A native of Kenya has been tapped as the new chaplain at Marymount University, and will begin work Aug. 9 with Catholic Campus Ministry as part of the institution’s Office of Ministry and Spiritual Life.
Rev. Gabriel Muteru was appointed to the post by Bishop Michael Burbidge.
“We are excited to welcome Rev. Muteru into the Marymount family, and have him guide the spiritual development of all the members of our campus community,” Marymount president Irma Becerra said. “We place tremendous value on serving others and having a global perspective, and our new chaplain sets a great example of both of these virtues through his experiences across the world in offering services to the poor and providing for the spiritual needs of his ministry.”
Rev. Muteru was ordained as a priest through the Archdiocese of Nyeri, Kenya, and served as vice rector and dean of students at Christ the King Major Seminary in Nyeri before arriving in the U.S. in 1994. Since then, he has accumulated extensive ministerial experience at several parishes in the New York metropolitan area and has worked as an adjunct professor at Saint John’s University, Molloy College and Dowling College.
Since 2018, he served at St. Joseph’s College of Maine.
“During my time spent in Kenya, Spain, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Belgium, France, Israel and the U.S., I have found that all humans are the same – but also different,” Rev. Mutero said. “Diversity in culture, language, customs, thought and lifestyle only makes a society richer and stronger.”
“During my in-person visit to Marymount, I was impressed by all of the people that I met – everyone was friendly, enthusiastic and motivated in their field of work,” he said. “I also recognized a high level of collaboration where different individuals and departments team up and work together for the common good. I can’t wait to be a part of that spirit of teamwork.”
Rev. Muteru holds a doctorate in philosophy from the New School of Social Research in New York, a master’s degree in philosophy from Fordham University, a licentiate in philosophy from the University of Navarra in Spain and a bachelor’s degree in theology from the Seminary of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Nairobi.
The new chaplain is fluent in Swahili, Kikuyu and Spanish, which will allow Mass to be celebrated in Spanish on a regular basis beginning this fall at the Sacred Heart of Mary Chapel on Marymount’s main campus.
The university was founded in 1950 by the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary (RSHM) order of Roman Catholic nuns.
Read the original article on the Sun Gazette’s website.
