The Bee Sting

South Sudan is no stranger to division, brokenness, and pain. At the highest levels of government, within the church, within families, and across communities, what separates us defines us and keeps us from one another. Since 2013 alone, not to mention two previous horrific civil wars which lasted almost fifty years, hundreds of thousands of South Sudanese have been killed during an ethnic, internecine, and bloody civil war. Fear continues to walk alongside us, uncertainty calls our name, and violence runs deeply as the most trafficked way of relating to one other.

Into this maelstrom of fear, uncertainty, and violence, has entered messages of healing, peace, justice, and reconciliation. These messages were most recently brought by leaders from the highest levels of the ecclesial and religious landscape known to our twenty-first century. It is almost unbelievable, but for the first time in five hundred years, an ecumenical peace pilgrimage was made by Catholic, Anglican and Protestant leaders to South Sudan. Pope Francis, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, and Moderator of the Church of Scotland Rev. Iain Greenshields responded to an invitation to come to South Sudan after South Sudanese political and ecclesial leaders visited the Vatican in 2018. To have participated in this historic event last week was an amazing privilege and an unforgettable blessing.

On the plane as they leave Juba together on Sunday afternoon
Photo Credit: Church of Scotland

 

The events began in earnest Friday afternoon when the Pope arrived at the airport from Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. As the last vehicle in a long line of cars going to the airport to welcome Pope Francis on a sultry Friday afternoon, we stopped, and I marveled at the thousands of South Sudanese lined up peacefully and joyfully along the road. The immediate line of persons held hands, serving as a buffer, a human chain, shielding all safely behind. Those behind were beaded with drops of sweat, the unforgiving sun bearing down as they sang choruses and danced, sweet smiles from young and old greeting me. One group of Catholic pilgrims walked nine days to Juba; a woman among them said, "When you have smelled and seen death and hopelessness, then you will search for peace with all the might that you have." The true and enduring strength of South Sudan was on full display as we waited for Pope Francis.

The next few days were a whirlwind of activity. On Friday afternoon the three faith leaders and other notable faith leaders among them visited the President and the five Vice Presidents at the Presidential Palace. On Saturday morning each faith leader spent time with their respective faith communities. The Presbyterian Church of South Sudan and the South Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church hosted a reception and worship service today for the Rt. Rev. Dr. Iain Greenshields, Moderator of the Church of Scotland, and Rev. Shavon Starling-Louis of the Presbyterian Church (USA), along with other members and leaders from both denominational bodies. It was a joyous occasion with almost sixteen thousand in attendance, including Spirit inspired worship through song and messages about unity, love, and our shared history and hopes for our shared future. It was an extraordinary event, and it served as a reunion of sorts as Kristi and I saw many church leaders whom we know and several of my former students. Entering into that worship space in its magnitude defies description. Seeing the smiling, joyful faces welcome us into the huge blue and white tent will forever be etched on my soul.

Rev. Iain Greenshields of the Church of Scotland receives flowers
from a child upon arrival at reception/worship service 

The women of the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan 
joyfully greet our delegation as we arrive

Rev. Shavon Starling-Louis, Co-Moderator of the Presbyterian Church (USA)
gives a message on unity from Psalm 133   

That afternoon we joined hundreds at Freedom Hall where Pope Francis and the others welcomed internally displaced persons from all over South Sudan. Three children from the IDP camp in Malakal shared their stories of life in the camp and the significant challenges they face regarding daily life and schooling. 

Rev. Iain Greenshields, Moderator of the Church of Scotland greets a young man
from one of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps in South Sudan

Photo Credit: Church of Scotland (on FB page) 

With Colleagues Jeff Boyd and Sharon Kandel at a forum whereby the Pope and the 
two other leaders listen to the stories and realities of IDPs in South Sudan 

To our surprise, Kristi and I were included with the ecclesial leadership community, both from South Sudan and abroad on the stage where the Pope and others led us in an ecumenical prayer and worship service. The following morning I joined colleagues as we worshiped at the same venue, the John Garang Mausoleum, participating in the Mass with the masses. Both Saturday night and Sunday morning, it is reported that between fifty and seventy thousand people were present. Everyone who came walked long distances as there was no public transport in operation. Mama Lucia, a colleague and friend, told Kristi that she was so tired Saturday night when she finally arrived home after two hours of walking. Yet, she was there the next morning to help with a medical effort as people had no means to eat, had stayed at the worship site all night, and were now suffering from dehydration, lack of access to food and water, and a hot sun.

The Stage from where the Pope and other leaders led us in prayer at the 
Saturday evening Ecumenical Prayer Service
Photo Credit: Church of Scotland (FB page) 

Pope Francis compares the challenges of South Sudan with the 
children of Israel leaving Egypt, finding themselves in a hopeless
situation which requires God's intervention

Bishop Paride Taban of South Sudan, a true hero, listens to the Pope's message of peace;

Bishop Taban has been actively working for the peace of his people for over forty years 

The crowds at the Sunday Morning Mass could take your breath away! The Red Cross
was present to assist those who had waited all night without access to food or water

The choirs, singers and dancers help us worship as the Pope preached from the
Gospel of Matthew, announcing that we are to be the  salt of the earth, the light of the world! 
Photo Credit: Shelvis Smith-Mather 

By Sunday afternoon, all the notable visitors had left, but a palpable sense of hope continued to fill the landscape. On the following Friday, our friend and colleague Shelvis Smith-Mather connected us with  Bishop Paride Taban, a notable Catholic bishop best known for his peace-making efforts over the last forty years. When asked about the Pope’s visit, the aged and wizened bishop said to us in characteristic African proverbial fashion, “The Pope’s visit is like a bee which came to us, stung us, and has now left us. We trust and pray that the ‘itch of peace’ left by his sting will remain.”

Shelvis Smith-Mather, our friend and colleague, graciously connected 
Kristi and I with Bishop Paride Taban (right, foreground) after the Pope's visit
Photo Credit: Shelvis Smith-Mather