Renewal
1 The Quarterly Newsletter of the Diocese of Wau in the Episcopal Church of Sudan www.wau.anglican.org communications@wau.anglican.org
Briefing From The Bishop After a lifetime of waiting and war, we finally watched as the flag of South Sudan was hoisted high over Wau and the rest of this new land. In Wau itself and around the rural counties of the Diocese, the ECS pastors were invited to the heart of the official celebrations. Having been with the people through the years of struggle, we could now celebrate as one. With the coming of the new nations, the Diocese has been renewed with a vision to serve the people of its sprawling Diocese and to see God’s kingdom come in this land. Now the war is over, the priorities of the people are shifting. To help us shepherd and witness to the communities, the Diocese is praying that it will be able to provide new services. Already, there is much to thank God for: the schools are bursting at the seams, the Mothers’ Union is impressing with their innovative adult education and construction has started on a vocational training centre in Kuajok. Plus, there are plans to revive health provisions, introduce a scouting movement and continue to be creative with education. Further, with inter-tribal conflict causing fatalities in Warrap State, we pray for a chance to bring peace. A key priority for the Diocese of Wau in this new season is to offer its pastors theological training. Commissioned during the war, when there was little opportunity for education, most pastors in the Diocese have had no formal theological training. While there is a bible college in Juba, no pastors from the Diocese meet the entry requirements for admission. Therefore, on the cathedral compound in Wau, three tutors have started to labour to give the pastors a basic education. We are eager to make sure our leaders are rooted in the Bible and a deep faith. As we embark on this adventure, we would love
Inside This Issue Briefing From The Bishop 1 Welcome to Our Renewal 2 Starting South Sudan 3 This is The Day! : Extracts From An Independence Day Speech 4 The Jo-Luo Celebrate Their Independence Day 6 Wau Diocese Donates Food and Clothes to the People of Abyei 7 Baroness Cox Continues To Commit 8 A Friend Changes Five Lives 9 The Commissioner of Ulu County Donates Thirteen Jerry Cans of Honey 11 Provide for Pastors! 12 Ploughs for Pastors. 12 Diocese of Wau Schools Need to Expand 13 Pastor Pupils 15 Prayer Priorities 16 Priorities for Giving 16
you to join us by following the journey in this Renewal newsletter or on our website at www.wau.anglican.org. One of the many things the years of war taught us was our dependence on the prayerful petitions of Christians around the world. We thank you for your faithfulness and prayers in this new season of hope.
By Bishop Moses Deng 1
Renewal
2 Welcome to our Renewal: Informing, Enlightening, and Transforming Lives In this new, quarterly publication of Renewal we hope to inform you of the good news of Christ and to enlighten you to the difference He is making in the communities of the Diocese of Wau (South Sudan). This newsletter will keep you updated on the triumphs and struggles of the Episcopal Church of Sudan in this Diocese. After almost fifty years of constant civil war, South Sudan was finally given its independence on the 9th July 2011. In this new era of peace and renewal in this land, the Diocese prays it will be able to continue to provide for those in its churches and expand its provision to the wider community. In this war-torn land, there are endless opportunities to show the love of Christ and teach his ways. Renewal will share with you our story as we strive to bring fresh faith and service to the communities of the Diocese of Wau. It is my privilege to give you a warmhearted welcome to join us in making this quarterly opportunity to share our views and testimonies. I invite you to have your say, to give your opinions, and to offer your reactions and suggestions. As much as Renewal is about the Diocese of Wau, the Diocese is far reaching due to those from around the world who count us as their family in faith. We hope everyone will feel free to contribute their thoughts and ideas to this newsletter.
