KENYAN LGBTQ ACTIVIST ARRESTED FOR HELPING QUEER COMMUNITY.

God is no respecter of persons, as Paul says, and neither is the Catholic Church in Exile. We serve all, without restriction.

We have a large presence in the African nation of Kenya. There, our bishop-elect, Father Antonio, leads a large group of ministries. Our ministries are inclusive, and he assists a group of people committed to equality for LGBTQ persons. This group of ministries and ministers works to relocate, assist, and reach out to the LGBTQ community. They also assist unwed mothers, orphans, and others in need of assistance. These are wonderful people doing good works for the poor and oppressed.

Over the summer, amid extreme unrest because of economic difficulties in Kenay created by the exorbitant interest imposed by the World Bank on loans to Kenya, several protests broke out.

One of the major scapegoats for the difficulties in the country was the LGBTQ community. Various bills had been proposed illegalizing both activism for the LGBTQ community and the very existence of gay and trans persons—all based on very conservative and inaccurate

interpretations of the bible. Many were killed. Our community had to operate with extreme caution.

Approximately six weeks ago, a gay man on Kisii suffered from an attack by arsonists. His home was burned to the ground. Hearing this, Fr. Antonio rode his motorbike to the location in order to

visit the man and see what could be done to help him. This was not an exercise of activism, but a priest going to console someone who had been wrongly harmed.

As Fr. Antonio arrived at the location, a group of young thugs surrounded his bike and began to attack him. Fr. Antonio rode the bike away, barely escaping. In doing so, one of the young men was hit by the motorbike during his attack on our priest.

This looked very much like a set-up to harm or kill our priest. Fr. Antonio had to abandon his biike and run and hide to save his life. The family of the young thug harmed during the attack accused Fr. Antonio of hurting him and demanded payment for his hospital bill.

We believed we had sorted out the situation calmly, despite the police seizing Father’s motorbike.

Then, four weeks ago, Father Antonio had the equivalent of a warrant placed out for his arrest.

The charges are for the arson itself and for harming his attacking in an attempt to save his own life.

The police are a national unit and this is one of many arrests of LGBTQ persons and activists across the country. The police inspector general currently in office has been accused falsely charged the governor of Kisii. There is a serious miscarriage of justice occurring.

We ask for your help to pay the cash bail placed on Father Antonio so he can return to his wife and children (two of whom he adopted when their gay mother died in the street because she was refused work and housing). His safety is in jeopardy.

The cash portion of the bail is $1500 USD. Another $9000 bond exists that can be offset with a title deed.

Our people in Kenya are attempting to handle that situation. We also need to raise money for legal counsel for Father to fight these erroneous charges.

We ask you to assist us in saving his life, paying his bail, and securing legal counsel for him. He has so much more work to do. He is placing his life on the line daily for people he does not know—he is a true servant of the Gospel. Please assist us.

ABOUT US

The Catholic Church in Exile™ is a global Independent Catholic Communion with historic ties to Old Catholicism and the Union of Utrecht. We are catholic in theology and worship, but ecumenical and inclusive in our understanding of God’s presence in all cultures, religions, and

ways of being human.

We take a strong stance on social justice, especially in communities where the LGBTQIA+ community is persecuted, criminalized, oppressed, and murdered for simply existing as God created them. We hold that they stand with equal dignity before the God who created them and

deserve, not just full access to all of our communion’s religious offerings, but full and unequivocal access to the same civil rights, legal standings, and social freedoms of all citizens in their culture.

www.thecatholicchurchinexile.com