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
.jpg)
