By Cath Taylor
UnitingWorld
Posted in Culture
When Rev Caleb* puts his hands to the blistered steering wheel of his four-wheel drive and heads out of Juba this month, he’ll go with prayers and provisions from Uniting Church communities and members. This support, Caleb believes, will give South Sudan her best chance at peace.
Caleb oversees the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan’s Peace Desk. It’s a grand title for his work – urging a battered vehicle into remote areas to speak peace to families and communities who’ve watched their families members literally cleaved apart by tribal violence.
Caleb is part of a movement of Christian leaders preaching and teaching reconciliation and forgiveness as they help care for people wounded by war and hold politicians to account for the peace process.
He lives and breathes the peace of Christ, and Uniting Church people in Australia, through a partnership with UnitingWorld, are helping fill his lungs.
Right now, South Sudan’s townships are quiet. But it’s not long since they rang with gunshots and this new nation’s raw skin opened, once again, to the violence that has dogged it since it gained independence in 2011.
“The fighting has stopped but the wounds are still bleeding,” Caleb says. “Our people have lost faith in political leaders and the military. They’re turning to us, to the church, to offer them hope and leadership. That’s why we’re here.”
Caleb is one of a handful of determined Christian leaders who’ve returned to Juba from refugee camps or from safe havens in neighbouring countries to pick up the pieces of life in a country where war has destroyed everything from the economy to roads, hospitals and schools.
Along with other peacemakers, he believes the best chance for his country’s recovery lies not only in securing safety, shelter and a lasting peace agreement, but in a profound change in the hearts of his fellow South Sudanese.
“This is where it starts. This country cannot move forward unless we do the deep work of reconciliation and forgiveness, person to person, tribe to tribe, at the grassroots and at the political level,” Caleb explains.
The Uniting Church in Australia, through UnitingWorld and their partner the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan, is one of only a few agencies on the ground in South Sudan with a vision to care for the whole person – spiritual and physical. It’s a unique difference and one that Rev Caleb and other Christian leaders believe is the key to the country’s future.
With the support of large South Sudanese populations in South Australia, Victoria and Queensland, we’re not only responding to the urgent needs of South Sudanese people through hands-on training to save lives, rebuild schools and help people earn a living, but we’re sharing the transforming hope of Christ.
The local Sudanese church is deeply committed but seriously lacking in resources. 60% of the population now identify as Christian and are hungry for Christian leadership.
“Christmas is about God taking on flesh to meet people at every point of need,” says Sureka Goringe, Associate Director of UnitingWorld.
“The people I met in South Sudan share that vision. Their quest for peace is grounded in their faith. We support Christian leaders as they carry out their mission both of meeting need and sharing God’s peace and reconciliation.”
Caleb believes this support – and a continuing focus on peace – is vital for South Sudanese communities to grow and flourish.
“We are re-training teachers and leaders, providing trauma counselling for women and children who are victims of war, helping families get the skills they need to earn a living,” he says. “But none of this will succeed without peace as the foundation.”
“Everything in Common” is the Uniting Church’s gift catalogue for the work of the global church. It provides unique gifts that share the love and Christ and meet practical needs, and reflects the desire of the first followers of Jesus to share all they had so that no one would be in need (Acts 4:32-35). These gifts of peace, hope and love will directly support the work of Caleb and others. For more information, please visit everythingincommon.com.au or call (02) 8267 4267.
*Names have been changed.
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