary Help of Christians Don Bosco Upper Hill Parish Nairobi. The main celebrant will be His Lordship Bishop David Kamau and once again couples from the twelve parishes will solemnize their marriages. This is the time families come together to connect and spend time with each other. The Holy Family Basilica is happy to have hosted the Inaugural Family Day that was held on Saturday 25 November 2017. Key among the activities that took place was the solemnization of marriages for forty couples from the twelve parishes of the Central Deanery and blessing of couples who were commemorating 50 years or more in Holy Matrimony.
The celebration was attended by thousands of jubilant Christians from the Central Deanery. The twelve parishes represented were;
- Holy Family Basilica
- Peter’s Clavers
- Our Lady Queen of Peace-South B
- Francis Xavier-Parklands
- Shrine of Mary Help of Christians-Don Bosco
- Consolata Shrine
- Catherine of Alexandria-South C
- Catherine of Sienna
- Pauls University Chapel
- Holy Trinity Parish-Kileleshwa
- Austin’s Catholic Church
Click the link below to watch and listen to the whole celebration … Read More
October 29th, 2018
One of the 2017 successes was registered when HFMB Council members participated in the Central Deanery Recollection held at Resurrection Garden on 10th June 2017. This event was organized by PPC Executive of HFMB and KNH Chaplaincy.
The main facilitator was Fr. Lukwata
Recollection Notes & Personal reflections
By: Rev. Prof. John Lukwata
INTRODUCTION: Word on Christian Leadership
Word of appreciation to all members of the Central Deanery on the day of recollection (PPC) and for your leadership roles in the Deanery: To Paul Kasimu and Judith Gondi for the invitation to share with you. I have had a chance to interact with some of you at Holy Family Basilica and St. Paul’s Chapel. I am sharing some reflection on Leadership in the Church and something on the Boy Child.
To be a leader is a noble duty in the Church.
Leaders would emulate the example of Jesus Christ Our Lord: who came not to be served but to serve and to give up his life as a ransom for many (Mk.9:42-45).Bishops and Clergy exercise leadership in the framework of service. Lay leaders exist to build the Body of Christ in diverse roles: in SCCs, Parish Council, with the… Read More
June 25th, 2018
By Susan Nduta Gitau►
The writer is the Vice Secretary of St. Dominic Small Christian Community►
There are some things that follow people when they get married. Such are the issues that unknowingly tend to ruin marital relationships. It is important for everyone desirous of getting married to know the common causes of problems in marriage, and to appropriately work on them before they ruin the marriage. It is good to discover the benefit of enhancing a sound marriage rather than letting the relationship become terminally ill and in need of a miracle cure. You must watch out for the following if you want a good marriage:
Failure to adjust
Getting married is a transition from one stage of life into another. You can therefore not afford to live just like you did while you were single. You thought and planned things alone, but after you get married, you ought to adjust to include your spouse.
Social immaturity
There are people whose social skills are not developed enough to handle certain issues. Some partners would therefore nag at mere telephone calls from an individual of the opposite sex – worse still their contacts in the spouse’s phone. Marriage demands social … Read More
June 7th, 2018
By: Communication Team◊◊◊
Sow and cultivate peace as Christians
◊◊◊Dear reader, peace has brought us this far, and we pray that it continues to prevail in our Churches, in our families, and in our hearts. But how really can this peace be promoted and enhanced at the family level, if not at all levels? We attempt to sow seeds of love nurturing in the family, we must overcome the forces that compete with peace and disrupt all the good intentions we mean for our families. The world needs peace, the family needs peace.
As Christians, our weapon is the inspired word of God. A random search for peace is unending, but we pick the lines below to guide and remind us that it is indeed God’s purpose that every family be centered on love and peace; two valuable gifts that we highlight as the theme that drives our stories and features in this edition.
To sow these seeds of peace and love, we are reminded to:
- Develop a positive view of each other.
Philippians: 2: 3-4, advises:
“Do nothing out of contentiousness or out of egotism, but with humility consider others superior.”
Give our undivided attention.
Titus 3:1-2 reminds us … Read More
April 24th, 2018
By: Communication Team ◊ ◊ ◊
- Don’t complicate life. We won’t be here forever. Once this day is over, it’s gone forever. Your time is too valuable to waste on nonsense.
