Willson Lecture 1 – Jubilee and Decolonization: Navigating the Colonial Past to Redefine a Decolonized Future in African Quakerism. Featuring Prof. Esther Mombo

Professor Esther Mombo teaches at St. Paul’s University in Limuru, Kenya, where she has served for fourteen years in senior management positions of Academic dean and Deputy Vice-chancellor of Academic Affairs (DVCAA) Director at St. Paul’s Lifelong Learning Institute, Director of International Partnerships and Alumni Relations. Her research and teaching interests span the fields of Church History, with a focus on Mission History, interfaith Relations, and Theology & Gender Studies, with a focus on African women’s Theologies.

While connected to the University of St. Paul’s, the University of Dublin, and the University of Edinburgh, she has directed and examined postgraduate students in research, most of whom are serving the church in different capacities, including senior church leadership, organizations, and academia. She has mentored students, especially women who now serve in church religious organizations and academic institutions in different parts of the world. She has served as an external examiner for postgraduate students in several universities, including African International University, Kenyatta University, Makumira University in Tanzania, and Kwa Zulu Natal, and Pretoria Universities in South Africa.

In 2007, she was awarded an honorary doctorate by Virginia Theological Seminary for her work in bringing to the fore issues of gender disparity and gender justice in Church and society. In 2023, she was awarded another honorary doctorate by her alma mater, the University of Edinburgh.

Professor Mombo has been a visiting professor at several universities, including the Ethiopian Graduate School of Theology (EGEST), Bright School of Divinity at Texas Christian University, Graduate Institute of Theology in Yonseo University Seoul, South Korea, Candler School of Theology, Emory University and Utrecht University. Professor Mombo has served in several ecumenical committees including co-chair of the Commission of Education and Ecumenical Formation of the World Council of Churches. She is chair of the African Contemporary Institute of Research in Africa(AICMAR) and the East African Co-ordinator of the Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians (CCAWT). Currently, she serves on these boards: American Friends Service Commission and Friends World Committee of Consultation. I serve on these high school boards: Gianchere High School in Kisii County and Umoja High School in Kiambu County.

Professor Mombo has written extensively, and some of her work can be found here.

Free Admission