Philip Arnold Subira Anyolo (born 18 May 1956) is a Kenyan prelate of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

who has been the Archbishop of

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 ...

since 2021. He has been a bishop since 1996, serving as ordinary in

Kericho Kericho is the largest town in Kericho County, located in the highlands west of the Kenyan Rift Valley. Positioned on the edge of the Mau Forest, Kericho benefits from a warm and temperate climate, making it good for agriculture, especially l ...

from 1996 to 2003,

Homa Bay Homa Bay is a town (and eponymous bay) on the south shore of Winam Gulf of Lake Victoria, in western Kenya. It lies near Mount Homa (in the Luo language ''Got Marahuma'' or ''God Uma'' famous mountain" and Ruma National Park, the latter note ...

from 2003 to 2018, and Archbishop of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of

Kisumu Kisumu ( ) is the third-largest city in Kenya located in the Lake Victoria area in the former Nyanza Province. It is the second-largest city after Kampala in the Lake Victoria Basin. The city has a population of slightly over 600,000. The ...

from 2019 to 2021.

Biography

Philip Arnold Subira Anyolo was born on 18 May 1956 in Tongaren,

Bungoma Bungoma town is the capital of Bungoma County in Kenya. It was established as a trading centre in the early 20th century. It is located in Kenya's fertile Western region and at the foot of Mount Elgon, Kenya's second-highest mountain. The tow ...

, the second of ten children born to Mzee Paul Anyolo and Mama Dina Nekesa. He attended Kakamwe primary school in Tongaren and Mother of Apostles Minor Seminary in Eldoret, St. Augustine Major Seminary in Mabanga for philosophy, and St. Thomas Aquinas in Nairobi for theology. He was ordained a deacon in 1982 and he was ordained a priest for the Catholic Diocese of

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 ...

, Kenya, on 15 October 1983 by John Njenga, Bishop of Eldoret. He served as the bishop's secretary for two and a half years while assisting with parish work. Beginning in 1987 he studied in Austria, earning a doctorate in systematic theology from the

University of Innsbruck The University of Innsbruck (; ) is a public research university in Innsbruck, the capital of the Austrian federal state of Tyrol (state), Tyrol, founded on October 15, 1669. It is the largest education facility in the Austrian States of Austria, ...

in 1993. Returning then to his role as bishop's secretary, he also worked as chaplain of Moi University and was a visiting lecturer at St. Matthias Mulumba Major Seminary.

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

appointed him the first bishop of the newly erected Roman Catholic Diocese of Kericho on 6 December 1995. He received his episcopal consecration in Kericho on 3 February 1996 from Cardinal

Jozef Tomko Jozef Tomko (11 March 1924 – 8 August 2022) was a Slovak prelate of the Catholic Church who held positions in the Roman Curia from 1962 until he retired in 2007. He was prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples from 1985 t ...

, prefect of the

Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples The Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (CEP; ) was a congregation (Roman Curia), congregation of the Roman Curia of the Catholic Church in Rome, responsible for Catholic missions, missionary work and related activities. It is also kn ...

. He chose as his episcopal motto "Abide in Me and I in you" (John 15:4). On 20 February 2002, he was appointed Apostolic Administrator of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Homa Bay, upon the resignation of Bishop Linus Okok Okwach. On 22 March 2003, Pope John Paul appointed him bishop of that diocese. He was installed on 23 May 2003. He has served as the Chairperson of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

named him archbishop of

on 15 November 2018 and he was installed there on 12 January 2019. On 28 October 2021,

appointed him archbishop of the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Nairobi The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Nairobi () is the Metropolitan See for the ecclesiastical province of Nairobi in Kenya, and the Primatial see for Kenya. History *26 February 1860: Established as Apostolic Prefecture of Zanguebar from the D ...

. He was installed there on 20 November 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anyolo, Philip 1956 births Living people 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Kenya People from Bungoma County University of Innsbruck alumni 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Kenya Roman Catholic bishops of Kericho Roman Catholic archbishops of Kisumu Roman Catholic bishops of Homa Bay Kenyan Roman Catholic bishops Roman Catholic archbishops of Nairobi Academic staff of St. Matthias Mulumba Tindinyo Seminary