The Post-War Period (Focus on Bor Diocese)
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The Post-War Period (Focus on Bor Diocese)
There are lots of challenges that will face our Church in the Sudan after war. I will use Bor Diocese as an example of the whole.
1. Evangelical Revival
Historical Perspective
Christianity in Dinkaland sprouted from the selfless-service of early Missionaries who came to Bor and Malek by the fall of 19th century. At the same time, Christianity was building inroads into various parts of Southern Sudan.
Efforts to convert the Dinka and particularly the Bor Dinka went through fits and starts until 1980s through 1990s. The revival began in earnest under able evangelism of His Lordship, Rt. Rev. Nathaniel Garang Anyieth at the time when the whole community was faced with grim prospects of survival in midst of unprecedented disaster.
Gains
In Bor today there are over 250,000 Episcopalians served by over four hundred (400) dedicated members of clergy.
Over 95% of the entire population professed Christianity and believe in Christ as their savior.
Challenges and Consolidation of Gains
The revival is founded on shaky ground, having been driven by disasters and the need to seek salvation. As is common, in such trying times people throng into religion but exit the moment they find answers to their tribulations and everything is back to normal.
With peace, there shall be leveled playing field for all the religions and denominations and sects. Ability to maintain the gains, safeguard against failures and temptations, and expand to spread the word of God as was preached by Christ will be a challenging task of complex dimension.
Current wrangles within ECS however, remain as an area of priority so to avert possible reverses in the evangelism and revival.
2. Adherence to Core Values
- Forgiveness
- Love
- Peace
- Compassion
- Integrity
- Impartiality
- Fortitude
- Anglicanism
- Accountability
- Transparency
3. Linkages
- Strict networking with other dioceses within the Province of Sudan on various issues that affect the interests of the faithful.
- Strict coordination and building of mutual relations with all the neighboring Episcopal Dioceses and those that have historical links with Bor community and Bor Diocese (e.g., Dioceses of Juba, Yirol, Wau, Renk, Malakal, Rumbek, Lui, and Mundri).
- Mutual cooperation with Episcopal Church of the Sudan as represented in their various Diocesan constituencies.
- Mutual cooperation with the Anglican Communion regardless of little differences.
4. Religious Tolerance and Interdenominational Relations
- Strict adherence to the basic principle of the respect of rule of law. That is, as held by the supreme law of the land that there shall be freedom of conscience and worship, the Diocese of Bor must peacefully coexist with these groups.
- Those professing other religions such as Islam and African religions shall not be treated with disdain or stigmatized and where conversion to Christianity is absolutely necessary, this shall be based on persuasion and freedom of choice—not compulsion.
- Whenever disputes arise between denominations or religions, efforts shall be made to resolve them amicably.
5. Peace and Peace-building
- Work with community and political leaders to promote peace within the Sudanese Community in general and communities of Bor in particular.
- Encourage grassroot initiatives to promote peace among the neighboring communities of Murle, Bor, and Nuer. Notwithstanding, special efforts shall be focused on alleviating current tensions between the Bor cattle-herders and Moro community in the Mundri County.
- Work closely with the Sudan Council of Churches (SCC), and government of the South to enhance peace-building initiatives at all levels.
6. Development and Fighting Poverty
- Empower the poor and underprivileged and advocate for their rights in the society.
- Initiate development projects as shall be practicable within the Archdeaconry capacity. Generate and mobilize support both internally and externally to help in implementing those projects.
- Focus on the promotion of primary, secondary and tertiary/vocational education (Basic Education).
- Focus on primary health care.
- Endeavor to create better conditions for child and mother welfare by reducing mortality rates among this category. That is, the Church must take lead in campaigns to raise awareness to encourage child vaccination.
- Strive to establish adequate information system on birth and mortality in all the parishes.
- Ensure access to clean drinking water.
- Intercede with political leaders to ensure equity in distribution of services to the population.
- Focus on gender equity in the areas of education, health and resource distribution. Particular attention shall be devoted to ‘girl child education’ in the area.
- Act as an advocate and watchdog in the issues involving the rights of the poor in the area.
- Encourage local entrepreneurship and productive activities.
7. Clergy Welfare
- Care for the elderly priests and their families.
- Care for all the priests serving God’s people.
8. Clergy and Human Resource Development
- Capacity building and systematic training program for all the clergy to enhance their ability to deal with challenging tasks.
- Basic skills in numeracy and literacy to all adult population.
- Encouraging parents to take their children of school-age to schools.
- Scholarships inside and outside the country whenever possible.
As I have mentioned above, the main challenge is a general problem affecting the people of South Sudan, Nuba Mountains, South Blue Nile and other war-affected areas. I will not bore here with the statistics of the status of these parameters such as prevalence of child malnutrition, primary education, mortality rates among children, rate of maternal mortality, rate of births attended by skilled health staff, access to improved water sources. These statistics in Southern Sudan, in particular and other war-affected areas are among the worst in the world. The effects of the civil war and the disaster of 1991-2, in particular, are still being acutely felt in Bor. These conflicts have led to massive violations of human rights and made it difficult for families and communities to obtain their basic human rights. The consequences of these conflicts have brought massive population displacements, destruction of social services structures, loss of lives and property and above all general impoverishment and lack of socio-economic development. Basic utilities such as clinics, and schools are almost nonexistent and where they exist they lack necessary equipments. Further, they are not even spread out to meet all the communities’ needs. At this juncture, the whole community looks at the Church as the only institution who can do something not only for Christian, but for the whole population of Bor.
In my Archdeaconry in Maar, I formed an indigenous NGO, called Jonglei Development Society (JDS) in the year 2003 as part of the Marc Nikkel School Project that I started 2000 in memory of an American missionary from this diocese. As leader of the Church with a little link with the outside world, the community asked that the focus of JDS should be diversified to cover other aspects of social services such as:
- Enhancing access to education and skills training;
- Sensitizing of the community to self reliance through income-generating activities;
- Conflict management and advocacy to perpetuate peace;
- Promotion of food security through improved farming and fishing methods and provision of food production tools such as ox ploughs, fishing nets and seedlings;
- Establishment of primary health care by putting up clinics and providing medicines and safe drinking water.