Kenyan Canonist Urges Catholic Church to Seek Marriage Law Amendments after High Court Ruling Favors Divorce
A canon law expert from the Metropolitan Tribunal of the Catholic Archdiocese of Nairobi (ADN) in Kenya has called upon the Church in the East African nation to pursue changes to the country’s marriage legislation. This appeal follows a High Court decision to reject a Catholic man’s petition aimed at preventing his wife from obtaining a civil divorce.
Speaking to ACI Africa on Monday, June 29, Sr. Scholastica Kasisi Pius commented on the High Court’s June 22 ruling. This decision rejected a constitutional petition filed by Peter Gathirimu, which contested specific provisions of the nation’s Marriage Act allowing for the dissolution of Christian marriages.
Within his constitutional petition, Mr. Gathirimu specifically disputed Sections 65, 66, and 73 of the 2014 Marriage Act. He asserted that these particular sections do not align with the Catholic doctrine concerning the permanence of sacramental marriage.
He further argued that Parliament had made provisions for Islamic personal law through the Kadhis’ Courts’ jurisdiction, yet it had failed to grant comparable recognition to Catholic Canon Law. This, he claimed, infringed upon Catholics’ constitutional rights to equality, religious freedom, conscience, and the right to marry.
The petition, where the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) participated as an interested party, was additionally motivated by divorce proceedings initiated against him by his wife. Mr. Gathirimu maintained that these proceedings were in conflict with his religious beliefs.
