Fr Enrique Rituerto Urrejola watches intently as a little child cries as she recites an emotional poem that moves the congregation at Mujwa Catholic Church in Meru County.
Despite the fact that it is his farewell mass and the recitation is moving, the normally cheerful Consolata missionary priest shows no emotion.
He admits that if the same thing had happened 51 years ago, when he first arrived in Kenya to begin an eventful journey of faith, he would have openly cried.
However, having spent the most of his adult life in Meru, the Spaniard has come to identify with the locals and has been given the title of Njuri Ncheke elder.
“The men in Meru do not cry physically but they cry in the heart. Seeing the girl crying while reading the poem is emotional. I am also emotional but because of travelling here and there, I am able to overcome,” he explains.
Fr Enrique, who previously served as Central Imenti dean, is on his way to London, where he will primarily focus on ecumenical duties.
He claims that even though missionaries were the first to arrive in Africa, the continent had surpassed Europe in terms of religious development.
“I will miss this kind of life. In London life is more difficult because though there is more comfort, the social life is much better here. I have accepted the transfer not with difficulty or sadness or bad feeling as it is part of my vocation to be transferred here and there,” says Fr Enrique.
Fr Rituerto has served at Tuuru and Nyambene since arriving in Mujwa in 1970, before briefly returning to his native Spain.
He returned to Kenya and was assigned to Mutuati, then Maua, before returning to Mujwa in 2006, where he remained until last week.
During his time on Meru, the priest learned the Meru language and mainly said Mass and communicated with the locals in it.
The farewell Mass was led by Meru Catholic Diocese communication director Peter Mutwiri, who paid glowing tribute to the 77-year-old clergyman.
Mujwa, he said, was significant in the history of the Catholic Church in Kenya because it served as the pro-cathedral for Meru Diocese over 100 years ago.
“The Christians said they will really miss him. He spoke their language, he felt them, and he smelt like a sheep. That is what Pope Francis says, if you are a missionary and you are a priest, smell like your sheep,” said Fr Mutwiri.
“Fr Enrique, despite coming from Spain, he can eat any local food like mukimo and njahi. He was very down-to-earth and very approachable. He has transformed this place and given hope to many families especially the poor by giving scholarships to the poor,” he added.
