Roman Catholic Diocese of Kitale

Early Catholic presence in the region The area now covered by the Diocese of Kitale was originally administered as part of the western Kenya mission by the Mill Hill Missionaries based in Kisumu, itself part of the Vicariate of the Upper Nile headquartered in Mengo, Kampala. It was not until 1920, when Kenya became a colony, that the region ceased to be administered from Kampala. At the same time, Msgr. Maurice Anthony Crowley, who was then Vicar General of the Diocese of Eldoret, was appointed its first Bishop. At its inception, the diocese had 23 parishes with 408 outstations, one vicar general, two deans, 49 diocesan priests, 64 religious priests, 8 brothers, and 63 sisters. It immediately established eight diocesan departments: vocations, education and religious education, family life education, development and social services, Justice and Peace, water, health, and social communications. ==Peace and conflict work==

The Diocese of Kitale has been active in peacebuilding in the conflict-affected North Rift region of Kenya, where cattle rustling and intercommunal violence between pastoralist groups have persisted for decades. In June 2023, the Diocese joined the North Rift Peace Initiative (NRPI), a project initiated by the Catholic Justice and Peace Departments of six dioceses- Eldoret, Nyahururu, Nakuru, Kitale, Maralal, and Lodwar- to address the root causes of violence and build lasting peace in the region. In September 2023, Bishop Henry Juma Odonya joined Bishop John Mbinda of Lodwar and Bishop Cleophas Oseso Tuka of Nakuru to reconsecrate the Kapedo Catholic Church- five years after an attack there had killed two police reservists- as a symbolic act of commitment to peace. ==Education==

Since its establishment, the diocese has invested heavily in education across Trans Nzoia and West Pokot counties, sponsoring hundreds of Catholic primary and secondary schools. Notable Catholic-sponsored institutions within the diocese include St. Joseph's Boys High School, Kitale, a national school with origins tracing to a mission-run intermediate school established around 1952 by Catholic brothers, and St. Brigid's Kiminini, a girls' institution with roots in the early mission era. ==Bishops==

Maurice Anthony Crowley (1998-2022) Maurice Anthony Crowley, S.P.S. (born 11 May 1946, Berrings, County Cork, Ireland) graduated with a Bachelor of Science from University College Cork in 1968 before studying philosophy and theology. Henry Juma Odonya (2022-present) Henry Juma Odonya, S.P.S. (born 10 December 1976, Nairobi) was raised in Eldoret, where his parents worked for Kenya Railways. He began seminary formation at St. Mary's Major Seminary in Molo in 1997, studied philosophy at St. Augustine's Senior Seminary Mabanga from 1998 to 1999, then theology at St. Thomas Aquinas Major Seminary in Nairobi from 2000 to 2004. He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Eldoret on 25 February 2006 by Bishop Cornelius Kipng'eno Arap Korir. He served in various pastoral roles including parish priest at Kapcherop and Kolongolo, as a Fidei donum priest in the Diocese of Kitale (2011-2015), and as chairman of the Kenya Fidei Donum Association (2012-2015). He later pursued further studies in Rome, earning a Licentiate in Missiology from the Pontifical Urban University in 2019, and served as a formator at St. Patrick's Philosophy House in Durban, South Africa, until his appointment. He was consecrated and installed at Kitale Showground on 21 January 2023, with Archbishop Hubertus van Megen as principal consecrator, assisted by Bishop Emeritus Maurice Crowley and Bishop Dominic Kimengich of Eldoret. ==See also==