FORMER MISSIONARY PRIEST SANDRO FERRETTO, 55, MARRIES SHARON JEPNG’OK AFTER YEARS OF SERVICE IN KENYA
An Italian-born Catholic priest, Sandro Ferretto, has left the Catholic priesthood and married a Kenyan woman, Sharon Jepng’ok, in a traditional ceremony in Baringo County, Kenya.
Ferretto, 55, reportedly exchanged vows with Jepng’ok during a Koito ceremony, a traditional Kalenjin marriage rite involving family negotiations, dowry arrangements and blessings from relatives and community elders.
The ceremony was held on Sunday, September 6, at Seretion village in Kasiela, an area where Ferretto previously served as a Catholic parish priest.
The union attracted relatives, community elders, local leaders and colleagues of Jepng’ok, as well as members of the local community who knew Ferretto during his years of missionary service.
Ferretto was ordained a Catholic priest for the Diocese of Padua in Italy before travelling to Kenya in 2008 as a missionary.
During his years in Kenya, he served communities in Kasiela and Mochongoi under the Diocese of Nyahururu. He reportedly became known for his pastoral activities, youth programmes and community development initiatives.
He returned to Italy in December 2020 alongside fellow missionary priest Mariano Dal Ponte.
By 2023, Ferretto was leading a pastoral unit in Saletto, Borgo Veneto, where he was responsible for eight churches. He later stepped away from the position for a period of reflection.
Ferretto subsequently returned to Kenya, where he reunited with Jepng’ok, whom he had reportedly met during his missionary years in Baringo.
Their relationship and subsequent marriage have attracted attention in Kenya and Italy, particularly because of Ferretto’s longstanding connection with the Baringo community and his decision to leave Catholic priesthood for family life.
Under Latin Catholic canon law, Catholic priests are ordinarily required to observe celibacy.
Canon 277 of the Code of Canon Law states that clerics are obliged to observe perfect and perpetual continence and are therefore bound to celibacy.
Canon 1087 further provides that men in sacred orders cannot validly contract marriage while remaining in that state.
Consequently, a Catholic priest who wishes to marry must first obtain the necessary dispensation from the obligations associated with clerical celibacy and/or be dismissed from the clerical state in accordance with applicable Church procedures.
Ferretto’s marriage therefore represents a significant transition from more than a decade of Catholic missionary and pastoral service to a new chapter of family life in Kenya.
The ceremony has generated considerable interest among residents of Baringo, where the former priest spent years working with local communities.
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