Our target, in sharing the stories of what God is doing in the Diocese of Wau, is not only to include you in our story but also to bring God glory. We hope that, through you seeing what God is doing amongst us, it might encourage you and inspire you to action. Our slogan is: Informing, Enlightening and Transforming Lives. We hope to inspire your soul to through informing it so that it is enlightened and so that it is able to lead to actions that bring transformation. As scripture said, “Don’t conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is- his good, pleasing and perfect will”. (Romans 12:2-3) That is what the whole publication is about. Therefore, please do tell others about Renewal and e-mail the address below for them to be added to the circulation list. Also, do be in touch with any thoughts and ideas. E-mail:
communications@wau.anglican.org
By Rev, Andrew Apiny Macham (Acting Diocesan Administrative Secretary
2
Renewal
3 Starting South Sudan Through the war and the peace, the church had been at the sides of the struggling people of South Sudan. So, in the cities and the villages, the ECS church was at the heart of celebrations to mark the independence of South Sudan. The battle for independence had started even before Sudan gained independence from the British in 1956. Fighting to be free from the rule of an Islamic regime in Khartoum, a regime that even harboured Osama Bin Laden in the lead up to 9/11, the people of the South faced a long and brutal civil war. Through this lifetime of fighting, church services were interrupted by bombing raids and church pastors were accused of rebel alliances. The church suffered with its people. The 9th July 2011 finally saw independence for South Sudan and the raising of Africa’s newest flag. With this start come high expectations of peace, prosperity and rapid development. The streets of Wau and the tracks of the villages were filled with parties and feasts, dancing and celebrations. An uncontainable joy permeated the air. Yet, there are already fears that the inevitable failure to meet such high expectations will rapidly throw this new state back into a state of civil conflict. In the excitement and fears of starting a new nation, the church has a crucial role to play in shaping the foundations of this new nation. There are many pockets unreached by the gospel and the current peace offers access into new territories. However, in these difficult times, the church can also offer guiding wisdom to shape this new era.
3
4 This is The Day! : Extracts From An Independence Day Speech Good morning ladies and gentlemen, my fellow citizens Southern Sudanese, my comrade clergies and Christians, government officials I greet you all in the name our Lord Jesus Christ. To begin with, South Sudanese there can be no one who still doubts that in South Sudan all things are possible to those who believe. The day has finally arrived it was long and slow but sure. The day has eventually arrived after a long journey with too much suffering, pain, and desolation, for any country and for any people in the world to go through in persecution. This day we celebrate today was perceived a long time ago by great men and women. Our heroes and heroines saw this day which was yet not there and visualized it before it actually existed. It was this day that fuelled our leaders hearts to run on, and gave them courage to create action. It was this day that gave them energy to focus year after year, decade after decade, and voluntarily sacrifice themselves for this day. The day they saw was exactly this Day, “South Sudan’s Independence Day”. Today marks the end of a long journey and a change has come in Southern Sudan a new chapter has now begun. South Sudan has got self determination and freedom of worship. The dreams of our forefathers have now been fulfilled. Forty years of slavery is ended from this very day. The entire nation of South Sudan has slowly raised to the power. Its beyond reasonable doubt that humiliation, Islamization and Arabization as way of life is now ended in our culture. South Sudan has become the master of its own resources. Christianity regained its power and the devil has been weakened to the point of death. It was the hope of this day that led many Southern Sudanese to sacrifice themselves, here and ever after. It is important to understand for people to subject themselves to such long journey with a lot of pain and suffering. This is none other than the movement of Islamic expansion in the whole of Sudan and the TurkoEgyptian invasion mainly in the form of military slavery accelerating from 1820. It was
Renewal a brutal era of the brutality of slavery and the slave trade. After the Turko-Egyptian forces came together with Northern Sudanese Arab slave traders to carry out attacks into Southern Sudan for what they called "black gold" (slaves), "white gold" (ivory) and "yellow gold" (real gold). This was the starting point for selfdetermination together with self expression, all of which remain main aspects that led to the first civil war in the Sudan (1955-1972). The church was no exception to this struggling and great pain, suffering and lost of lives. In 1956, Southern Sudanese people were forced to change their names into Arabic names, Sunday was changed to Friday, and churches were burned and others were demolished. Children were forced to attend Islamic schools and, in 1964, the government expelled foreign missionaries from the country in the hope that church would collapse, not only expulsion but a coalition was formed between the Umma Party and the National Unionist party with the aim of suppressing the missionaries. An act was soon passed to control the movement of the missionaries. Friends we all found it rough, everybody without exception was touched by this war. If you are a black Southern Sudanese, you have been tested in one way or another. It is upon this name where the conflict came to being: "Bilaad-el-sud" which literally means "the Country of the Black people. So the war begun immediately after August 1955 in Torit, four months before independence (January 1, 1956) the South of Sudan entered a dimension of no return…….The Anyanya I was set in motion……. It was this day that led to Addis Ababa Peace Agreement of 1972. However The Addis Ababa Agreement fell short of fulfilling the aspirations of the Southern Sudanese communities because it was a mere replacement of one set of colonial masters for another. It was this day when Numeiri' started to erode whatever gains Southerners achieved in the Addis Ababa Agreement. In June 1983, he divided the South into three separate miniregions. Worse still President Numeiri took control of the newly discovered oil fields in the South and to the North, and continued in 4
Renewal
5 September 1983 to instill Islamic Sharia law as the supreme law of the Land and tried to demolish Christianity. He had frustrated Southerners and this led to the formation of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement and Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLM/SPLA) on May 16th 1983…. Since the formation of SPLM/A the war continued tirelessly and gave birth to a generation that knew only war ….. Forward was the only way and so the southern Sudanese community subjected themselves to generations and generations of war. This was a war in which 2.5 Million people were killed. The war killed us in different circumstances which included the use of Russian-made combat helicopters, military cargo planes, which were used as bombers to devastating effect on villages, some people were tortured, others were killed because of their faith, still others were eaten by animals, others swallowed by the river, fish, other were stung or bitten by snakes. Others died of hunger. Others, died of thirst, others died from sicknesses. Despite the consequences we faced in the cause of our struggles the war went on, in fact it became worse than ever before….
