Manasses Kuria (29 July 1929, in
Nairobi
Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...
– 19 September 2005, in Nairobi) was a Kenyan Anglican archbishop. He was the second African archbishop and bishop of Nairobi in the
Anglican Church of Kenya
The Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) is a province of the Anglican Communion, and it is composed by 41 dioceses. The current Leader and Archbishop of Kenya is Jackson Ole Sapit. The Anglican Church of Kenya claims 5 million total members. Accordin ...
.
Early life
Kuria was brought up by his parents at Kabuku in
Limuru
Limuru is a town in central Kenya. It serves as both a parliamentary constituency and an administrative division. As of 2004, the town's population was approximately 4,800, which significantly increased to 159,314 by the 2019 census.
Location
Li ...
,
Kiambu District
Kiambu District was an administrative district in the Central Province of Kenya. Its capital town was Kiambu. The district was adjacent to the northern border of Nairobi and had a population of 744,010.
Created during the colonial era, it underw ...
. He first attended St. Paul's School in Limuru in 1933; in 1935 he went to Ngecha School before going to Kabete Mission School in 1938, where he took the Kenya African Preliminary Examination in 1940.
At the age of 16 Kuria began a career in teaching; between 1945 and 1954 he taught at St. Peter's Wangige school, a mission school, Ngecha Junior High School and Rironi Orthodox School.
Ecclesiastical career
After a profound spiritual experience in 1950, Kuria resigned from teaching and took up full-time church work. In January 1954, he enrolled in
St. Paul's University, Limuru.
Kuria served as a special chaplain and then as an archdeacon, stationed in
Eldoret
Eldoret is a city in the Rift Valley region of Kenya. It serves as the capital of Uasin Gishu County. Located in western Kenya and lying south of the Cherangani Hills, the local elevation varies from about at the Eldoret International Air ...
. On April 25, 1970, he was consecrated assistant bishop of the diocese of
Nakuru
Nakuru (nicknamed Nax) is a city in the Rift Valley region of Kenya. It is the capital of Nakuru County, and it is the fourth largest city in Kenya and the largest in the Rift Valley region. As of 2019, Nakuru had an urban population of 570, ...
, by Archbishop
Leonard Beecher. In January 1976, he was enthroned Bishop of the diocese of Nakuru by Archbishop
Festo Olang'.
On June 29, 1980, Kuria, at the age of 51, became the second African Anglican archbishop of
Kenya
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
. By the time he retired in 1994, the number of dioceses in Kenya had increased from seven to twenty.
After retirement, he started Jehovah Jireh Children homes and schools for the education and pastoral care of poor street children.
Kuria's wife, Mary, whom he had married in 1947, died on July 6, 2002, at the age of 73. Kuria died on 19 September 2005, aged 76, in
Nairobi
Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...
after suffering a heart attack. Both of them were cremated at death, which was and still is unusual in their society. They are buried at St. Johns Anglican Church, Kabuku in
Limuru
Limuru is a town in central Kenya. It serves as both a parliamentary constituency and an administrative division. As of 2004, the town's population was approximately 4,800, which significantly increased to 159,314 by the 2019 census.
Location
Li ...
. Bishop Kuria's brother called Amon Mbugua was a long-time lay reader at St. John's in Kabuku.
Kenya: Manasses Kuria To Be Cremated in Lang'ata, The Standard, 20 September 2005
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References
See also
*List of archbishops of the Anglican Church of Kenya
This is a list of the Archbishops and Primate (bishop)#Anglicanism, Primates of the Anglican Church of Kenya. The Anglican presence in Kenya was initially overseen by the Church of England through the Diocese of Mauritius, established in 1854, and ...
*List of bishops of the Anglican Church of Kenya
This list consists of the bishops in the Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK), which is part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The list includes the sequence of consecration, the dioceses they served, and other relevant details. It begins with the ea ...
External links
Manasses Kuria at Dictionary of African Christian Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kuria, Manasses
1929 births
2005 deaths
Anglican archbishops of Kenya
20th-century Anglican bishops of the Anglican Church of Kenya
20th-century Anglican archbishops
St. Paul's University, Limuru alumni
Anglican bishops of Nakuru