The Pope asked me to carry my cross up to Calvary

Bishop Philip Sulumeti was given only four days to live when he fell sick in 1976. He is now 76 years old and serving as the Catholic Bishop of Kakamega, where he has been for more than 36 years.

He has survived three life-threatening operations and lived to fight another day. The bishop has also written three resignation letters to the Pope but he still continues to serve.

Dark, slender, tall and now physically weak, the man of God is fighting the effects of the surgeries but he remains admirably articulate, acutely aware of the environment around him, sharp, composed, extremely disciplined and witty.

“We are still strong. We can’t be around forever but we must continue to serve and obey,” he said as he welcomed us to his corner office at the Kakamega Diocese headquarters on the eve of Easter.

The bishop had earlier returned from South Africa where he had gone for a check-up following a heart operation in 2010. And, although the body has been considerably weakened by the ravages of time and illness, his spirit remains steadfast and hopeful.

Talking to him, one gets a sense of a man satisfied with the journey he has covered who now wants to take a break from pastoral work. But that is not his decision to make. Two Popes have twice rejected his resignation.

As Kenyans celebrate Easter, Bishop Sulumeti says the country should pray for national unity, reconciliation and peace.

REFLECTION OF LOVE

“During Easter, we are called upon to reflect on the love of God for us and the hope it brings to mankind. God so loved the world that he allowed his son to die for salvation of mankind,” he says.

The Bishop adds: “Christ’s death and resurrection brought about reconciliation between God and mankind. Because of this, we should forgive one another and live in peace.”

Bishop Sulumeti’s is a story of resilience, faith, hope and obedience. He says that his 42 years as bishop have been a collection of trepidation, joy and sorrow.

“Trepidation because it was clear to me all the time that God’s power was to be made manifest in my weakness; joy because I was allowed to lead the faithful on the road to salvation. Sorrow because of unfulfilled dreams,” he told Lifestyle.

Before moving to Kakamega, he had served as Bishop of Kisumu.

His first operation was at Nairobi Hospital in 1976 and a second one in Rome after a burst appendix in 1994.

He thanks God that he survived the second operation.

“You know this thing called peritonitis (inflammation of the peritoneum, the thin tissue that lines the inner walls of the abdomen and covers most of the abdominal organs), poisoning of the blood had started. I was given four days to live, but fortunately I’m talking to you now,” he says.

He recalls that the doctor pleaded with him not to go back home as his condition was serious and he needed to stay in hospital for a month. 

“You know, I’m a great believer in education and I wanted one of the priests to go and study in a university in Ireland. I went with him to Ireland against the doctor’s orders,” he says.

But things went from bad to worse.

OBEY THE DOCTORS!

“The thing (appendix) opened. I was rushed to doctors in Ireland and they told each other, ‘don’t touch, let him go back to the doctors in Rome where he was operated’. Thank God the plane was taking off and so I was put in. When we reached the hospital, the doctor thought I did not understand Italian and he was saying, ‘so even priests can be foolish’,” recalls Bishop Sulumeti.

He understood why the doctor was angry. “He did the tests and said there was no poisoning, then told me to obey his instructions next time.”

After the operation, the bishop tendered his resignation to Pope John Paul II, but the Holy Father rejected the letter.

“He asked me how many times Christ fell before reaching Calvary. He told me I must reach Calvary as our Blessed Lord Jesus Christ did. He said that sometimes it is good for a diocese to have a sickly bishop.”

However, things got worse in 2010 when he underwent heart surgery in South Africa. Again he wrote to Pope Benedict XVI seeking release from the pulpit but in vain.

“The heart operation took about 14 hours. So when they discharged me, I wrote to the Pope to inform him I was resigning. He did not allow me to leave.”

Bishop Sulumeti has been shepherding his flock even as he fights his health challenges. It was not until 2012 that the Holy Father eventually accepted his resignation. However, he was asked to stay on until his successor was picked. Until then, the clergyman says, he must continue to serve and, more importantly, obey the Pope.

“I am unwell but I continue serving in obedience. I don’t want to remain shepherd of the diocese for long. But I must obey the Pope always.”

The bishop reveals he is wearing a pacemaker, but is determined to carry on his duties.

“It is like a battery which can go off any time, but we must remain hopeful and serve God.”.