- No matter what knocks you down in life, get up and keep going. NEVER GIVE UP. Great blessings come as a result of great perseverance.
- Talking about our problems is our greatest addiction. Break the habit. Talk about your joys.
- Good things come to those who believe, better things come to those who are patient, and the best things come to those who don’t give up.
- Do not pray for an easy life; pray for the strength to endure a difficult one.
- Disappointments were not meant to destroy you. They were meant to strengthen you and give you the fortitude to accomplish your God-given destiny.
- We tend to forget that happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting something we don’t have, but by appreciating what we do have.
- Your child will follow your example, not your advice.
- One day, you’ll be just a memory for some people. Do your best to be a good one.
- Associate yourself with people of good quality. For it is better to be
…
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April 10th, 2018
By: HFB Communications Team
◊◊Put simply, the Oxford dictionary defines love as a strong feeling of deep affection for something or somebody, especially a member of your family or a friend (Hornby, 2015). This article will adopt for a working definition of love as an intense feeling of affection for family members, friend and everyone alike. I refer to love rooted in God and expressed in our daily interactions with neighbors. Love, it is said, conquers all! Love in our families surpasses the rest. Jesus called it the new commandment, saying: “A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another” (John 13:34).
Love is our ‘identity’ “By this shall everyone know that you are my disciples if you have the love for one another (Jn. 13:35). Finally, Jesus described the love of God and neighbor as the two greatest commandments (Mt. 22: 37-39). These and similar texts in the scripture underscore the importance of love in the life of the believer. We should nourish the love in our families and home. A happy and loving family is indeed a wonderful thing. Suffice to ask at … Read More
February 12th, 2018
FEBRUARY 11TH 2018
WORLD MARRIAGE DAY
MARRIAGE A NOBLE INSTITUTION!
Marriage is beautiful and is to be honored and celebrated hence Every second Sunday of February, World Marriage Day is celebrated around the world and couples are asked to renew the marriage vows as a way of renewing their unbreakable bond of love to each other. All the married couples celebrated their mutual and sacrificial love by renewing their marriage vows during the 11.30 am. mass which was celebrated by His Eminence John Cardinal Njue.
Key note
-Marriage is ordained by God; it is His institution. The first book of the Bible provides the details:
And the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him’ . . . And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said: ‘This is now bone of my bones and flesh of … Read More
February 1st, 2018
We thank God for this far he has brought us. As we close the year 2017, midway the current PPC term, we look back and celebrate achievements recorded. Allow me to give you a snap of what the 2017 year has been like. Just like other years, we had the opportunity to represent you at Central Deanery level through the participation of the Executive committee: half day retreat at Resurrection Garden, leadership training with the Cardinal and charity work. We continue to give thanks to God for the support we have received from the Basilica Community. With your support we now have the newly anticipated Adoration Chapel functioning as planned in the year 2016, enjoying the meeting rooms based at the Cardinal Otunga Annex not to forget the new washrooms.
This year the focus was to support the Arch-Diocese activities. We are now ready to embark on a more ambitious project, the Basement parking which is anticipated will provide adequate slots and therefore allowing Christians access and the much-needed convenience. Progress with the Basilica and Kiriko twinning is so far commendable as this year our sister church embarked on the construction of a more spacious house for the clergy. During … Read More
January 24th, 2018
By: Rev. Fr. Fredrick Chege
A story is told of a little girl who was very beautiful. Unfortunately, she was captured by a witch, who knew that if she wanted to hold on to the little
girl, she had to convince her that she was ugly. If the girl walked in consciousness of her beauty she would elope with the many young men who came to consult the witch. If, however the girl remained convinced that she was ugly she would remain afraid of being seen by them and therefore hide whenever they came around. So, the witch convinced the young girl that she was horribly ugly. At the sight of any man she would therefore hide in shame. This way the witch kept her in her shackles. But one day as she was combing her hair in her room, she saw someone looking at her through the window. Instinctively she looked up. Her eyes locked with the eyes of the young man who was gazing at her. This was the turning point of her life. In the eyes of the young man the girl saw her own beauty. Gradually as she grew in consciousness of her beauty, her shame … Read More
