This church grew out of a private venture. In 1891 a group of missionaries established a station at Kibwezi. At the end of the century, a new site was chosen in Kikuyu. In 1901 the Church of Scotland took responsibility for the work, continuing to combine evangelistic, educational, medical, and agricultural work. The development of the church was slow. The first baptism took place in 1907, and by 1913 membership had grown to only 87. In 1920 the first Kikuyu Kirk Session was set up which, together with the (white) Nairobi Kirk Session, formed the Presbytery of Kenya Colony. In 1926 the first eight Kenyans were ordained to the ministry (three came from Thoyoto, five from Tumutumu). In 1929 the issue of female cir-cumcision led to a controversy both in the church and the public arena. The decision of the church to declare circumcision incompatible with the Christian faith was regarded by Kikuyu leaders as an interference with their traditional customs and was rejected. Gradually church leadership passed into African hands. In 1945 the presby of Chania, which had resulted from the work of the (American) Gospel Missionary Society, became part of the Presbyterian Church of East Africa. In the ’40s and ’50s membership quickly rose, and in 1956 the church became fully inde-pendent, with a new constitution. The independent church also included the (white) Overseas Presbytery of Kenya (with a congregation in Dar es Salaam and one in Kampala), which had constituted itself separately in 1936. In 1964 the first Kenyan General Secretary, John Gatu, was appointed (1964-1979).
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