Indeed, most of us like to be “home” with family for Christmas. Interestingly, that was not the case for two humble Jewish villagers, Mary and Joseph, living under the shadow of the Roman Empire, finding themselves far from their home on the birth of their firstborn son, 2,000 years ago. In Fashoda County, South Sudan, the situation is worse than it was for Joseph and Mary. People’s homes and communities are being burned to the ground, they are running for their lives, they are hiding in swamps, surrounded by floodwaters. The innocents have been targeted for death, the elderly, women, and children. Please pray for those in harm’s way, those who seek refuge, and those who need God’s supernatural intervention. Bob visited this area in August of this year, so it feels close to home. Two evangelists and several members of the South Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church have been killed in Fashoda this month.
Bob in Kodok with pastors and evangelists of SSPEC this year
We want to share a ‘call to prayer’ (below) from the Stated Clerk of the Presbyterian Church (USA) this month, and invite you to join thousands of hands and hearts in prayer for the people of Upper Nile in South Sudan this Christmas Season. Shukran! Thank you.
Dear friends in Christ,
I urge you to join me in prayer for justice and peace for the people of the young nation of South Sudan.
Within the last few months, relatively localized fighting between two groups in the Upper Nile region of South Sudan has gradually become a more widespread conflict between the Shilluk and the Nuer peoples, two ethnic groups who used to live peacefully together. The latest reports indicate that more than 3,000 people — mostly women, children, and elderly people — have been killed in Fashoda county.
This situation is made even more dire due to heavy flooding in the region, so survivors have had to flee their homes and are living on small “islands” of land or seeking shelter in camps for displaced persons. Many people have no way of contacting their loved ones, so they do not know if they have been killed or if they are alive and displaced or in hiding.
Let us be in prayer for the people of South Sudan, especially those who carry the burden of this ongoing conflict — the women, children, and the elderly. Pray also for our Global partners, the South Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church, the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan, RECONCILE, ACROSS and the South Sudan Council of Churches. Pray that God will give wisdom to these partners as they minister to their fellow South Sudanese and that they can be a voice to the leaders of the country. Let us pray for the leaders of South Sudan that they will put peace, genuine security and the dignity of all the people of South Sudan as the priority of their leadership.
Pray also for the anticipated joint ecumenical visit to South Sudan by Presbyterians, Anglicans and Catholics in early 2023. May this visit bring hope to the people of South Sudan and prompt meaningful action to address the suffering of the people.
I would also invite those who feel able to do so to contribute to the PC(USA)’s efforts to accompany and support our partners’ ministries by making gifts to:
DR000097-South Sudan, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance’s crisis response and recovery initiatives in South Sudan
E051172, Presbyterian World Mission’s South Sudan Education and Peacebuilding Project
E052152, the Presbyterian Ministry at the United Nations and the Office of Public Witness in Washington, D.C., help to amplify our partners’ voices in the public square.
Let us look to God, our help, our hope and our salvation.
Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II Stated Clerk of the General Assembly Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
Call to prayer published by PC(USA) News Service here.
On our drive from the airport to our guest house in Akobo,
we saw a busy and colorful market with a mix of goods from Ethiopia, Sudan, and
other places. We were told that in the wet season the main roads of the town
are barely passable due to the thick clay-mud that forms. Now that dry season
had arrived, the clay hardened into firm ‘rocks’ with big cracks in between, so
that you always had to watch where you walked. In parts of the town, the road was
lined by big trees that gave shade over the road. My colleague lamented that those
who planted the trees decades ago did not plant fruit trees that would produce
something useful for the people. The town of Akobo is spread along the bank of
a river which has many tributaries coming off it. Many of the other nearby
villages are also along the rivers, so water is a common mode of transport.
The main road through Akobo, lined with trees
kids playing and washing in the river
Our workshop was to start on December 1. But on that morning
as we prepared to start, we learned that each year the churches in town hold a
march and combined worship service to celebrate the beginning of the Christmas
season. At six in the morning we heard the drums and singing as people marched,
and we found our way to the church by following the sound of singing. We started
our workshop just as their service was ending, setting up in the shade of a big
tree next to the church building.
The first day of the workshop. We were grateful for a big tree!