homeless. It was this day that led to the creation of peace talks between the Southern rebels and the government which made considerable progress in 2003 and early 2004. Peace was consolidated with the official signing by both sides of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement on 9th January 2005, granting Southern Sudan autonomy for six years, to be followed by a referendum about independence in which the nation of South Sudan gained a momentum against unity with the North. It was this day that Dr John Garang was appointed as-vice president for and later died in a helicopter crash on 1st August 2005, three weeks after being sworn in…… Southerners, we never quit the fight even though it became very tough. We ran straight to the goal with purpose and determination…. I love to be called a Southern Sudanese citizen. God bless the New Republic of South Sudan. God bless our new leaders of Republic of South Sudan in all they do, and may the glory go back to you. By Andrew
This day that has taken the resolve of great men and women alike, this day of 9th July will go down in our history for generations and generations. It is a unique day bought by the blood of many as a ransomed paid for all generations to come. A day like this cannot and must not be forgotten. For a day in which both men and women ate each other due to lack of food, where human corpses were available everywhere you go, animals, birds, insects and flies alike were all feeding on Southern Sudanese flesh. It was for this day that women suffered rape, in the presence of their children and societies, while children were abducted, yet again others abused sexually, politically, and religiously and many more were marginalized, still others were beaten to the point of death. Their properties were looted, their animals were raided and their houses were burnt down ruthlessly in the sight of the society they lived in. So most of Southern Sudanese became 5
Renewal
6 The Jo-Luo Celebrate Independence Day
Their
The Jo-Luo of Western Bahr El Ghazal State celebrated their independence day on Saturday on 9th July 2011 at Joluo River County Office (Jur River County). The celebration was extremely overwhelming as over five bulls were killed at Joluo River County Office, opposite to Wau Teaching Hospital, near the Jur River. In interviews, I asked what this day meant to them. “This is the day that has taken 2. 5 million people, and we are happy that our brothers and sisters who fought and lost their lives were not in vain. We salute our martyrs - those blood cemented this nation forever. Their struggle and effort have set us free. We are not longer under sharia law. We are
free at last”. Chief William Baak Ulor from Dhi Kou Boma, Namerkamsa Payam, explained how “This day of 9th July will go down to our history from generation to generation. It’s a unique day bought by the blood of men as a ransom for all the generations to come. A day like this cannot be forgotten.” The Jo-Luo of Bahr El-Ghazal Region in Southern Sudan are the majority in Western Bahr el Ghazal State. Yesterday, they came to celebrate their independence in their main town of Wau. By Andrew
6
7 Wau Diocese Donates Food and Clothes to the People of Abyei Following the fighting between the governments of South Sudan and North Sudan in Abyei, which erupted on 21st May 2011 in Abyei, more than 150,000 people have been displaced. Considering themselves amongst the Southern populations, most of these people fled south to neighbouring and nearby states such as Warrap, Western Bahr al-Ghazal and Northern Bahr al-Ghazal. In May, up to one hundred people per day were arriving in Wau as they fled from Abyei. As they fled, often moving on foot and carrying all their belongings, people were unable to carry much with them and took only enough food for a few days. Therefore, these displaced people are now facing a food crisis. This is also impact the communities they have moved to as it’s driven up the cost of food. For example, in Wau, the price of bread has doubled. Getting shelters for sleeping remains one of the greatest challenges, especially as the rains set in. Further, there is a water shortage that forces thousands to drink contaminated water. Most of these displaced people do not have access to any clean water. The Diocese of Wau was keen to be involved to support these suffering families. Under the leadership of the Bishop, the Diocese has donated food, clothes and shelters to support the Abyei displaced people in their different camps at Turalei, Agok, and in Wau itself.
