In God We Trust? - Biola University

iola graduate Mark Struck wasn’t prepared for the
surprise that awaited him when he arrived in
Kenya last December for a meeting of Christian
leaders seeking national peace.
During the conference, one of the nation’s
newest political leaders — Fred Outa, a member
of parliament — got up to present his hope for
building reconciliation among Kenya’s many
tribal groups in the wake of recent national
turmoil. But it was his background that most caught Struck’s attention:
Outa had not long ago graduated from Biola’s Cook School of
Intercultural Studies.
Afterward, the men connected and marveled at their unlikely
Biola bond.
Outa (M.A. ’02), a Kenyan native, initially intended to use his education
in the United States for missionary work, church ministry and
agricultural service back in Africa, but eventually decided to run for
elected office at the urging of his community. As a member of parliament
(MP) since January 2008, he has sought to be a voice for community
development and reconciliation.
Struck (’78, M.A. ’85), who was serving at the time as regional director
of the nonprofit group ALARM (see sidebar on page 19), has been engaged
in pastoral and global ministries for the past 30 years, providing service
and humanitarian aid in nearly 40 countries around the world.
Two months after their initial encounter, the men sat down in Nairobi
to discuss Outa’s journey from poverty to the Kenyan parliament and
Biola’s contributions along the way. Here is a partial transcript of their discussion.
(For an extended version, visit www.biola.edu/biolamag.)
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Blessed are the
B
Mark Struck: Hon. Fred Outa, you have shared with me that Biola
University has played an enormous role in your life, in your vision for
Africa, and now as a member of parliament here in Kenya. What led
you to Biola?
Fred Outa: I went to City University in New York, and then I attended the
International School of Theology. It was at this point I was looking for
something more than just theology. I wanted to be trained as a seminarian,
and after looking at different seminaries, a friend told me there was a
school in California that would be a really good fit for my vision and hopes
for Africa. I originally planned to come back and be a missionary to Kenya,
but I really had a heart for the entire continent of Africa, so I was open to
serving anywhere. I’d seen that it takes a missionary from the U.S. more
time to settle and learn the culture, before reaching out and evangelizing a
community. I was interested in seeing the most people reached in the
shortest amount of time — [and as an African] I wouldn’t have culture
shock; I would be relating to them in our own context, yet not compromising.
So that led me to Biola’s School of Intercultural Studies. I knew this was
the place God wanted me to be.
MS: You’ve said that, in many ways, the examples of your mother and
father are what led you to school, to care about people, to understand
poverty and the need for Christ, and have given you the values that you lead
your nation today. Tell me a little bit about your upbringing.
FO: My faith has been influenced by my parents. My parents were
Christians, and in fact, my mother was one of the founders of our church.
… When I was 3 years old, my mom passed away, so I never really enjoyed
being with her. But I remember her and people tell me stories of her. So I
was left with my dad at that time. For him, the only real passion was for God.
For him, God was above culture. If he was like any African man, he would
have married as many wives as he could — because back then that was the
way it was — but he decided to follow Christ with all his ability. He decided
to stay single until he went to his grave without getting a second wife, or
remarrying. The lesson I carry today, the lesson that Biola reinforced, the
lesson that leads me as an MP of Kenya is that Christ is above culture. Christ
is my passion. That leads my work, my ministry, my love for the people of
my district and my own family.
MS: You lost your father in the eighth grade. How did that change
your life?
FO: When my father died, I was out on the street just like the “street
kids.” Life was hard. Food was scarce. I learned the hardship of poverty,
the need for education and the struggle to keep warm and to eat. I made
B I O L A