On the border of Sudan

 

Participants enjoying the workshop inside the church

Our reconciliation team conducted a Healing Hearts, Transforming Nations workshop last week in the town of Renk. Renk is in the far north corner of South Sudan, close to the border with Sudan and not far from Khartoum. Since the war erupted in Sudan in April 2023, people have been streaming across the border, and a camp of displaced people sprang up overnight. One friend who works in Renk estimates that there are still 5,000 people per day entering South Sudan near Renk, fleeing the ongoing conflict. There is now growing tension between the residents of Renk and these new refugees, as residents resent the relief that is being given to refugees when residents are also struggling.

After giving over our pain to God, the papers are burned

Pastor Peter Nyang serves as the senior pastor for the South Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church in Renk. He invited people from several different churches to the workshop, including that people from different tribes in South Sudan and Sudan. There were several pastors who attended the full workshop, and some of them affirmed that this workshop was exactly what they need. The facilitators said that one of the biggest challenges was accommodating the additional people who came to join the workshop the second and third day. We had planned for 50 participants, but by the third day more than 120 people attended.

Laying flowers on the ashes of the papers of pain that were burned

During the time of giving over our pain to Jesus on the cross, we invite people who have lost a loved one in war or were not able to be present for the funeral to commemorate that person. Participants are invited to lay a flower on the ashes of the papers that we have burned of our pain, and to take a moment to remember and honor that person. This opportunity was meaningful for those who had come from Sudan with their lives and families uprooted by war.

People come to lay flowers on the ashes as a sign of remembrance and hope

The time of standing in the gap and confession was also emotional and meaningful. Several people came to confess the harm that their group had done against others in the conflicts that have plagued this region for decades. One Sudanese pastor confessed humbly and specifically the discrimination that the Sudanese people have shown towards South Sudanese people, along with targeted killings. Many of the South Sudanese participants were visibly moved as they heard his confession and then came forward to express their forgiveness. Particularly in this time when tensions are high and localized conflicts between groups happen frequently, seeing this spirit of confession and forgiveness was a beautiful display of how God can break down walls and bring forgiveness.

One man confesses harms done and prejudice shown

by Sudanese people towards South Sudanese

At the end of the workshop, multiple pastors requested that our team return to train some of their people as facilitators of the Healing Hearts Transforming Nations workshop so that they can conduct workshops on their own. There are thousands of people who are temporary residents of Renk and are trying to cope with the emotional and physical challenges of their homes and livelihoods being destroyed. Training new facilitators is not a simple task, so please pray that God would guide our team and provide the human and financial resources for this need if it is the right thing to do.

On the radio in Juba

 

Our team discusses the process of developing radio programs

A small team of our facilitators has been busy this month creating and revising scripts for putting the healing and reconciliation teachings into radio programs. We have met for hours at a time in the shade of a tree at the SSPEC church offices, discussing how to communicate these important teachings in a way that will be attractive and understandable to listeners through the radio. We are trying to use some of the dramas from our workshops and adapt them for radio, along with the teachings and some testimonies. We have revised and reviewed our scripts repeatedly in both English and Arabic. Last week our first program aired live on the government radio station in Juba. We are grateful for a good start to this new initative!

When Michael, one person on our team, met with the radio station manager to present our idea for the program, the manager said, "this is exactly what our people need. If the government wanted to do what would really contribute to peace, this is the kind of thing that should be done." Another staff person at the radio is also an SSPEC church member, and he invited our team to use his program hour and to also have some time for people to call in live with questions. On this first program, they were surprised at the large number of callers at the end of the program and lamented that we only had a short time for questions.

Michael and Abdon at the radio station during the first program.

Creating and airing radio programs for a weekly program is a big undertaking, so please pray that God continues to guide and enable the process. We are hoping for a diverse team each week with the right skills ton communicate the message. We are also grateful for God's provision of some funding to get this started, and are trusting that God will continue to provide for the next 20 weeks or so of this series.

Graduation for Nile Theological College (December 14, 2024)

Joy overflowing! Truly, joy overflowing! Blessing upon blessing it was to celebrate four batches of graduating classes of Nile Theological College (NTC) today in Juba, South Sudan. “Alif mobruk” (one thousand congratulations) to NTC for pulling off such a remarkable event. 