Renewal On 24th June 2011, Rev. Paul Lueth (Diocesan Secretary) and other church officials distributed food and clothes in the Agok and Turalei camps. Over one hundred people received food and clothing. On 2rd July 2011, the Wau Diocese distributed more food to over two hundred people who had arrived in Wau from Abeyi and who were in terrible need of humanitarian assistance. This was made possible by a donation from Baroness Caroline Cox's HART organization. However, as much as the Diocese has started to help, there is still much more assistance needed. Having missed the planting season for 2011, there is over a year before these displaced
people of Abyei have a hope of their own harvest. It is unclear how they will survive for so long. The poverty of the communities they have fled to means they have nothing to give. By Andrew
7
Renewal
8 Baroness Cox Continues to Commit
Through the long years of the civil war, the church was tortured with insecurity and suffering. With the South fighting against an extremist Islamic regime in Khartoum, there was no protection for the church as the government aspired to impose their religious doctrines. During these decades of suffering and persecution, the church could have easily felt abandoned. Believers were left without any contact to the outside world. Leaders had to rely on God to feed them, having no access to Bibles. And Bishops often lost all contact from the worldwide church – the world simply did not know if they were alive or dead.
Since the signing of the NorthSouth peace agreement and since Independence Day this year, HART (the charity founded by Baroness Cox) has continued to stand by our side. They have blesses us at moments of urgent need, such as when we desperately needed food for the people fleeing from Abyei. Naomi Pendle, supported by HART, has also been helping the Diocese with development and communications. With a lack of basic education among the communities of the Diocese, while people are learning it is proving essential to have some extra support. It is with honoured humility that we thank Baroness Cox for all she has done for the Diocese of Wau and the people of South Sudan.
To find out more about HART, visit:
www.hart-uk.org
Yet, during these hardest times, there were certain brothers and sisters from around the world who remained at our side. Baroness Cox never failed to stand with us, pray for us and swoop down to see us. At the height of the civil war, in many areas the government would refuse permission for planes to land. These areas were usually where the persecution was the most extreme. Baroness Cox would continue to fly to see us and build us up with words of encouragement. When the world forgot us, she refused to forget. She gave us the faith we needed to keep going.
8
Renewal
9 A Friend Changes Five Lives We want to tell you about a great friend to our diocese called Richard. Richard has sponsored five more children in the Diocese of Wau at our Sunday Basic School. All these children are vulnerable in different ways - some are orphans while others have parents who are unable to send their kids to school. Today, the children who are sponsored by Richard are doing very well in school and their lives have changed positively. If they had not been sponsored they would have been sleeping on the streets like many other children who are on the streets of Wau town. Achan Mading Magol (one of the sponsored children) is an orphaned girl of 15 years. Achan Mading said, “If I will become great leader tomorrow in South Sudan, it is because of Richard. Whatever significant impact I will make in life in the future is not about my parents but Richard. Richard is now like my parents. As orphan child I missed the love from my parents but now, from Richard, I found love for the orphan children. The love I missed from my biological parents, plus care, listening, he brought me to a
different world. I was hopeless but now there is a future for me. I was walked out on, forsaken child but now I am cared for. The education I never dreamt I could have in life has now become a reality”. “This is why Richard remains a great man of God. He did something in our lives. We orphans have to live hand to mouth. Truly, if it were not for him, I in particular would not have made it to this point. Such
