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The Holy Trinity Church in Africa (HTCA) is an African Indigenous Church that teed off from the Church of Christ in Africa (CCA) in 1965. It has its headquarters in Kisumu. The Church of Christ in Africa broke away from the Anglican Church in 1957, after a long struggle over theological and administrative issues, aggravated by a radicalized revivalism movement.
The revivalism movement had started in Rwanda in 1948, and its wave spread very fast within the Eastern Africa countries that challenged the way Christian faith was packaged by the Church Missionary Society (Anglican Church). In 1950, Anglican Diocese of Maseno, Kenya sent a delegation comprised majorly of the laity to a revival conference in Uganda. Upon coming back in 1952, members of the delegations who attended the Uganda conference started revival teachings that brought sharp divisions in the Maseno Diocese of CMS. In June,1957, CMS Diocese of Maseno became engulfed in total chaos from the two opposing revival groups, that even the then Archbishop of Anglican Church in East Africa, Rev. L.J. Beecher, and Rev. Festus Olan’g, his assistant and then the presiding Bishop of Maseno Diocese were not able to pacify.
In September 1957, the revival movement led by Reverends Matthew Ajuoga and Meshack Owira officially left Anglican Church Maseno and formed a religious group known as Johera (Luo word for people of love).
In December 1965, a group of pastors would later decamp CCA to register HTCA. They were led by Reverend Meshack Ezekiel Owira, and the other Pastors were Reverends Isaiah Ndisi, Phillip Okungu, William Ogada, Matthews Owino, Laban Ombech, Hezekiah Warinda, Rev. Odaa, Rev. Agen’go, Rev. Makangíela, Bartholomew Odwe, Absalom Oyoo and Joshua Aluoch Gawo.
The church has therefore been led by the late Bishop Emeritus Meshack Ezekiel Owira, the late Archbishop Joshua Aluoch Gawo, the late Archbishop Adelewa Aura, the late Archbishop Job Ogutu Were, and the current Archbishop Elisha Ochola Ako. The church has maintained a sustained growth in Kenya, and recently in February 2024 consecrated their first bishop in Tanzania.