We moved the chairs around as the shade moved through the day. :)
During introductions at the beginning of the workshop, we learned
that participants came from the four different ‘payams’ (districts) of Akobo,
and a diverse representation of chiefs and members of local government, church leaders
and members, men and women, older people and youth. We were told that the
primary conflict in Akobo is between clans based in the four different payams,
so we were happy that people came from all the regions, even if some had to
travel by canoe or cross rivers to get there. We discussed the overall purpose
of the workshop and the expectations that people had. There are many humanitarian
organizations as well as the United Nations working in South Sudan, even in remote
corners like Akobo, so a workshop is a common occurrence, particularly for
leaders. This meant expectations were high, including things like receiving a
t-shirt, sitting allowance (to compensate for the work they were missing), and
even requests for things like raincoats and tarps. It was a difficult
conversation and reality check for our team and also for all the participants;
we all came to an understanding about what we could provide and why we were not
meeting all of their expectations.
We were given a ‘security briefing’ when we checked in with
the humanitarian organization that was giving us lodging. “The security
situation is relatively stable right now,” the staff person said, “so if you
hear gunshots it is probably either a celebration or a revenge killing.” On our
third day, we heard the gunshots late at night, and learned the following
morning that someone had been killed in a revenge attack between the clans in two different payams. It was the final day
of our workshop, and we wondered how our participants were affected by the killing
and whether they would be able to come. We were pleasantly surprised to see
almost all of the participants made it that day, which showed the value that
they placed on the workshop and their commitment to promote peace.
Doing a drama about our identity in the holy nation that God calls us to (1 Peter 2:9)
On the second day of the training, we were talking about
wounds in our hearts. One older man raised is hand and said “since you’ve been
digging at my wound for the last two days, I have to speak it out. I had a conflict
once, and one of the men here was the judge of the local court over my case. He
did not give me my right in the case, but instead gave favor to one of his
relatives. I have been angry with him ever since. But now I forgive him. I don’t
hold it against him anymore.” He stood up and reached over to the man he had referred
to, who also stood up and they shook hands warmly, both smiling.
Pastor John Lam from Akobo teaches about the church.
The man in the front row (second from right) is the one
who stood up to forgive another participant.
We heard several testimonies on the third morning of the
workshop of how God was working in people’s lives. One woman said “All of these
teachings were about me. I think they came to Akobo just for me, because this
is what I needed to hear.” She then described how she had been abused by her
husband and finally separated from him when he continued to mistreat her and
her children and did nothing to help or provide for them. She has struggled with
bitterness and anger against him. She said that she now forgives him and feels
free in her heart, although she will not return to her husband. She even said
that if she were able she would call her husband on the phone right there to
prove to us that she has forgiven him.
A woman sharing her testimony on the second day
Participants put their papers with their pain writtenon it in a basket at the cross, sybmolizing giving it over to Jesus
We conducted the workshop in Nuer, since that is the common
language in Akobo. We always like to have a diverse teaching team, so we had two
Nuer from different regions, a Dinka woman, and me. And because Mama Sarah (the
Dinka) has a remarkable gift for languages and heart for people, she was able
to teach in Nuer. This made discussion and sharing much easier when we did not
have to translate very often. One of the SSPEC pastors in Akobo, Rev. John Lam,
was trained to facilitate the workshop in March of this year. He coordinated
all the logistics in advance of our coming, including inviting participants,
and also taught one of the sessions. We
were very grateful to have someone local who had experienced the workshop and knew
what to expect.
Our team of facilitators who came from Juba
Near the end of the workshop is the ‘Standing in the Gap’
session about corporate repentance. When the opportunity was given for people to
repent, Mama Sarah was the first one to confess the ways that her people, the Dinka,
had hurt the people of Akobo. A woman came up in response to Mama Sarah’s
confession and shared that some of her relatives had been killed by Dinka
people and she had been filled with anger and hurt towards them. But now she
felt able to forgive and warmly expressed her forgiveness and thanks to Mama Sarah.
Others also shared how significant it was to hear her acknowledge how they had
been hurt and expressed forgiveness. Nyakuma, who was facilitating the session,
then invited me to come and confess the wrongs done by my British and European ancestors
that has harmed those in Akobo. I named a few of the more significant ways that
those in Europe and America have caused harm in South Sudan, particularly
coming with an attitude of superiority and taking the freedom to exploit the
people and the natural resources. As I was sharing, the participants started clapping – I think they were surprised and pleased to hear someone acknowledge how our
actions from the West had contributed to their suffering.