great heart - I really don’t know how else I can put it to make Richard and others to understand how deeply happy I am”. John Juma Luka has also been helped by Richard. John, who was about to join the street children also said, “If it were not for Richard being on the street would not have been a second option for me. After all I am an orphaned child. Who then would have been taking care of me? We who are here are so happy and grateful to be rescued from becoming criminals and thieves. My colleagues are orphans today. As I speak to you, they are on street not because they love to be there but due to circumstances in which have forced them to be there”. When asked if he thought street children would come out of that life, John answer, “Of course yes. I can tell you living on the streets is one the worst lives. I will never forget. You sleep wherever you are when the sunsets. You sleep anywhere any time. Keeping yourself clean is not in our vocabulary. I never notice in life that there is a difference between bad and good smelling food. Only recently I came to distinguish the two, after being absorbed into this world. Now I see myself as a human
being because at least now I have seen the light, the future I have never dreamt of, the education I never thought of - these are what set human beings apart from 9
Renewal
10 undomesticated animals. I when I was there I used to share leftover food together with cats, dogs, rats, insects and sleep in the same place as them. I was in their natural habitat. It’s
called Canada to find us here who are faced with the same predicament but in different degree and took us to school. Personally, I really did not believe this when the Sunday School Headmaster told to me to come to school. The first thing that came to my mind was who will pay my school fees, uniform, exercise books and among others”. “To me it was a nightmare. Nothing like that would happen. After all, the man I was told who would pay my school fees was not an Africa man. What if he demanded his money back later on? Where will I get his money? Not only that who am I to him? I am an African. He is Canadian. What brought that relationship between the two? And if there is perhaps, it’s between the state and state but as for me I am far away from that. To make it worse, I am an abandoned child who used to feed on leftover food. How come that someone who doesn’t know you can take you to school to learn? What will be his benefit? I am not related to him in any way and to make the matter worse he is not from my tribe, Dinka, and not even South Sudanese”. “But I was told he is man of God who has a heart to assist children like me. So may God bless Richard in big way and may he continue to bless others who choose to do the same as well”.
after being tamed now I feel there is cool weather when it rain”. “In terms of challenges,” John went on, “well there are quite a number of them. The outstanding ones are where to sleep, getting food to eat and clothes, and someone to love me. I know even if you eat good food and sleep in a nice house yet you are unloved even if that food is sweet it will just go away. Food, house, clothes and love in combination make me feel I belong and accepted as a child. Some these needs are fulfilled by Richard. Honestly, I don’t know how I can appreciate this great man of God that came to us from somewhere far
Richard preached, on June 3rd 2011, at the Good Shepherd Cathedral in Wau. He preached one of the most heartbreaking sermons for Christ that has ever been preached there - the people who attended that Sunday shed many tears. He also gave us Bibles. We join together to appreciate him and his family as well as his church for standing with us. If you would like to offer help to the Diocese of Wau e-mail bishop@wau.anglican.org . Interviews and article by Andrew
10
11
Renewal
The Commissioner of Ulu County Donates Thirteen Jerry Cans of Honey Mr Ezekiel Thiang Mangar was a pastor in Wau Diocese from 1998 to 2000. After the Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed in Kenya, ending the North-South war, he went back to his hometown of Rumbek in Lakes State and became a politician. Because of his good leadership in the Episcopal Church of Sudan in Wau, he was appointed as commissioner of Ulu County in 2010. Two months ago he came to Wau for official duties. On the following day, he attended the Easter Day Sunday service at the Good Shepherd Cathedral, Wau, where he was a pastor, and since he was a famous former pastor and now the commissioner of Ulu, Mr. Ezekiel was given the opportunity to offer greetings and address the congregation. He appreciated the leadership of Bishop Moses Deng in conjunction with Christians for their cooperation and peaceful living together as the family and children of God.
Rev. Paul Lueth Kat. He thanked the Commissioner of Ulu County for his very kind donation for the people of Wau Diocese. Rev Paul then said, “This
is a sweet gift you have given us. It takes a great man to give so much honey. We really appreciate your gift. May God bless your gift and you through it�. The Diocesan Secretary distributed the thirteen jerry cans of honey as stipulated by the commissioner - one each to every branch office of the diocese.
