Kijiji
Exploring rites of passage for encouraging healthy life transitions in modern community contexts
Our 2019 John A. Gration Lecturer, Dr. Muhia Karianjahi '03, will lay out a basic anatomy of rites of passage as described by Arnold Van Gennep at the turn of the 20th century, and examples in pre-industrial, traditional, and contemporary societies. He will explore the efficacy of rites of passage as scaffoldings for successful life transitions and propose how they can build village-like (Kijiji in Kiswahili) communities today for human flourishing.
Thursday, November 14, 7:00pm | Phelps, Lower Beamer Center
2019 Lecturer - Muhia Karianjahi, Ph.D.
Dr. Karianjahi is a Kenyan living in Three Lakes, Wisconsin with his wife and two young adult sons. He coordinates the Global Initiatives and MA in Outdoor and Adventure Leadership programs at HoneyRock, and the Outdoor Center for Leadership Development at Wheaton College.
Prior to coming to Wheaton, Dr. Karianjahi initiated and worked in various capacities for the Tanari Trust, a youth-centered ministry owned by five non-denominational churches in Nairobi that designs and implements youth ministry innovations such as contemporary Christian rites of passage in the East African Region.
He is currently on the board of Christian Camping International Worldwide, has consulted on leadership and youth programming in Kenya with organizations that include the Government of Kenya, USAID, Mercy Corps and the World Bank, and has served as convener and chair of the inaugural board of Christian Camping International-Eastern Africa.
Dr. Karianjahi earned his Ph.D. in Education Studies from Biola University, M.A. Interdisciplinary studies – Education and Intercultural studies at Wheaton, and B.Sc. (Honors) in Civil Engineering at the University of Nairobi.