Voice of Hope - Episcopal Church · Newsletter of the Diocese of Kajo-Keji . Issue 5 | November...

Voice of Hope | Issue 5 | November 2013

In this issue

Editorial 1

Word from the Bishop 2

Mothers’ Union Conference 3

Library at BG College 3

Girls cry for Education 4

Bishop Visits schools 4

Amazing Testimony 5

Health Workshop 6

Bishop Publishes book 7

Bishop’s Vehicle 7

A Bright Future – Shonglap 8

An African Creed 9

CBPC Female Dormitory 9

Contacts info 9

Voice of Hope Newsletter of the Diocese of Kajo-Keji

Issue 5 | November 2013

Editorial

God coming into our world By Rev. Jacob Haasnoot

The Christmas season is approaching and many people start to slowly prepare for this festive time. Here in South Sudan parents feel the pressure to provide new clothes for their children and to make sure they can serve good food during the celebrations. It is good to remember that God is Emmanuel, God-with-us.

But sometimes we are more focused on the conditions for the celebration (food, clothes, services) than on the reason for this holy-day. Let us not forget about the profound meaning of Christmas: In Jesus, God became poor for our sake. He shares our joys and our pain. Bishop Tom Wright said: “The Christmas story isn’t about an escape from the real world of politics and economics, of empires and taxes and bloodthirsty wars. It’s about God addressing these problems at last, from within, coming into our world – his world!”. That is the good news of Christmas and that is why we have reason to celebrate!

Mothers’ Union conference participants and Bishop Anthony in the center


At the end of November 2013, the Province of the Episcopal Church of the Sudan (ECS) will hold its Standing Committee. According to our provincial constitution, three representatives from each of the 31 dioceses of the ECS attend this meeting, representing each of three houses of laity, clergy and House of Bishops. Pray for fruitful deliberation at these meetings as we have very important issues to discuss pertaining to the growth of the church and the challenges that we face.

US trip I am writing this piece at the end of a visit to the US where I participated at the 7th annual conference of the American Friends of the Episcopal Church of Sudan (AFRECS). After the AFRECS conference, Bishop Andudu Alnail of the ECS Diocese of Kadugli and I, in the company of Richard Parkins of AFRECS, undertook advocacy visits to Washington DC. Bishop David Jones, the Chair of AFRECS joined us in some of the meetings. Some of the issues we raised included the need for peace in the Nuba Mountains, Blue Nile and Darfur. The issue of Abyei was key especially as the people of Abyei, at the time of the visit, were organising for their referendum that had been proposed to take place in October 2013 but Sudan and South Sudan still had issues that they could not agree on; you will recall that there was supposed to be a referendum in Abyei simultaneously with the South Sudan referendum in 2011.

Rt. Rev’d. Anthony D. Poggo

One of the common things within the Anglican Communion is the holding of Diocesan Synods or Conventions. How this is done varies from diocese to diocese, as this is done in accordance with respective constitutions. In Kajo-Keji, we Diocesan Synod have to take place every two years, as per our constitution. Our next Diocesan Synod will be from the 14th to 16th November 2013. At the Synod we would often hear reports from diocesan departments, institutions and archdeaconries and parishes. We also discuss issues that affect the diocese and make recommendations to the Province on some of the issues that are relevant to the entire Province.

The role of the church in peace and development came up in a number of the discussions, we gave our perspective and views on theses and underscored the importance of giving support to the national committee of peace, national healing and reconciliation headed by Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul. In addition to the above, I also visited partners and the South Sudanese diaspora in different parts of the US where I encouraged them and preached at different events that they organised. In two cities, I was asked to speak on the topic of Christian Marriage. The talks and subsequent discussions on Christian marriage and the family was well received; an indication of the need for such teaching amongst the diaspora in the face of cultural and other changes that they have encountered in their new environments. I had begun the US trip from the Diocese of Bethlehem where I had been invited to preach at their annual convention. It was good to join them for part of the convention. One of the notable differences between our Synod and theirs is that they spend less time discussing particular agenda item; a lot of work is done in advance of the meetings through committees. While in Bethlehem, I was asked to confirm 18 candidates at the Nativity Cathedral as Bishop Paul Marshall is on sabbatical before his retirement on the 1st January 2014. I would like to thank the families and partners who hosted me during the visit. Like we say in Kajo-Keji, tinate losu.

