By Arnold Neliba
WOTE, JULY 25, 2023 (CISA)-Pope Francis has appointed Rt. Rev. Paul Kariuki Njiru, bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Embu as the first bishop of newly erected Catholic Diocese of Wote.
According to an announcement by the Holy See Press Office, the new Catholic diocese of Wote has been hived from the Catholic diocese of Machakos making it a suffragan of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Nairobi.
With 8,009 square kilometres and a population of 987,653 of which 388,946 are Catholic faithful, the newly created diocese has 31 Parishes, 90 Diocesan Priests and nine Religious Priests.
Speaking for the first time after creation of the new diocese, Bishop Norman King’oo of Machakos said “We are happy to have Wote Diocese. Although the news of the new diocese went viral on social media on Saturday, we have known about if for a long time but we kept quiet because the church is orderly. In Ukambani region, we now have three dioceses. The Catholic community in Kitui is eyeing a second diocese,” said Bishop King’oo on Sunday, July 23.
Born on March 11, 1963 at Kegonge village in Kathunguri Parish of the Catholic diocese of Embu, Bishop Kariuki studied Philosophy at St. Joseph Seminary, Nairobi from 1985-1987 and Theology at St. Thomas Aquinas Major Seminary, Lang’ata from 1988-1991. He was ordained a priest on 3rd March 1993.
He served as Assistant Parish Priest of Kairuri Parish from 1993-1996, the Diocesan Youth Chaplain from 1993-1994 and Secretary of the Diocesan Commission for Education, Diocesan Education Secretary, Diocesan Assistant for Youth Pastoral Ministry and the program for Family Life Education from 1994-1996.
From 1996, he proceeded for further studies in Rome at Pontifical Gregorian University where he obtained a Licentiate in Biblical Theology and later pursued and acquired Doctorate in Sacred Theology at the same University. On his return to Kenya in 2002, he was appointed as Diocesan Education Secretary and Assistant Parish Priest at St. Teresa Kithimu Parish.
In 2004, he was appointed as Formator and Dean of Studies at Christ the King Major Seminary in Nyeri before being appointed as the Acting Rector in early 2009.
On May 9, 2009 Rt Rev Paul Kariuki was appointed third bishop of the Catholic diocese of Embu.