Besides church service, Bishop Sulumeti is delighted with the implementation of the 2010 Constitution for which he fought.

The clergyman has been at the centre of critical national conversations especially the constitutional review process where he chaired a key committee on the Judiciary as well as an important team tasked to broker a consensus of emotive consensus issues during the 2003 Bomas talks.

MEDIATING FOR PEACE

Kenyans would probably remember the dramatic government walkout from the Bomas talks after a disagreement over the powers of the presidency.

The Bomas delegates had taken a vote which would have rendered the president a ceremonial head, triggering a walkout by a section of the Cabinet, led by Vice-President Moody Awori.

A report by a consensus committee chaired by Bishop Sulumeti was thrown out by delegates.

The committee was appointed to iron out the differences between the National Alliance Party of Kenya and the Liberal Democratic Party factions of Narc who were divided on whether the country should adopt a presidential or a parliamentary system of government.

The Sulumeti committee was also mandated by the plenary to look at the chapters on devolution of power and report back. However, the committee’s proposals did not go down well with the delegates. It had proposed a strong president who would be head of state and government, head of the cabinet, commander-in-chief of the armed forces and head of the national security council.

“Unless the Sulumeti Report is debated and adopted, we are withdrawing from the conference,” said Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Kiraitu Murungi. “All ministers and MPs, please let us meet outside,” he called out.

Mr Awori was later to announce that the government had withdrawn from the conference.

A lot of water has since passed under the bridge. Kenyans in 2010 passed what has been touted as one of the most progressive constitutions in the world.

It retained a strong presidency with equally strong checks and balances, created devolved governments and dramatically expanded the Bill of Rights.

NOT ALL GLOOM

Bishop Sulumeti told Lifestyle that one of the more difficult moments during the constitutional talks was during debate on accommodation of more women in leadership, the presidency and the Kadhi’s courts.

He says: “Most people were against the Kadhi’s courts. But I found  denying them their right unfair. It took us two months to agree on the handling of presidential election petitions.

“I am happy with my work. I think we are lucky to have Dr Willy Mutunga as Chief Justice to implement the Constitution. The Constitution has dealt with devolution well.”

However, the bishop has an axe to grind with MPs, senators and pessimistic Kenyans.

He is extremely uncomfortable with Kenyans who only see doom and gloom. He says Kenya is a more progressive and safer country compared to Nigeria, Sudan, Central Africa Republic and Mali that have been at the centre of violence. He reckons that the problem with the country is that a lot of positive energy is misused.

“We are not using our gifts as human beings. Our power is human energy. It is sad that a lot of it is going to waste.”

Bishop Sulumeti also thinks that although there have been difficulties due to the new power structure, President Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto have acquitted themselves well.

“Too much criticism of the President can be demoralising. It is like a teacher marking exams before students finish writing it. Things are difficult and new but they are trying.”

But he abhors the conduct of Members of Parliament especially their appetite for higher salaries, forces teaming up to frustrate devolution as well as politicians speaking about elections.

“MPs started with salary increments. Parliament is not biashara (business). It should be about service to the people. They have not passed a single significant law. Why should MPs be paid sitting allowances? It is the highest level of corruption.”

SPIRIT OF DEVOLUTION

He also thinks that senators have lost the plot in protection of devolution. According to the bishop, senators are trying to tie the governors’ hands instead of assisting them to work.

“Wrangles are making us not move. We talk about elections throughout. Whenever there are elections, we should accept.”

Acknowledging controversies which have tainted the Church lately and threaten to deny it authority as the moral compass of society, Bishop Sulumeti came to the defence of the clergy.

“What is happening is wrong. But the Church is like a family. When one child is behaving badly, do you condemn the whole family? Jesus had 12 disciples but one of them failed him. From a few, you cannot destroy the whole.”

At the end of the conversation, the Bishop surprised us with a gift of wine which had been neatly wrapped and placed under his table. He blessed it and asked us to go partake of it.

“This is sweet dry wine I brought from South Africa. It was recommended by my doctor. It is good for the heart.”

The old man leaves the diocese with his head held high.

Kakamega County has an estimated 620,000 Catholics with 107 ordained priests, 40 parishes, 260 Catholic sponsored primary schools and 112 secondary schools.

He only regrets absence of an institution for blind children and a Catholic university.

Meanwhile, he must continue obeying the Pope.