Word from the Bishop Rt. Rev’d. Anthony D. Poggo


The key topics that were covered in this

conference include: qualities of a good leader,

stewardship, vision and planning, husband and

wife relationship, care for children in Godly way,

health in the family, agriculture and

entrepreneurship. The conference was fully

funded and facilitated by CRESS, UK. The ECS-

facilitators were Mama Deborah Bul, Provincial

Mothers' Union patron and Mama Jane Poggo,

patron of the Mothers' Union of the Diocese of

Kajo-Keji. The conference was opened and

closed by Rt Rev Anthony Poggo, the Bishop of

Kajo-keji.

Library at Bishop Gwynne College By the editor We learned that a few weeks ago the library at

Bishop Gwynne College (BGC) in Juba was

officially opened and dedicated to the memory of

Canon Benaiah Poggo, the father of Bishop

Anthony. Canon Trevor Stubbs writes: "Canon

Benaiah Poggo was the much celebrated

principal who served the college in the 1980s

and early 90s and was responsible for

establishing the college here in Juba when it was

forced to flee from Mundri".

This conference attracted 250 participants from Nzara

diocese (Western Equatoria State), Rajaf diocese, Lainya,

Juba diocese, mainly from Goshen parish, and from all 8

archdeaconries and the Emmanuel Cathedral of the

Diocese of Kajo-Keji. The conference took place at the

Emmanuel Cathedral, from 9 to 13 September 2013. The

theme of the conference was from Proverbs 3:4-5, a call

for all women of South Sudan to put their trust in the Lord

with all their hearts and God promises to make their paths

straight. What an encouragement! The aim of the

conference was to teach and equip the women so that

they are empowered and released into their God given

calling and gifting, becoming the people God wants them

to be.

Mothers' Union Conference By Rev. Joseph Aba

Discussion group at MU conference

Mama Lois in front of the library

dedicated to the memory of her husband


Girls cry for Education By Stephen Tomor Kenyi

In an earlier issue of this newsletter, we featured the

story of a young girl, Gloria Poni, who approached

the Diocesan Education Office asking for help to go

on to secondary education. Through that story

Gloria found someone who has offered to see her

through her secondary education. This was an

answer to prayer. Gloria is now doing well in school.

She likes playing netball as a hobby. At school she

likes History and English. When at home, Gloria

likes helping her mother in the garden. When she

grows up, she wants to become an accountant.

But there are many more girls looking for education

support. Some of these girls do not have anyone to

support them. Some of them are living with their

grandparents who are too old to be of any help to

these girls. If you would like to be involved, please

contact us and we will give you more information.

Bishop visits Schools By Levi Dumba

During August and September, Bishop Anthony

Poggo with a team from the Diocese visited

several schools in Kajo-Keji County. During

these visits Bishop encouraged the students to

read widely and not only to limit themselves just

to read for passing exams. He stressed the

importance of working hard, in and outside the

school. Bishop also challenged students not

conform to worldly standards but they should

live a holy life.

At Liwolo Secondary School, Bishop visited the

girls’ dormitory that was damaged by a heavy

storm last year. Now only one dormitory block is

left and this is not enough to accommodate the

large number of girls. That means that two girls

are sharing one bed which is not healthy

practise. The school and its committee have

tried to fix the damage but they are unable to

meet all the costs. However, they were able to

get timbers (worth 7000 ssp) and they have

also collected some sand.

Gloria Poni

Inspecting the contribution from the community


Let me tell you the amazing story of Silas, 19 years

old. He dropped out of school in Uganda because of

bad influence of friends and became part of a gang of

thieves. He went to Congo (DRC) to get spiritual

powers. These powers enabled him to open any lock.

