Parish of Warnbro partner
with Kamagut Parish

Partnership in Mission:
Parish of Warnbro partner with Kamagut Parish

Being in partnership is an outward sign of us being in communion with each other as we strive to grow in our communion with God. The body of Christ cannot be contained within any one Diocese, and our being in partnership is one way to demonstrate the need we have for each other in our want to live, and be, the body of Christ.

Quote from Diocesan Website

In 2017 the Diocese of Perth and the Diocese of Eldoret recommitted to a further three years of Partnership in Mission. The partnership began in June 2020 on the request of Jill Bowman, a member of the Diocesan Partnership in Mission group.

A Whatsapp group was established between members of the Kamagut Parish (17 participants), The Revd David Lord, Jill Bowman, Mike Rayner and myself as the link person for St Brendan’s by the Sea, Warnbro. One of the members of the executive council of the Kamagut Parish, Jeremiah Morogo, is the Group Administrator, and the main person who contributes to the communication in the group.

We generally have weekly communication via Whatsapp as this seems to be the best way for the Kamagut members to access technology.

Most of the sharing of information between us has been in the form of photos and videos plus inspirational pieces taken from the internet. The inspirational pieces are the most favoured type of communication by the Kamagut members. We are encouraging our brothers and sisters to contribute more information about their churches by modelling different ways of sharing information. I often ask them for prayer points that can be included in our intercessions and ask them to pray for our particular needs.

I have become a friend of the daughter of one of the Kamagut parishioners, Celline Jepkirui, who is studying to be a nurse in Perth. Celline and I co-presented a PowerPoint session at both our services on 25 October 2020. This was the beginning of making our parish aware of the Kamagut Parish, their church life and some of their culture. On the 14 February 2021 I shared a PowerPoint for our congregation to watch before each of our services. This was the first of a monthly information and awareness raising activity that I hope to continue on the first Sunday of each month – COVID-19 shutdowns permitting.

We persist in finding ways in how the whole parish can engage and contribute to the building of the partnership. We continue to pray for the people of Kamagut as they struggle with all the difficulties that the COVID pandemic presents to a very poor country like Kenya. I personally enjoy the communication we have and have been humbled by the strength of their Christian faith.