• In year of firsts, pious woman fell pregnant outside wedlock, posing potential shame
Premarital sex is perhaps considered the second-most gravest sin in religious circles after murder. Funny how they never read the scripture that says, no sin is greater than another.
Carolina is the lead vocalist in our praise and worship team at church. A staunch Christian. At the face of it. She never listens to secular songs because to her, those are ‘demonic’ songs. She has mastered over a hundred lines of scripture at heart. Whenever she picks up the microphone to sing, you will quite literally feel the presence of the spirit in your midst. Not to mention how prayerful she is.
She often leads us during the prayer and fasting week. 2020 would be the first time she ever missed the annual camp meeting due to restrictions on travel and gatherings.
As fate would have it, Carolina fell pregnant last year. That was 2020 for you. Everything we ever thought would never happen, happened. As a spinster, the general expectation was that she would face profound judgement from the church. Especially considering how she led a life guarded by the principles of righteousness. “Will she ever come back?” “What will she tell the pastors?” Or as Kenyans prefer to say, “Ataambia watu nini?”
Nothing was further from the truth. When the child was a few months old, Carolina brought him to church for dedication, in the full glare of the clergy and the congregation. And the parish priest was more than glad to dedicate the little one.
It is not in my place to say whether or not this is the way to go, but one thing is for sure: the days of castigating unmarried women who get children are coming to an end, if they haven’t already lapsed.
This narrative first appeared on Sasa Digital, accessible on Sundays by dialling *550*3#