To put him in prison is a waste of time, because he

could always open the locks and walk away! He

belonged to a group that is responsible for murders

and killings in Yei, Kaya and Juba.

This young man went to Kajo-Keji to establish a base

for the gang. On 16th October 2013, he decided to go

and disturb the evangelism rally at Mangalotore

parish. When he heard the word of God being

preached, it struck him like fire and immediately his

powers disappeared. Then the spirits of the people he

had murdered appeared to him. Silas ran to the

evangelist preaching at the stage, demanding the

team to pray for him. The team insisted that he should

first confess Jesus Christ as Lord and so he did. He

repented of all his sins. Instantly the spirits of the

people he had murdered left him.

Baptism of Silas Silas stayed with the evangelism team and later a

group of clergy ministered deliverance to him. On

Sunday 20th October Silas was baptized in Komu’du

river. We took him into this river to bury Silas’ old

nature with all evil powers and we witnessed a new

Silas ascend with new power of God and of the Holy

Spirit. The Mission Coordinator preached during the

service and gave him the Bible as symbol of the

power in the new life in Jesus Christ. Silas is now

undergoing discipleship class with others that got

saved during that week.

Amazing Testimony of Silas By Rev. Joseph Aba Duduka

During our annual Week of Witness, this year from

13th-20th October, a number of clergy and lay

evangelists were going out from all our 57 parishes

and 108 preaching to share the Good News. The

theme for this week was taken from James 4:8. The

result of this mission week was beyond our

imagination because God is so faithful: people

reached with the gospel, new converts, restored

backsliders, converts from Islam, healing and

deliverance for many.

Silas With Bible (left)


Community Health workshop By Canon Henry Leju

From 28 to 30 October 2013, a 3-day workshop on

Community Health, Sanitation, Nutrition, HIV/AIDS,

Children Rights and Spiritual Development was

conducted at Kajo-Keji Ecumenical Training

Programme (KaETP).

Participants were: the five Paramount Chiefs of

Kajo-Keji County, two women and two youth

representatives from each Payam and the main

Church leaders of the different denominations in

Kajo-Keji. The aim was to bring leaders together

that have influence on the local people at the grass

root level. The workshop was one of the first of its

kind for the chiefs to attend and 24 out of 35

expected participants attended.

Kajo-Keji County Commissioner H.E. Henry Kala

Sabuni said in his opening remarks: “The people of

Kajo-Keji should strive for love and unity to achieve

the common goal for everyone”. He urged the

church to work in partnership with the government

to develop Kajo-Keji. He also conveyed a message

from the Governor of Central State that he wants

people to produce their own food other than

depending on imported food. He urged people to

engage in commercial farming and disclosed that

plans are underway to start cotton growing from

next year.

The facilitators were encouraged by the chiefs, who

were very active and actively participated in group

discussions. The participants thanked KaETP for

inviting them to the workshop and CMS Ireland for

providing the funds.

Commissioner of Kajo-Keji at the opening ceremony

Particpants at the workshop


Update on Bishop’s vehicle The 3rd June 2013, commemorating the

enthronement of Bishop Anthony Poggo as the

second Bishop of the Diocese of Kajo-Keji, we

launched the Bishop’s vehicle fundraising drive.

How far have we gone with the fund raising?

As of the third week of October 2013, we have

raised a total amount of 11,649 SSP and US$

7,412. Additionally, there is an amount of US$

2,200 that is in the process of transferred from

the US at the time of writing.

This means that the total amount raised for the

Bishop’s vehicle project so far is US$ 13,495.

The revised cost for buying the vehicle is US$

42,000 (this excludes duty as we intend to apply

for duty exemption). When we subtract the

amount of US$ 13,495 so far raised from US$

42,000, we still have a shortfall of US$ 28,505.

We would like to thank those who have given in

cash or in kind towards the purchase of the

Bishop’s vehicle. We appeal for more funds to

help us achieve our goal. We hope that we can

raise the rest of the money before the Christmas.