A man responds to Mama Sarah's confession with forgiveness
We capped off the workshop with a celebration of being God's Holy Nation, where all people are included and valued. The people from each payam stood up in turn and the rest of us affirmed the good qualities and talents from that community. Then we blessed them and spoke out the good things we wished for them before they shared a dance or song from their community. It was so beautiful to see how eager people were to affirm the other groups and the collective joy as we celebrated each others' cultures. Knowing the backdrop of the pain and conflict that these participants carry, to experience the joy of celebration together was a real gift and I pray that it gave them as much hope as it did for me.
Giving people crowns to symbolize that each of us a citizen of God's Holy Nation
Affirming each community by sharing the things we appreciate about them
Participants who live in the town of Akobo sing a song celebrating their town
During the crisis and war which began in South Sudan in December 2013, entire populations were displaced from their home regions, and their institutions often moved with them. One such institution is Giffen Institute of Theology (GIT), formerly in Malakal (Upper Nile), now located in Kakuma Refugee Camp in the far northwest corner of Kenya.
Students, Faculty and Staff of GIT (Kakuma Refugee Camp)
Dramatic flight with Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) from Juba to northwest Kenya
Rev. Paul Ruot Kor, a former student who has become a friend, currently serves as principal. Rev. Paul has been serving as a pastor for more than forty years and has much to offer students at GIT. As an historian, Rev. Paul suggests that GIT has trained and graduated more Presbyterian pastors in South Sudan than any other institution. It was a great joy for me to visit my friend Paul, to collaborate together with him, to go into the camp each day, to help teach a couple of classes, to share from the book of Job during chapel, to spend time with faculty, staff, and students, to gain a better understanding of life at the school, the joys and the challenges, and to experience life in the camp which included one of the part-time teachers being robbed one morning while I was there.
Rev. Paul Ruot at his desk in his office at GIT;
we had some nice discussions together about faith and culture
Rev. Ruot and I teach on the Trinity;
Rev. Ruot explains the Godhead as "three in one" in the local Nuer language
It was also a joy to meet Rev. Paul’s wife and child and eat the wonderful “kop” together which his wife had prepared. It was also nice to have time together whereby I could query my friend concerning my own research interests, namely concerning Nyarial (Eleanor Vandevort, former missionary to Sudan) and her Nuer brother, Rev. Moses Kuac Nyoat, the first Nuer pastor in southern Sudan.
Rev. Ruot with wife and child (to my right in photo) Faculty member and community member (to my left)
Eleanor Vandevort (Nyarial) in Nasir, circa 1950s Former missionary to Sudan, friend to the Nuer people
Rev. Moses Kuac Nyoat first Nuer pastor and friend to Nyarial Rev. Ruot spent time as a young pastor learning about and from Kuac Nyoat
I am grateful for Rev. Ruot's invitation for me to come visit him at GIT in Kakuma Refugee Camp!
This month I was in Rwanda for two big events related to the
Healing Hearts, Transforming Nations (HHTN) workshop that we have been doing in
South Sudan. First, I served on the facilitation team of the International
School of Reconciliation (ISOR), training new facilitators for this workshop who came
from nine different countries. It was an intense time of learning and sharing
together as we faced the wounds within us and within our countries. Nearly 10
delegates came from Ethiopia, where war is devastating the country and the
social fabric. Four South Sudanese pastors came from northern Uganda, where
they live in refugee camps after fleeing their homes in South Sudan during the
crisis of 2016.
All participants, facilitators, and staff at the graduation
of the International School of Reconciliation
With a couple of the women from South Sudan at the graduation
At the end of the training, the new facilitators conduct HHTN
workshops in groups in the community. I helped to coach one group as they
prepared to teach, including learning dramas and figuring out how to make the
teaching interactive and personal. Teaching in a workshop in a way that touches
the heart and not just the head is not easy! Add to that the language challenge
– most of our new facilitators were not Rwandan, so they spoke in English which was translated into Kinyarwanda. But they also do not speak English as their
first language, so they are having to teach in a language that is not their most
comfortable language. For some, this meant laboriously writing out what they
wanted to say to make sure they would be clear. I was humbled and blessed by
the hard work and caring hearts that each person in my group demonstrated. A
few of them even incorporated testimonies of their own pain into their
teaching which I know is difficult, but it served to open up the hearts of
participants and give them hope for healing in they heard how God can bring healing.
A drama illustrates the challenge of bringing our pain to God
A Celebration of the Holy Nation at the end of the workshop
The second big event was a forum for practitioners who are
using this workshop in healing and reconciliation ministries in this region of
East Africa. It was a rich and meaningful time together, and I got to meet some
faithful heroes that I have heard about for years. One group serves in Eastern
Congo, visiting remote villages and promoting healing in places that have been
repeatedly terrorized by militia. Four of us from South Sudan attended the
forum, and it was inspiring to learn from others and see that ours is not the
only country with challenges of instability and conflict!
