Akakan Umoh
An Italian-born former Catholic priest, Father Sandro Ferretto, has broken celibacy vows to marry a Kenyan woman in a colourful traditional ceremony.
Father Ferretto once served as a Catholic parish priest in Kasiela and Mochongoi in Baringo County, Kenya.
According to Kenyan news outlet Tuko, while conducting mission work in the region, he met a young woman, Sharon Jepng’ok, the daughter of former councillor John Wendot.
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Their relationship eventually led him to leave the priesthood and pursue a life with Sharon and married her in a traditional Koito ceremony at Seretion Village in Kasiela, Baringo South to pursue the prospect of building a family.
The Koito ceremony, an important Kalenjin tradition involving formal dowry negotiations and the seeking of family blessings, brought together relatives, community members, local leaders and Sharon’s colleagues to witness the union.
Ferretto embraced the Tugen customs throughout the ceremony, taking part in the traditional proceedings in what was described as a warm and inclusive celebration.
The wedding also represented a rare blend of Italian and Tugen cultures, with the former priest participating in customs far removed from the religious life he had known while serving in the Catholic Church.
The ceremony at Seretion Village also highlighted how deeply Ferretto had become connected to the Baringo community where he previously served as a priest.
The union attracted significant attention on Kenyan social media, with users reacting with a mixture of humour and fascination to the unusual story.
Some commentors joked that Ferretto had chosen Mursik, the traditional Kalenjin fermented milk, over the sacramental altar wine associated with his former life as a priest.
Priests who broke Celibacy Vow
Alberto Cutié A well-known television and radio priest in Miami, Florida, who left Roman Catholic ministry in 2009 after photographs surfaced of him with a woman, later marrying Ruhama Canellis and becoming an Episcopal priest.
Edwin Gathang’i Waiguru: An ordained Kenyan Catholic priest who left to join the Catholic Charismatic Church—a splinter group that permits marriage—and married his wife, Margaret.
Francis MacNutt: An American Dominican priest and a prominent figure in the Catholic Charismatic Renewal who left the priesthood in 1980 to marry.
Godfrey Shiundu: A Kenyan Catholic priest from Bungoma who left the priesthood and married former nun Stella Nangila; the couple later helped establish an independent ecumenical community.
Brennan Manning: An American author and former Franciscan priest who left active ministry and later married.