At our last Diocesan Council meeting, we

resolved that the entire offertory for Sunday 3rd

November 2013 would be given towards the

Bishop’s vehicle project. This is one of the ways

that we intend to raise the remaining amount.

We have contacts in England and the United

States who are willing to receive and make

transfer of funds to us in large sums. If you need

to be given this contact, please write to the

Diocesan Secretary [email protected]

Bishop Anthony published book

Bishop Anthony Poggo's first book, "Let us rebuild:

Lessons from Nehemiah" will be available soon. It is a

full length commentary of Nehemiah, very strong on

application to South Sudan and has relevance to other

African countries too. It is geared to be of practical use

to pastors and others preaching and teaching in South

Sudan, but is also a useful contribution to literature on

Nehemiah in its own right.

Rev. Colin Salter has already read the book: "Reading

this book will benefit all who think deeply about the

lessons Bishop Poggo draws out from Scripture and

applies to modern South Sudan and her people.

Indeed, it deserves a wider readership than just these

people. All of God's servants may be refreshed,

challenged and inspired by investing God-given time

alongside the Bible and this book". We will let you know

in the next newsletter how you can obtain your own

copy.

mailto:[email protected]


Visit MPs Some time ago, four Members of Parliament

(MPs) from Central Equatorial State visited

three Shonglap centres. They wanted to assess

cases of domestic violence, early marriage

(dropout), rape and child abuse. They were

joined by a UNMISS staff member.

The MPs said that from all the counties they

visited, Kajo-Keji is the only place where

'dropout girls' are properly cared for. The

Shonglap program helps the girls to escape

ignorance and poverty. It gives them skills for

self-reliance, supporting and independence. The

MPs were impressed with the program which is

funded by the Stromme Foundation.

A Bright Future By Canon John Lomundu, Shonglap manager In November this year, 78 new students will begin

vocational training in the Shonglap (which means

'dialogue') program in our Diocese. Shonglap wants to

improve the lives of adolescent girls that have dropped

out of school due to early marriage and unwanted

pregnancy. In 2012, we graduated 140 girls that are

now qualified in skills like: tailoring, designing, weaving,

catering, hair dressing, and using the computer.

Joduku Scovia The mother of one of the graduates, Joduku Scovia,

said that her daughter used to be very stubborn and

would not do any work at home. But now she thanked

God because her daughter has greatly changed. She

does things without complaining and she has

introduced many good changes in the family. The

mother wished that this program should continue in

their village in order to transform many young girls who

have grown up without discipline and are idle.

Ms. Jokudu Scovia (r) with her mother (l)

MPs from the State visiting the Shonglap program

Tailoring skills training.


CBPC Female Dormitory

An African Creed By Rev. Jacob Haasnoot, tutor CBPC

In September, we welcomed 9 new students for the

Certificate and Diploma Theology programs at the

College. We hope we can add some more students

to this group in January 2014. The second part of

the Lay Readers' Training is also starting this

November.

I challenged the 3rd-year Diploma students to make

an 'African Creed', expressing the Gospel in the

context of Africa. This is not easy to do but they tried

hard.

Grace: "We believe that our land will be healed

through the power of the Holy Spirit and all the

people groups in South Sudan will live together in

peace and in unity".

Lubajo: "We believe in the most high God who is

the Creator and Sustainer of all. He is the Almighty

and he knows what we need. He cares for all of us,

for every tribe and nation, with love and grace".

A group of 5 students: "We believe in the most

high God (Ŋun) who created man, in love, in his own

image. We had known this Creator before through

our ancestors, but now we know him through his

Word. He wants to save the whole world, all nations

and all tribes".

Diocese of Kajo-keji C/O The Province of the Episcopal Church of Sudan

P.O. Box 110, Juba, Republic of South Sudan Email: [email protected] Website: www.kajokeji.anglican.org

To subscribe/unsubscribe: [email protected]

Communion service at the college

Bishop Anthony & CBPC Board Members “breaking the ground” for the Female Dormitory construction


http://www.kajokeji.anglican.org/


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