Participants at the forum
One of the central
parts of the HHTN workshop is the session on the cross, where we take our pain
to Jesus as the pain-bearer (Isaiah 53:4). During the forum, there was a chance
for all of us who regularly conduct the cross workshop for others to
participate in it ourselves, sharing our pain and giving it over to Jesus. As
we stood together around the cross, several people shared of deep pain that
weighed them down and we prayed together for freedom and healing. I was grateful
for this safe space where all of us who are pour out for lives for others could
share our own pain and find love and support.
each of us nails our pain to the cross
Our group from South Sudan, along with colleague George DeVyst, a missionary who serves the people of Ukraine
A 'Unity football game' in the community
I give thanks for this gift of connection, inspiration, and equipping with others in this ministry. Please pray with us that God continues to use us as agents of healing and reconciliation in South Sudan, and brings the transformation and wholeness that only God can bring.
Amidst the crowd outside the Konyokonyo market, I saw Zechariah Zechariah Adam, my former student. Zechariah smiled warmly as he reached through the throng to greet me. Though it was loud and difficult to hear one another, his message was clear and gave me a sense of wonder and joy. Zechariah related to me how he was now working with children who lived on the street. “Wow! That is wonderful.” I responded. Previously, as Zechariah’s teacher, I had had the vision that Zechariah would excel working with children, especially those living on the margins. Zechariah’s gentleness, humility, deep spirituality, and strong commitment would make him an excellent candidate for such work.
Zechariah Zechariah Adam
Some weeks later, Zechariah would tell me that it was during the evangelism class I taught at Nile Theological College whereby God had inspired him along these lines. As part of that course, the final project for students was a practicum whereby groups of students would go out to the “bleeding points” of the city, to those places of great desperation and need to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. And so, out from the college they went, to prisons, hospitals, markets, orphanages, and streets, sharing the Gospel with those who needed a message of hope. Even as Jesus has sent out the seventy-two who returned with remarkable stories, my students went out and returned with glorious stories of how God had used them in manifold ways.
Ogud, one my former students, hold a child at a local transitional home called "Confident Children out of Conflict (CCC)
Before Zechariah and I separated on that day near the Konyokonyo market, we exchanged phone numbers. He wanted me to come preach to the group of marginalized children to whom he was ministering. It took several weeks for us to finally align our schedules, but on a Saturday morning in early June my friend Albino and I went across the river to the Sherikat market where we met Zechariah. Zechariah took us to the compound of the ministry, a ministry to vulnerable children supported by Christians in Egypt. Albino and I sat and waited as Zechariah and the ministry staff made final preparations for the day. We learned that every Saturday vulnerable children are welcomed off the street to have their wounds cleaned, to participate in an energetic worship service, to receive a hot meal and be given a bar of soap to wash their bodies and clothes before leaving. This ministry is a drop-in-center, whereby the children can also visit during the week and receive help for various needs.
Children living on the streets, Juba Photo Credit: MAF International, South Sudan
Our time worshiping with the children is one of the singular wonders and glories I have experienced in South Sudan. Imagine, an entire congregation filled with the most lowly, destitute, abandoned, and marginalized members of society. This was Jesus’ kind of crowd. These children knew that they had a need and they opened themselves up to me and my friend Albino like flowers open to the sun. As we worshiped in song, we all danced to the beat and sang, jumping back and forth, patting each other on the hands. The atmosphere felt simple and innocent, but it was also electric with the power and presence and love of God. Truly, how can one not be a conduit of God’s love and care in such a place?
These children crave attention and affection despite the hardened exterior which life on the streets had foisted upon them. In this enclosed and safe environment, these children could express a dimension of themselves which was seldom seen or known to suspicious shop keepers and annoyed pedestrians. As a visitor, I could feel the level of intentional care and dignity being given to these children by Pastor Zechariah and members of the ministry staff. My heart was also touched to see two Egyptian men quietly doing “behind the scenes” work to support the ministry. They sought no accolades or commendation; they were simply supporting Zechariah and his staff who were doing direct ministry with these children.
I went home that day feeling energized. Pastor Zechariah gave me a “standing invitation” to return to visit this ministry anytime. I hope to visit again soon. Thank you for your prayers as Kristi and I seek to serve amongst marginalized persons and communities here in South Sudan.
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