Homa Bay Town Member of Parliament Peter Kaluma has taken a lighthearted swipe at Western Kenya’s growing trend of self-proclaimed religious figures, following a fresh claim by a woman who says she is Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ.
Taking to his X account on Thursday, June 5, 2025, Kaluma humorously referred to the region as heaven, citing previous self-proclaimed figures such as Jehovah Wanyonyi, a man who once claimed to be God; Jesus of Tongaren, another individual who identifies as Jesus.
“Western Kenya is heaven! Mashemeji have Jehovah Wanyonyi, Yesu wa Tongaren and Mary, Mother of Jesus!” Kaluma exclaimed.
His remarks come after Judith Nafula, a woman from Busia County, stunned locals and religious leaders alike after declaring she is the biblical Virgin Mary.
Her announcement follows her expulsion from Lwanya Catholic Church, where she had been accused of misleading churchgoers by staging miracles.
Nafula, however, has remained defiant. Speaking to journalists on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, she described a dramatic divine encounter that she says changed her life forever.
According to her, she was enveloped by a blinding light from the heavens, followed by a voice that identified itself as Christ. The voice, she said, told her that she was Mary, and it was time for her to reveal her true identity.
“Light ilitoka juu ikashuka chini na sauti ikatoka katikati, ikasema mimi ni Christ, nimetumwa na baba, natafuta Mama Maria. Nikamjibu, mimi sijui Mama Maria, akaniambia ‘ni wewe, ni kitu ilikuwa imejificha na wakati umewadia uweze kujitambulisha,’” she told reporters.
Loosely translated as;
“Light came from above and descended, and a voice came from the midst of it, saying, ‘I am Christ, sent by the Father, I am looking for Mama Maria.’ I responded, ‘I don’t know Mama Maria,’ and he told me, ‘It is you, it was something that had been hidden, and the time has come for you to reveal yourself.’”
Nafula went on to say that after the encounter, she retreated to a hill in her village where she spent two months in seclusion. There, she claimed to receive nightly visions from the moon, which she said descended and spoke to her.
In her account, the moon revealed messages to her each night and instructed her to warn the people that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.
“Uyo mlima nililala kwa miezi miwili, nikiwa pale, muezi unashuka chini unanionyesha kila kitu. Ikifika asubui, ananiambia, ‘enda ambia watu Yesu wa Nazareth anapita,‘” she said.
Loosely translated as;
“That mountain, I slept there for two months. While I was there, the moon would come down and show me everything. When morning came, it would tell me, ‘Go and tell the people that Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.’”
Prayers and miracles
Her husband, who has now adopted the biblical identity of Joseph, also shared his perspective. He admitted that the events caught him by surprise, but he has since accepted them as divine truth after others in the village seemed to confirm the revelation.
“Kutoka saa iyo mimi nilishtuka sana. Wakamwambia kuwa yeye ni Maria. Baada ya kumuongelesha wakaniambia mimi ni Joseph. Na Mungu ni wa ajabu, sijui watu walijua aje ati maombi huwa inaendelea apa. Nilishtukia tu watu wanakuja. Watu wanakuja kuombewa,” he said.
He added that people began arriving at their home uninvited, seeking healing and prayers. According to the couple, the visits have become frequent, and some villagers claim to have experienced miracles.
Nafula’s sister-in-law also stood by her, saying many locals believe in her spiritual gifts.
She said barren women had begun conceiving after interacting with Nafula, and others had reported healing from illnesses.
“Kijiji chote wanamjua, na ni watu wengi wamepona. Wenye walikuwa hawazai, wakaanza kuzaa.”
Still, not everyone is convinced. Nafula acknowledged that some villagers have questioned her mental health, with a few accusing her husband of using supernatural forces to manipulate her.
“Kuna watu walisema mimi ni wazimu wakati nilisema iyo kitu. Wengine wakasema bwana yangu alinunua majini akaniwekea.”
Holy trinity
The bizarre claim is the latest in a string of unusual religious proclamations from Western Kenya, a region that has earned a reputation in recent years for being a hotbed of self-styled messiahs and divine figures.
One of the most well-known is Eliud Wekesa, popularly known as Yesu wa Tongaren. A native of Bungoma County, Wekesa leads a religious group called the New Jerusalem sect and insists he is the reincarnation of Jesus Christ, having been anointed in a vision in 2009.
His followers treat him as a holy figure and refer to his wife as The Queen. The sect adheres to strict rules, including fasting, unique dressing, and belief in selective salvation. Only 168,000 people worldwide will go to heaven, according to Wekesa.
He has previously said Easter should be celebrated in July and claimed that only two people from Nairobi would make it to heaven. In 2023, Wekesa was arrested on allegations of cultism and radicalisation, but he was released due to a lack of evidence. Despite criticism from religious leaders, he has remained active and even collaborated with Amref Health Africa on health campaigns in his village.
Before him was the now-deceased Jehovah Wanyonyi, who led the Lost Israelites Ministries. He claimed to be God and had thousands of followers who believed in his power to heal. Even after he died in 2015, some of his disciples still await his resurrection.