The Commissioner also promised the congregation publicly that when he went back to his home in Ulu County, Lakes State, he would collect some honey and bring it to church as gift. On Saturday 2nd July 2011, the commissioner brought thirteen jerry cans of honey to the Good Shepherd Cathedral in Wau. They were gratefully received by Diocesan Secretary 11
Renewal
12 Provide For Pastors!
Ploughs For Pastors
The Episcopal Church of the Sudan is one of the largest Christian denominations in Sudan with over fifty thousand ordained clergy and thirty-one bishops. However, not even the bishops are paid. This has become a threat to the ECS ministry today after independence. The few clergy that have good qualifications are taken away to work for the government, NGOs. Some few who work there are part time ministers. They only appear on Sunday in a very disorganized manner and unable to deliver sermons properly or deliver unplanned sermons. This is because, during the week, they are too busy with their own business. Too many ministers in ECS are rarely to be found in the course of the week doing church work. They leave the churches as they are not being paid and so they go out and search for opportunities where they can get something to enable them take care of their families and themselves as well. Sooner or later the ECS is going to face rough times because real leaders are going to be in short supply. Therefore, before the thing falls apart, ECS followers should take the initiative to think about the welfare of their own pastors, to support them financial and in whatever way will sustain their life. Most Christians have abandoned their pastors today thinking that their pastors will be paid by their bishop, which is certainly not true. If the members of the local church fail to support their pastor, the bishop is not accountable for that. It is important to know that bishops are facing the same situation. Where does their support come from? They are not being paid by anyone, not even the Archbishop. So, you should therefore support your pastors to do the work of God. Ministers of the gospel should not be depending solely on the church members. Self-reliance is important. Pastors should avoid suspicions that they profit financially from spiritual work. Work hard to ensure that with them and without them you can still survive. Sustain your life and families but don’t leave the churches.
With no financial income, pastors must spend much of their time farming their small, subsistence plots. Therefore, they must invest months of time sowing seeds and harvesting crops, stealing time from their ability to work for God’s harvest of men. Ox-ploughs are a perfect provision to reduce the labour needed to grow enough food for themselves and their families to survive. An ox-plough can increase, up to ten-fold, the size of the farm cultivated. This leaves the pastor not only with provision but time to tend to his flock of believers. For the next harvest season, the Diocese of Wau hopes to give many ploughs to its pastors especially in the villages. People around the world need to help provide these ploughs. For
By Andrew
further
information,
visit:
http://www.justgiving.com/PloughsForPastors
By Naomi Pendle 12
13 Diocese of Wau Schools Need to Expand to Remain Accessible Welcome to Good Shepherd’s schools where learning is fun! The Good Shepherd Cathedral in the Diocese of Wau has, in its compound, a Sunday kindergarten school and two primary schools running both evening and morning. All three are run by the Diocese of Wau and El Salaam Secondary School is administrated by the state government of Western Bahr el Ghazal. The compound is always busy throughout the day. Many students and parents have chosen our ECS School as their institute of choice. Today, more than one thousands students are learning there. However, sadly many students have been refused to be admitted due to lack of space or classes. Parents and students select the ECS schools because they offer not only knowledge but skills. According to parents, ECS is one of the institutions where children are being nurtured to become competent, empowered spiritually for
Renewal the kingdom of God, moulded for service, provided with fundamental academic excellence through Christian education, and encouraged to become better writers in English and fluently speak English for the social and economic development of Africa. ECS schools are distinguished as outstanding because of the psychological and emotional support given to students that help them to grow as people as well as in knowledge. Our Sunday school was established around 15 years ago. Its aim was to offer the best quality of education with Christian values. It had the ideal vision that the ECS School would remain in the frontline, fighting to produce students of good quality with a Christian background and with positive skills and knowledge for social and economic development. This has distinguished our ECS schools, ranking them on top in both academic and moral fields. As a result, the school that began with a small number of students from the
13
14 church, now has grown much bigger. This was especially after signing of the North-South peace agreement in 2005 as, suddenly, the people from the surrounding villages found it safe to come to Wau. Children of school age and under turned out in huge numbers searching for quality education in different towns wherever they could. Getting education with better services, qualified teachers, and learning facilities that were affordable was not easy. So, to find these things and to have with them a Sunday school and El Salaam Second ary School was a real blessin g, meetin g the educati on require ments of many and thus becam e the answer to their human needs at this defining moment. As consequence of this, the population of students in both primary school and secondary has increased tremendously, overwhelming the current facilities. Today, most of the classes are overcrowded with more than one hundred students in a small classroom. Some students were reported to feel suffocated due to lack of breathing space. This meant that some pupils are forced to learn outside and sit on the ground under the trees just because classes are so jammed, with some students standing in classes during lesson time. Because of this squeeze the school has gone as far as opening evening classes. However, that did not really solve the problem amicably in anyway. The number of students who attend morning classes and
Renewal evening are almost alike. Doubling lessons doubled the pupils. If both the Sunday School and El Salaam Secondary is to remain a quality and attractive learning centre it must address the issue of classes with the seriousness it deserves. A lack of classes and chairs are threatening to add another impediment to Sunday Schools as well as the El Salaam Secondary School to advance academically. If this trend continues, both Sundays Schools and El Salaam Secondary School could be faced with a major crisis in academically performance and social economic development in all sectors as more students will drop out and shift to other less capable schools. Though Sunday school and the El Salaam Secondary School were viewed in the first place as the champion of the English pattern in Western Bahr el Ghazal state and the wider Diocese of Wau, where English is the main language, chances are that if students needs are not taken into account there is a probability that many children will lose out on an education. It would be a sad, missed opportunity.
