Ordained Priest after 19 Years of Service as Deacon, Kenyan Spiritan Says “prayer was my strength”

Journeying towards the Priesthood, Fr. Isaac recalled from his personal experience, “you can never be a hundred percent sure, but still deep inside you feel that you are in the right place,” he said.

Ordained a Deacon in September 2006, Fr. Isaac who just turned 56 started his Religious and Priestly formation in August 1999, when he was admitted to the Spiritan Missionary Seminary for philosophy in the Tanzania’s Catholic Archdiocese of Arusha.

He took his First Vows in 2002 and made his Perpetual Profession in 2006.

Credit: ACI Africa

Recalling the 19 years of serving as a Deacon, Fr. Isaac told ACI Africa that throughout the waiting period, he tried his best to remain active in the Diaconate Ministry, relying on God’s grace. “Actually, the only thing I say is prayer, and the fact that you have faith and you believe that God has a purpose for you, and he'll always be communicating to you,” he said.

The newly ordained Kenyan Priest recalled repeated one of the common expressions of prayer over the years. He said, “I kept on praying to God, ‘Enlighten me; where am I going, show me.’ And He kept on guiding me all the time because God lives in us and is constantly guiding us.”

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Fr. Isaac recalled his apostolate with young people, with whom he said he developed “a strong bond”. As asked about his message to them as they discern the deepest inclinations of their hearts, he said, “There's a lot of noise surrounding us today. But take time to pay attention. Take time to be quiet. Listen to what God is talking to you about.”

Ignoring God’s call can lead to spiritual disorientation, the Kenyan Spiritan Priest said. He emphasized, “If God calls you for a purpose, if you take another direction, it will never work.”

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“So, I would ask youths to always be patient, take some time, 10 minutes, 15 minutes per day to listen to the voice of God and his guidance,” he added.

In the June 28 interview shortly after he had been ordained a Priest, Fr. Isaac said he looks forward to beginning his Priestly ministry in the Spiritan Province of Tanzania, where he hopes to interact with young people.

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“Most likely I'll be working amongst the youths, the unfortunate people, and maybe street children, and probably people who are abandoned, people who have been forgotten,” he said.

Born in the Catholic Archdiocese of Nairobi and raised up in Mombasa Archdiocese, Fr. Isaac told ACI Africa that the “lived here (Mombasa) for quite some time, even as an altar boy.”

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He acknowledged with appreciation that support he received from the late Fr. Jim Delaney, a Spiritan missionaries in Kenya, who Fr. Isaac said was “a key figure” in nurturing his inclination towards the Priesthood.

“The most influential Priest who actually made me want to become like him was Father James Delaney. He guided us as children,” Fr. Isaac told ACI Africa.

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On the reasons behind the delayed Priestly Ordination, Fr. Isaac said he was confident about “the truth” and exercised patience.

“I said, as long as the truth is on your side, you must be patient and you wait, your time will come. And so today now it has culminated,” he said without sharing details of what he had described as “the truth”.

Credit: ACI Africa

In the June 28 interview, Fr. Isaac thanked those who he said have walked with him through the years. “I really want to thank all those who accompanied me on this journey, especially Fr. Peter Ndegwa,” he said, singling out his Kenyan confrere he live as a Deacon in a Parish in Kenya’s Garissa Catholic Diocese.