1. Gaudencia Aoko Founded Legio Maria: This is a misconception.
Aoko joined Legio Maria in 1963; one year after Legion had been founded.
Officially, Simeo Melkio and Mama Maria met in John Baru’s home in 1962 and
Legion Maria was founded a few weeks later on 9th March 1962. Nevertheless,
Gaudencia Aoko’s efforts in the development of the new movement must be
recognized because she played a huge role in converting many people and
spreading the movement.
2. Gaudencia Aoko is Mama Maria: This is a lie.
Gaudencia Aoko was in her early 20s when she joined Legion Maria in 1963. She
was born in Kano and married to Simeo Owiti. She was introduced to Simeo Ondeto
and Mama Maria by her brother-in-law, John Muga, when she had seen visions of
Mary and Jesus inviting her to join a Marian movement. On the other hand, Mama
Maria was an old woman of around 90 years of age by 1963 when Aoko joined Legio
Maria. Nobody knew where Maria was born.
Mama Maria died in December 1966 and was buried in Ephesus Nzoia, while
Aoko lived on and by 1968 took Simeo Ondeto to court claiming that she was the
real founder and true leader of Legion Maria. Aoko then left the movement and
founded her own church.
3. Legio Maria members do not shave their hair: This
is a misconception. Yes, there are certain orders of prophets in Legion Maria
who live like the traditional Nazarenes, Samson, and biblical prophets who
never shaved their hair. For such prophets, it is their responsibility to keep
their hair clean and neat. But for the rest of Legion Maria members, shaving is
a matter of individual choice. There is
no doctrine controlling how and when people should shave their hair.
4. All Legion Maria Leaders have long hair and dirty dreads:
This is a lie. In fact, almost all Legion Maria leaders do not have dreads and
have shaved/trimmed their hair well. Dreads in Legion Maria are only common
among prophets, but these prophets are not ordained leaders of the church and
are not, therefore, supposed to be considered official leaders.
5. Legion Maria members do not dance: This is a
misconception. From the very start of the church, when the Holy Spirit filled
the faithful, Legio members danced to specific songs. For instance, there is a
common dance to the song “Agnus Dei, Kyrie Gloria”. The Kyrie Gloria dance was so common that it
was used and practiced by prophets who laid hands on faithful members to
receive the gift of prophecy. Apart from Kyrie Gloria dance, Legios may dance
during fundraisings and happy occasions where they are in jovial mood and are
simply enjoying themselves. As a common practice, however, Legion Maria members
do not dance to secular music and do not attend dance parties and discos. They
also do not dance routinely during church services and prayers.
6. Legion Maria members do not read the Bible: This
is a lie. Legios use the bible as often as Christians do. However, because the services are conducted
by priests who perform the Holy Mass and other rites according to pre-set
guidelines, and who read the Bible to the faithful as they conduct the
services, there is no general call to reading and studying the Bible. Every
individual member of the religious movement chooses when to read the Bible and
there is no direction or guide book the members use.
7. Legio Maria members do not go to hospital: This is
a misconception. Simeo Ondeto himself was medically treated when he had been
poisoned. Pope Timothy Atila went to hospital often and even died in
hospital. Pope Chiaji Lawrence went to
hospital when sick and even died in hospital. There is no rule or doctrine or
teaching of Simeo Ondeto that warns against going to hospital when sick. In
fact, Simeo specifically taught people who are suffering from HIV/AIDs and
syphilis that they had to go to hospital for medical attention.
8. Legion Maria members must remove their Six Lower Teeth:
This is a misconception. Today, 55% of all Legion Maria members have not
removed their six lower teeth. The removal of six lower teeth is a luo
tradition that was imported to the new movement by the majority Luo
traditionalists who joined Legion. Slowly, it was accepted by members as it was
a way of seeking uniformity with older members. But it was not a doctrine. The
First Legion Maria pope Timothy Atila did not remove his six lower teeth and
later with age removed his teeth in a dentist clinic. Simeo Ondeto also did not
remove his six lower teeth and he only lost his teeth during an accident at
Mawego Kobuya. Therefore, it is a matter of choice as to whether someone
removes his teeth or not as there is no tangible spiritual basis for it.
Besides, the promoters of teeth removal do not have substantial reasons for
promoting it, except that they are seeking people to be Luos in the flesh like
them.
9. Legion Maria members are poor and unschooled: This
is a lie. Well, like Christianity whose founding members were majorly
fishermen, tax collectors and ordinary people, Legion Maria founding members
were people of little formal education and were generally poor. But soon, the
movement attracted different classes of society as it spread. By the late
1960s, it had attracted teachers, policemen, business people, graduates and
politicians. Today, at least 45% of members of the church have Grade 8
education, 23% are high school graduates while 12% are college and university
graduates.
10. Legion Maria movement is only for Luos: This is a lie. Legion Maria was predominantly
a luo movement at its foundation in 1962. But by 1965, it had attracted the
members of the Kisii, Luhya, Kamba, Kalenjin, Turkana and Mijikenda ethnic
groups of Kenya, and spread to the neighboring countries of Tanzania and
Uganda. By 1980, the movement had spread to Ethiopia, Zaire, South Sudan, Rwanda
and Burundi. Today, an estimated 27% of all Legion Maria members are not Luos.
