Brief History of Diocese of Meru.
Meru Diocese is located in the Eastern Province of Kenya. It is one of the 26 Catholic Diocese in Kenya. The Bishop of Meru is Rt. Rev. Saleius Mugambi. There are a total of 146 priests most of them serving in the 55 parishes of the Diocese and several Catholic institutions within the Diocese. A few others are serving as 'fidei Donum' in other dioceses.They live within rugged hills with land that ranges from heavy virgin forests above 8,000 feet elevation to semi-arid desert at less than 3,000 feet elevation. The Ameru are generally part of the “Eastern Bantu" who have been native to the Mt. Kenya area for many years before colonization of Kenya by Great Britain in the 19th Century. The people of Meru are now predominantly Christian. The majority of Meru people are subsistence farmers. The fertile land produces a large variety of food crops, the staples being corn, beans, potatoes, and millet. Coffee is the most important cash crop followed by tea leaves and cotton. The Catholic faith was brought to Meru by the Consolata Missionaries from Turin – Italy in 1911. They first settled at kathitu near Kariakomo in Mwimbi location and at Kiija near Mujwa in Imenti. By the decree of the holy See, Meru was split from Nyeri and was made an Apostolic Prefecture on March 10, 1926. The Consolata Missionaries who belonged to Nyeri Vicarite came to meru in 1911 after they were granted permission by the Colonial Government.
The Diocese of Meru which boarders Isiolo to the North, Kitui to the East, Embu to the South and Nyeri to the West
is made up of seven Deaneries namely :- Nithi, Tharaka, Imenti South, Imenti Central, Imenti North, Tigania and Igembe. Currently there are 55 parishes. The Diocese of Meru has 126 Diocesan priests, 46 religious priests, 25 religious brothers, 299 Religious sisters, 640 cathechists, 500 students at St. Pius X Seminary (Nkubu) an 88 major seminarians who are in various major Seminaries among them the Diocese of Meru St. Joseph's Major Seminary (Nairobi).
" Meeting at Bishop's board room "