BONYO'S BONE: Dear churches, enough of the bans, now act

Allow me to start with a full disclosure declaration - I am an Anglican—a born and bred Anglican. And a practicing Anglican at that.

But last Sunday, I followed with great interest the pronouncements of Archbishop Jackson Ole Sapit. In words that were met with cheers, he boldly declared a ban on politicians speaking in church.

His statements, made at the iconic St. Stephen’s Jogoo Road Anglican Church, were solemn and firm. But first, some history.

St. Stephen’s Cathedral Jogoo Road is no ordinary church. Established in 1923, it was meant to be the African Anglican Cathedral in Nairobi. A necessity after All Saints Cathedral became the exclusive church for white settlers. It became a refuge for railway workers and the growing African Anglican faithful.

Now, this is not the first time the Anglican Church of Kenya has banned politicians from the pulpit. Earliest bans date as far back as 2012—or even earlier. I vividly recall September of that year, when then-Archbishop Eliud Wabukhala made a bold stand.

Months before the March 2013 general election, Wabukhala was categorical: the church would not be used as a political platform to divide Kenyans. He went even further—declaring that the Anglican Church would reject ‘gifts’ from politicians.

Then came April 2019. The current Archbishop, Jackson Ole Sapit, issued his first major ban—this time targeting politicians using churches for harambees and political grandstanding. He was crystal clear: the church would not be a laundromat for stolen money disguised as charity donations!

His decree was met with resounding support. The then-chairman of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops, Archbishop Philip Anyolo, echoed the move, stating, “Our altars are purely for worship and fellowship.”

The Catholic Church soon followed suit, issuing a comprehensive ban on politicians donating or speaking from the pulpit.

In 2021, Archbishop Sapit repeated the ban—again. This time, Evangelical Churches of Kenya joined the chorus, led by Archbishop Anthony Muheria of the Catholic Church.

We’ve heard these bans before. Again and again. Across all denominations. Yet politicians continue to waltz into our churches, spew politics, make donations, and walk out.

Perhaps only the Legio Maria—or Legion of Mary, if you like—is yet to issue a ban!

If the clergy are truly committed to keeping politics out of the pulpit, let them move beyond words.

Let them enforce real, uniform sanctions—ones that prevent the same religious leaders from breaking their own bans whenever it suits them.

And what of political donations? You either accept them or you don’t! This blurry line of “silent donations”—while biblically justifiable—is an open door for abuse, by both politicians and clergy alike.

Churches and religious spaces must be what they were ordained to be: places of worship and fellowship.