| Strathmore and Opus Dei |
Opus Dei provides spiritual and doctrinal orientation for the University. Opus Dei, is an institution erected by Pope John Paul II as the first personal Prelature in the catholic Church. It therefore, ensures that the ethical teachings on human dignity and social justice help give a Christian focus to the whole variety of opinions and points of view to be found in the world of business and information technology. It does this by including courses of ethics in the curricula of all Strathmore's training programmes. It also provides Strathmore with a chaplain who gives spiritual counselling to anyone who may wish to receive it. The involvement of Opus Dei in Strathmore, therefore, is strictly in the sphere of ethics. It does not take part in temporal matters as such, since these are by themselves subject to the opinions of men. It leaves individuals free to express opinions on these matters in a way that concur with their own perception of things. Opus Dei assumes this moral responsibility toward Strathmore convinced that the University's services are directly relevant to society. Strathmore University was set up as a private institution, like many others in Kenya that are started and run by groups of people who get together for that purpose. It is not an ecclesiastical ('church') organisation in any way, juridically or in fact. Strathmore Educational Trust - Registered Trustees owns and formulates the policies of the University. The trustees are in turn assisted by: the University Council, the Academic Council and the Management Board which organises and controls the day-to-day running of the University. The University receives its funding largely from fees paid by its students. The Government of Kenya donated the property on which the University is currently located: the Madaraka Campus. The European Union and the Italian Government funded the initial set-up of the current facilities, both buildings and equipment. The European Union is currently assisting in the second phase of the development of the University and the setting up of a new Bursary Fund.
As the former Prelate of Opus Dei, Bishop Álvaro del Portillo, said: "The only corporate activities of the Prelature consist in providing spiritual assistance to its members and, in well defined cases which are publicly known, assuming the responsibility for the Christian training given in some centres of an educational, cultural, social or charitable nature". Strathmore University comes under the latter as an educational and social centre.
Other websites: http://www.josemariaescriva.info/ http://www.escrivaworks.org/ http://en.romana.org/ |
Strathmore runs a bursary scheme for a number of needy and deserving students. Among local donations are those of the faithful of the 
Earlier, Opus Dei's founder, Saint Josemaría Escrivá, in describing the corporate undertakings of Opus Dei, said: "In all countries in which it works, Opus Dei does carry out social, educational and welfare projects. Our criterion in this field is that Opus Dei, whose aims are exclusively spiritual, can only carry out corporately activities which clearly provide an immediate Christian service, an apostolate. It would be ridiculous to think that Opus Dei as such could operate a mine or run any type of commercial venture. Its corporate works are all directly apostolic activities: training centres for farm workers, medical dispensaries in developing countries, schools for girls from underprivileged families. In other words, educational or welfare activities like those carried on throughout the world by organisations of every religious creed."