Kuria Christmas

“Roho Mtakatifu!?! Labda, una roho mtakatifu.” (The Holy Spirit!?! Maybe you are the Holy Spirit)

-          Said to Wambura (Joseph) by his father after his father found out Joseph’s fiancé was having a baby. 

Conga wearing Angel visits Wambura

This has to be my favorite line from the Kuria Christmas Story. Some of the teenagers at Gamasara United Methodist acted out the story of Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus, but they rewrote it to reflect their own culture and how it would be received for an unwed woman to have a baby conceived with the Holy Spirit within the Kuria tribe. They did it complete with Bhoke (Mary), Wambura (Joseph), and Emmaunel (Jesus). It had the whole church laughing as Bhoke’s parents tried to figure out who had impregnated their daughter, not taking the Holy Spirit for an acceptable answer. There were also some very openly painful parts as Bhoke and Wambura both had to endure the jeering of a community that could not let this juicy piece of gossip pass without comment as women went to fetch water from the well. The conga wearing angel and card playing herders just made it that much more complete. 

No room at the guest house

The real goal though was completed with style. This well-read Bible story was made very understandable to a group of people very unfamiliar with the Bible.  Maybe for the first time the church saw how God uses ordinary people to do even the most extraordinary of things.  That has become the Christmas story for Gamasara United Methodist Church this year. God uses ordinary people, all we have to do is say yes. Wambura had dreams of his own, a good business plan, and a good reputation in his village. However, in the span of a few months he had lost his good reputation and had to give up on his good business plan as he accepted God’s call on his life. This ordinary man wanted all the same things all of us want, a good job, a family, and a way to provide for them. This is the type of peaceful, secure life that I think most people truly desire. Wambura was willing to put all of that aside though, was willing to give all of that up, in order to follow God’s call on his life. I think that lesson stuck well with the church as a story came to life in front of them. Maybe it will stick with you as well.