By Andrew Apiny Macham
14
Renewal
15 Pastor Pupils: Wau Bible College is Now Open A Champion to Impact the Kingdom Leaders for Social Economic Development and Life Transformation.
The ECS Diocese of Wau is faced with the dilemma of a lack of trained pastors. This predicament has been caused by South Sudan’s endless experience of conflict and the lack of theological educational opportunity that this has caused. As result, there are more than two hundred ordained pastors in the Wau Diocese who are untrained. Worse of all, these church leaders are not only lacking theological background skills but they also lack a basic, general education.
Since his inauguration ceremony, Bishop Moses Deng Bol has made it clear that his first priority is to find a durable solution to the untrained pastors in his Diocese. In his vision, by 2015, the Wau Diocese will be distinguish among the rest of Dioceses of Sudan in terms of its theological education. Today that dream has started to be fulfilled. On 15th August 2011, Wau Bible College was officially opened. The college was opened with Rev. Andrew Apiny Macham as the first lecture for Wau Bible College and with five students.
Therefore, it’s my hope that this Bible school will give us an insight and enlighten our minds to teach the truth and preach for life change, as well as reminding us to take the evangelistic ministry seriously in order to protect our communities from false teachings of cults. In this time of change for South Sudan, there are endless ideas bombarding the people and the churches. There are good teachings and bad teachings, but without a knowledge of the Bible, church leaders can be lost for which way to follow. They have a hunger to know God but have, before, had no chance to feed on the Bible. Now the chance is there.
Plus, it will grow pastors to be in a position to talk as the intellectual people of South Sudan. We pray for our nation to be a godly nation, built on foundations that will further the kingdom of God. As many rules and laws are debated, we hope our pastors will have the intellectual confidence and knowledge of the Bible to contribute to debates in a godly way. “I love to be part of this historical moment of our Diocese of Wau”.
As well as offering theological studies, the college will also hope to offer training in skills such as leadership and management, business management and administration, accounting, psychology, philosophy, Christian Counselling, English, Peace and Conflict Management, Research Methodology, Christian Education.
Rev. Archdeacon Andrea Ngong, one of the pioneer learners said, “Today change has come to the Diocese of Wau, and there is hope and future here. The church was dead and chaotic. There was no future and hope, but now I can see there is future.”
15
Renewal
16 Prayer Priorities
Priorities For Giving
1) Peace and hope in the Diocese of Wau
1) Ploughs for Pastors
Independence has bought hope and peace. Pray that it continues as the initial euphoria fades.
As above, we are praying the world will give the pastors the potential to feed themselves and their communities.
2) Provision for the pastors The leaders of the local churches need both financial support and the opportunity to deepen their understanding through theological training.
2) Development Officer To further the service of the Diocese, we are hoping to appoint a South Sudanese Development Officer to create and co-ordinate our aid and development work. We urgently need donations to fund this post.
3) Children of Wau The children of the city include those with opportunities and those with none. Pray for God’s protection.
3) Sponsorship for Pastor Pupils As much as pastors hope to learn, they need financial support to do this.
4) Our friends around the world Through war and peace, the Diocese has relied on the faith, prayers and support of friends around the world. Pray for them and for their continuing understanding.
For more information, contact
communications@wau.anglican.org
www.wau.anglican.org
16