• Uhuru described the late Mbiti as an accomplished Kenyan scholar and priest who was a great ambassador of the Kenyan nation abroad.
• Dr Mbiti who earned his doctorate degree in philosophy from the University of Cambridge in the UK in 1963.
Image: COURTESY
President Uhuru Kenyatta has sent a message of condolence to the family, relatives and friends of philosopher, scholar, author and Anglican Church minister Dr John Samuel Mbiti.
Dr Mbiti, 87, died last Sunday in Switzerland where he doubled up as a theologian and philosophy professor at the University of Bern and as an Anglican Church clergy in Burgodorf.
In his message of condolence, the President described the late Mbiti as an accomplished Kenyan scholar and priest who was a great ambassador of the Kenyan nation abroad.
"We've lost a great Kenyan. A great man who went against all odds to become a successful scholar, writer and priest. He was a role model and an ambassador of the Kenyan brand abroad," Uhuru said.
Dr Mbiti who earned his doctorate degree in philosophy from the University of Cambridge in the UK in 1963, taught religion and theology at Makerere University between 1964 and 1974 before becoming the director of the World Council of Churches Ecumenical Institute in Switzerland.
Thanks be to God for the life, scholarship and witness of a key father of African theology, Canon Prof John S Mbiti, who has died peacefully in Switzerland. It was a joy to see him at @lambethpalace in February 2017. pic.twitter.com/yld6JLJluL
— Archbishop of Canterbury (@JustinWelby) October 7, 2019
The late Mbiti wrote widely on philosophy, theology and African oral traditions and is best remembered for his book titled "African Traditions and Philosophy" published in 1969.
The President prayed to God to grant the family, friends and relatives of the late Mbiti fortitude to bear with the loss of their beloved.
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby thanked God for Mbiti's life.
"Thanks be to God for the life, scholarship and witness of a key father of African theology, Canon Prof John S Mbiti, who has died peacefully in Switzerland. It was a joy to see him at Lambeth Palace in February 2017," he said.
Former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga described the scholar as a close friend.
"He was my brother, mentor, friend, and my role model since I was in primary school in 1950s when his novel in Kiikamba, Mutunga Na Ngewa Yake, was one of our set books. From Allah We Come; To Allah We Surely Return," Mutunga tweeted.
Professor Makau Mutua wrote, "Prof John Mbiti, Kenya’s - one of the world’s most iconic philosophy and religion scholars - passed away today in Switzerland. May his family and friends know peace."
Kitui Governor Kivutha Kibwana said, "Prof.John Mbiti was a rare human being. May he be in eternity with God's saints and Angels."