Nairobi, Kenya - The Catholic Church has called for calm as the Government investigates the killing of Isiolo bishop Luigi Locati.
The Pope's representative to Kenya, Archbishop Alain Paul Lebeaupin, said Pope Benedict XVI was "very concerned about the death of Bishop Locati".
"I received a telephone call from the Vatican," he told the Nation at his nunciature in Nairobi yesterday. He also held talks with Nairobi archbishop Ndingi Mwana a'Nzeki and the chairman of the Kenya Episcopal Conference, Bishop Cornelius Korir, over the killing of the 77-year-old clergyman. He had also spoken to Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Vatican secretary of state who needed confirmation on the attack.
"The bishops I have spoken with expressed shock, total disgust, sorrow and utter disbelief at news of the brutal murder of Bishop Locati. Let us all pray for the soul of the bishop and for this country," he said.
However, he was yet to hold any talks with Government representatives.
Archbishops Nicodemus Kirima and John Njue of Nyeri diocese and Bishop Salesius Mugambi said they could not think of any reason why the Isiolo bishop was killed.
"He was a man of the people. He mixed with Catholics and Muslims alike. He did not discriminate against anybody. I cannot understand why anybody could shoot him dead," said Archbishop Njue.
Marsabit Bishop Ambrose Ravasi said he was with Bishop Locati two days before the attack. "He told me that the nuncio had finally agreed to ask the Holy Father to get him a successor to run the diocese after 40 years of service," Bishop Ravasi said.
"He could have been killed either because of personal vengeance, for his principles or by religious fundamentalists, which I don't think is the case. He was for ecumenicism and met with other religious leaders in his diocese once a month. If you die the way Bishop Locati died, you are a martyr and martyrs go straight to heaven. Martyrdom is a gift from God," Bishop Ravasi said.
According to him, it was difficult to serve and satisfy all people especially those who sought help from the church.
"Sometimes people cheat. Some feign poverty and we have to refer some of the cases back to the nuns or to the diocesan administrators. I know Bishop Locati had such people who might have felt that he denied them help," he said.
Machakos bishop Martin Kivuva said that he too met Bishop Locati at Resurrection Gardens and while describing the insecurity in Marsabit, the bishop told him that he had escaped death several times.
One such incident was in 1989 when a machete-welding man confronted him at his church compound but he moved swiftly and held the machete, struggled with the man until he overpowered him. The attacker then ran away.
The other incident was in 1992 during the installation of Malindi diocese bishop Francis Baldacchino. He was taking a walk with a friend along the beach when two beach boys confronted them, pointing knives at them and demanding their watches. The bishop surrendered his.
"He told me that he was interested in continuing with his work; building schools, clinics and educating the people. He was relentless in his mission and vision," Bishop Kivuva said.
A journalist with Radio Vatican said the bishop was attacked with a blunt object from the back before he was shot dead.
Mr Ireri Nyaga, who spoke from Nkubu hospital mortuary, said he viewed the bishop's body and saw a deep cut on the back of his neck and two bullet holes - one on the left and the other above the right ear.
"People here are saying that the bishop favoured the people of his church but denied service to those outside the Catholic Church, but the actual assailants had so far not been identified," Mr Nyaga said.
Bishop Locati (77) was a diocesan bishop sent to Kenya by his parish Vercelli in Northern Italy between Milan and Turin. killed by dangerously armed bandits barely 70 meters away from his church compound.
Both Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Secretary of State, and Cardinal Crefcenzio Sepe, asked me for information which I had to confirm, the Pope is very concerned," he said.