I have stumbled on a clip of a young church minister by name Carolyn Kiarie from a Citizen TV interview by Trevor Ombija that has caused me considerable consternation. Aside from her markedly sonorous way of speechifying, Reverend Carolyn Kiarie of the ACK Diocese of Thika made rather curious remarks on why young Kenyans are right to revolt against the establishment as they indeed have done lately. I could not help compare her comments with those of Pastor T Mwangi on generally the same subject matter.
Before making passing judgment on what kind of cleric I thought Rev. Kiarie is, I took time to browse through other clips featuring the young lady of the collar on the pulpit. And guess what? She is apparently a pleasantly refreshing personality with a way with words. However, based on some of her comments during her interview with Trevor, I disagree with her assertions completely for mainly two of various other reasons.
One, Rev. Kiarie says that Kenya’s young people who have been declared by a segment of leaders as undisciplined are simply following in the footsteps of older mentors. She actually says the indiscipline referred to is a result of the “monkey see, monkey do” instinct that the good Reverend seems to suggest is irresistible. Her argument suggests that if one’s mother was a witch, then automatically the daughters and sons have absolutely no choice but to take to witchcraft! Does Rev. Kiarie want to tell us that children of a highway robber are eternally condemned to become highway robbers too? What an outrageous way of reasoning!
What is more disturbing about Rev. Kiarie’s logic in her “monkey see, monkey do” is that she ought to know better as a minister of the Word of God that the commission of Christians is to be the salt of the earth and light of the world. In the Book of Matthew Chapter 5, verses 13 to 16, the Bible says that:
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness,
how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything,
except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.
Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see
your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
(New International Version)
Rev. Kiarie’s “monkey do, monkey see” ideology goes against the wisdom that demands that instead of Christians succumbing to the herd mentality, they should first consider doing the right thing no matter what guided by their calling to be the salt of the earth and light of the world. As a minister of the gospel Rev. Kiarie should be the one leading young people to shun depravity in spite of older persons getting caught up in it!
Two, during the same interview, Rev. Kiarie argued that the famous silhouette currently being circulated online is one of a random old man and that it targets no one in particular. She further argues that the particular silhouette is harmless and that it should aggravate no one. She then asks how does the targeted person know he is the one in the silhouette when anyone with a droplet of gray matter can see the game being played. It is utterly disappointing for a young minister with a fairly elegant mind (judging from her other appearances in online content) to make such a statement to say the least. In fact, the good lady of collar on this particular score came out as hopelessly duplicitous. This is certainly a blot on her otherwise promising brand.
It is likely that Rev. Kiarie is out to carve a brand reminiscent of that of the controversial Dr Njoya but as an upcoming young cleric at a time in our history when many young people are estranged from Christendom, she is better off minding her language and thought process a little more.
Cindy is an upcoming music scholar, human rights activist and a commentator on social affairs.
