Former MP: What I told the Pope at Vatican

Seated in his car at the Holy Family Minor Basilica in Nairobi, former MP Njeru Kathangu recalls the journey of a lifetime that he made to the Vatican in March 2002 to meet Pope John Paul II.

Mr Kathangu, a staunch Catholic in his early 60s, is the former Runyenjes MP.

While serving as MP, his visitors referred to him as ‘Honourable’ but he preferred a title he is well identified with, ‘Mtumishi’ (servant).

“The Vatican is a very attractive place to visit for Catholics. I know when I went to the Vatican, people were wondering what I told the Pope. I am not a special person. I met the Pope as a church leader and I am a Catholic like many others. The blessings which I got can only make me different from them. I feel contented since I delivered my message to the Pope, who is now a saint,” he says.

Kathangu, who is currently pursuing a Masters in Political Science at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa, says at that time, the country was in a state of political confusion. “Retired President Moi’s regime was coming to an end and leaders were competing to create new leadership,” he adds.

“Some of us were in that Parliament. Kenya was transiting to a new constitution and both the leadership and Kenyans were struggling with the change. I felt that this confusion could lead to violence and we required prayers and intervention from the papacy so that leaders’ emotions could not not flare up,” he says.

In October 2001, Kathangu, through the Italian Embassy, presented his request to meet the Pope with one message; “to ask the Pope to pray for the country with the Catholic spirit so that the transition to new leadership could be peaceful.”

Luck was on his side because the Vatican approved his request in January 2002 and fixed his meeting with the Pointiff on March 6, the same year.

“The Italian Embassy in Kenya gave us the visas and we travelled to the Vatican on March 4, 2002, together with my wife and daughter. We were treated very well but sadly, we did not meet with the Pope on that day because he was sick. We had to wait for another one week,” he recalls.

On the day of the meeting, an anxious Kathangu waited in the Vatican’s Nervi Hall, the seat of power of the Catholic Church. He says they were humbled to be there.

“While in the Nervi Hall in Vatican, I was very anxious and when we met, he was extremely happy when I told him my intentions. I felt a lot of joy in my heart when he blessed me and said he had also blessed my country. I was fulfilled and my family was also happy. He promised to pray with us and talk with the church leadership in Kenya,” says the former MP.

His visit also led to his meeting with three other cardinals at the Vatican: The cardinals in charge of family matters, higher learning and administration and international relations.

He says he did not have any challenge when he expressed his interest to meet the Pope.

Together with his family, he also met the Pope in public. They were among the world’s first couples to meet the Pope in public.

Kathangu terms Kenya a blessed country considering that Pope Francis visit will be the fourth papal visit in the past 30 years. In 1980, Kenya had its first papal visit, the second tour was in 1985 and then 1995.

“As Kenyans, we should take advantage of Pope Francis’ visit to rejuvenate our spirituality and correct areas where we have gone wrong,” says Kathangu.

He does not intend to rejoin politics any time soon, but will be a mentor to young people who aspire to be political leaders.