I love my students, and I could feel their love in return. The highlight was greeting students and their families in person after the ceremony, hugging, taking pictures together, reconnecting and sharing memories. When I told Daniel, one of our graduates, that Kristi and I will miss them as we will be transitioning from South Sudan, he said to me, “South Sudan will not miss you, Ustaz Bob Rice. We will come find you!” Enjoy the various photos from the day below...

Celebrating after the ceremony with NTC graduates

Professor Julia A. Duany, Commissioner of Public Service Board, describes the marks needed for good leadership: integrity, servant heart, humility, desire to help others, good communication, positive, decisive, accountable, adaptable (flexible), and passionate.

Our friend Rev. Peter Yien (Academic Dean of NTC) is rightfully celebrated!

A packed out house in Nyakuron West, Juba

Rev. Dr. Malakal (Principal of NTC) congratulates graduates

Graduates! 

Changkuoth hits his stride with diploma in one hand and his son in the other

Standing with graduate Changkuoth Kulang Luak who finished at the top of his class. I have appreciated Changkuoth's helpful engagement in the classes I have taught. He is an outstanding student, one who appreciates and values his Nuer people and culture , finding ways to live out the Christian faith as a member of his community, thoughtfully and prophetically.

NTC graduate and friend Daniel Alek shares from God's Word, reading from 2 Chronicles 29: 10 - 13

Mama Sarah captures our hearts in worship! This dear, blessed woman exemplifies the spirit of NTC like no other (literally, like no other)

Healing the Wounds of War in Sudan

Happy New Year! We have been busy over the holidays, but we want to share in a few posts about some significant activities that we have been part of recently in Juba.

In April, 2023 a devastating civil war erupted in Khartoum, Sudan, that has spread to the whole country and is still ongoing. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced from Khartoum and around Sudan because of the war and many have come to South Sudan to seek refuge. They have lost their homes, their jobs, and many have lost family members in the violence and upheaval.

A candle is passed while people affirm to each other,

“you are the light of the world. You are the hope

of your country. God believes in you.”

Our reconciliation team has been hoping and praying to be able to conduct a workshop for some of these refugees to help them find healing from the trauma of war and displacement. In November it finally happened! This was the first HHTN workshop that our team has conducted in Juba with all the teachings in Khartoum Arabic without translation, which helped the people from Sudan to be able to discuss freely and feel at home. Having a team able to teach completely in Sudanese Arabic was the fruit of several years of training facilitators, and we praise God for a diverse and capable team. 

A group discusses the physical and abstract

losses their community experienced

The losses for each group were listed, written in Arabic

Language is a real challenge in South Sudan, where the majority of people speak a simplified version of Arabic (Juba Arabic), but were educated in English and therefore read and write in English. However, there are also thousands of South Sudanese who were educated in Khartoum and speak and write Arabic better than English. The South Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church (SSPEC) was based in Khartoum before South Sudan’s independence, so most of the members have spent time in Khartoum and many were educated in Arabic. For this workshop, we wanted to use Khartoum Arabic as the primary language, which means that writing on the flip charts was in Arabic, group work was in Arabic, etc. I helped to plan the workshop, but left all the facilitation to my colleagues because I do not speak the Khartoum version of Arabic.

 

Burning the papers representing our pain, giving them to God.

We had a diverse range of participants, including bishops and pastors, professors, people who are less educated, men, women, and youth and people from different regions. It was encouraging to see people actively discussing and sharing together despite the differences in background and education.

The session on confession of corporate harms was also meaningful, with several people acknowledging the ways that their group has contributed to conflict and harm against other groups. One woman shared through her tears about the discrimination and prejudice she felt in Khartoum by the dominant group, but said that now God has given her the grace to forgive them. One Muslim man attended the workshop at Bob’s invitation, and said that it was the first time he had ever entered a church and that he discovered that he had a lot of misconceptions about Christianity.

Group photo of participants and facilitators

On the last day, several people shared how God had worked in them to bring healing or forgiveness during the workshop. Mama Elizabeth shared that there have been many accidents in her family and several of her children have died. She had been consumed by a fear of accidents and a fear of death. But during the workshop she had given this fear over to God, and her heart felt at peace. She said that she had finally been able to sleep in peace.

We are grateful to God for opening this door to minister to people who have suffered so much. Please pray with us for continued healing and opportunities to share the message of God's invitation to forgiveness and reconciliation.