This archive report was first published on 1 November 2019.
Published on November 1, 2019, Jacinta Nzilani, a Kenyan openly gay pastor, revealed that she discovered her attraction to women at the age of 16.
Ms. Nzilani, a widow and mother of three, spoke about her sexual orientation during a recent interview with a local radio station.
She recalled, 'When I was 16, I realized that I was attracted to women more than men. It is not a habit, it is something that is inside me.'
At 18, she joined a nunnery to become a sister in the Catholic Church but dropped out days later after a priest in Machakos County asked her out, leaving her feeling bruised and ridiculed.
Ms. Nzilani's 25-year marriage was also marked by unhappiness and forced intimacy, which ended with her husband's passing in 2008.
After her husband's death, she faced further challenges, including the loss of her church members and her son's depression.
It was during this difficult time that she started a program to interact with women and understand them, leading to her first lesbian relationship.
Ms. Nzilani later met her current partner, a fellow evangelist who understands and supports her.
When asked about her views on homosexuality, she quoted John 3:16, saying that God's love has no barrier and that she was created as a lesbian.
