Memory of Kenyan church bells centers me on Christ

Guest Column by
Father Lawrence Murori

The headline of The Times-Picayune on Sunday, March 5, 2023 – “GROWING FEAR: Increasing number of interstate shootings sows alarm in New Orleans” – inspired me to write this.

Growing up in a Meru town suburb in Kenya, a nearby church bell rang every hour from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. I became used to the sound of this bell and paid little attention to its sound and the meaning it conveyed.

Coming to New Orleans, the sounds of the church bells around the city reminded me immediately of the environment I grew up in and the kind of peace that I enjoyed. I was reminded by the sound of that church bell in Kenya that time and moments belong to a richer reality greater than myself.

The headline in The Times-Picayune brought to mind my growing-up experience, opening me further to the contemporary reality of the meaning and value of human life. Of course, as a Christian and a Catholic priest, a meaningful concept of human life has constantly been nourished by my religious tradition.

Sadly today, some aspects of contemporary culture deny this understanding, attempting to advance the interpretation of life’s meaning and value of human life through the lens of relativism and the views of evolution.

We live in a world of free-floating concepts empty of human life's true meaning and value. Contemporary culture is entirely replacing Christian concepts with new meanings, which, regrettably, is part of creating a big puzzle such as the one on the front page of the paper.

The solution to the puzzle of the growing fear in New Orleans calls for a public policy by our leaders, but also a rediscovery of the true meaning and value of human life that is rooted in the Christian concept of a richer reality outside of ourselves that can effectively impact and transform our view of one another, city life, diversity, culture and peace through the lens of love.

Letting, once again, the sound of church bells around our city ring with the sound of the Christian faith, we will frequently be reminded that time and moments belong to a higher and richer reality outside of ourselves. Only redemptive love, which is also creative love, can free us from the drama of evil that is causing increasing fear in the city of New Orleans.

Father Lawrence Murori is parochial vicar at St. Angela Merici Church in Metairie. He is a doctoral candidate in practical theology and public administration. He has research interests in theology, leadership, public policy and administrative law.