U.S. Maryknoller, 81, hands over video productions to Kenyan bishops

Published: 2007-10-02

NAIROBI, Kenya (CNS) -- After 26 years of documenting life in Africa, U.S. Maryknoll Father Richard Quinn has handed over control of Ukweli Video Productions to Kenya's Catholic bishops. "Ukweli" is the Swahili word for truth. "When I began my video productions in the metropolitan Archdiocese of Nairobi, some of the people thought that I was crazy. Others could not even pronounce the word video," Father Quinn, 81, said at the handover ceremony at a Mass in Nairobi Sept. 27. He said the late Cardinal Maurice Otunga of Nairobi "did not understand the whole concept of the modern mass media communications and its effective contribution in evangelization," but "he did welcome us." Today, said Father Quinn, the use of mass communications is well entrenched in evangelization work. Ukweli Video Productions has produced several hundred videos -- biographies of missionaries and videos based on the social and religious teachings of the Catholic Church. Bishop Martin Musonde Kivuva of Machakos praised Father Quinn, a native of Passaic, N.J., for his years of work.

Copyright (c) 2007 Catholic News Service /U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The CNS news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed, including but not limited to such means as framing or any other digital copying or distribution method, in whole or in part without the prior written authority of Catholic News Service .