Category: News

“Peace is the Only Tool to Achieve Success,” says CODEP as they Continued with Peace-Building Program in Tombura

By Waure Emmanuel Eddy

Catholic Organization for Development and Peace (CODEP), has conducted three days workshop in Tambura County on the provision of identification of tribes to create awareness and advocacy on Gender Equality in making decisions for peacebuilding.

CODEP is running a series of activities under the Catholic Diocese of Tambura Yambio, and the Peace Building Project which was funded by the United States Embassy Juba, implemented by CODEP under Peace Building.

 The three-day workshop brought about 60 participants from different communities in Tambura, basing their discussion on focus group discussions with chiefs, faith Based, youth, students, women, and men on conflict resolutions and transformation.

Speaking during the opening of the three-day training, Mr. Justin Gunde Michael the acting Executive Director of Tambura County, acknowledged that this peace-building program is very important to the communities of Tambura because they are yearning for peace adding that CODEP is doing great work in Tambura, Yambio, and Ezo which means they will have sustainable peace.

On the other hand, Justin added that the authority of Tambura County is fully cooperative with (CODEP), for the effective success of this peace-building program in Tambura.

The participants acknowledged that they have seen a great change in this peace-building program and asked CODEP to continue with the program in Tambura for better peace in their localities.

Pioneer Catholic Bishop of Sudan’s El Obeid Diocese Eulogized as “Human Right Defender, a Good Leader and a Man of Prayer

By Sr. Henriette Anne (FSSA)

Bishop Macram Max Gassis, the first Catholic Bishop of El Obeid Diocese in Sudan, passed on in the U.S. at the age of 84. 

“On behalf of the Social Communication in our Bishop’s conference and above all in the Board of Governors for Catholic Radio Network, Board member of the University Council of Eastern Africa, Catholic Diocese of Tombura-Yambio, send to his family and diocese of El Obeid, Bishop Trile Tombe our sincere sympathy for the death Bishop Macram”, reads part of the statement signed by bishop Eduardo.

In a statement shared with Rurugene Online Newsletter the Bishop of South Sudan, Tombura – Yambio Diocese, Bishop Eduardo, eulogized the late bishop Macram as a “human rights defender, a good leader, and a man of prayer”.

“I have a fond memory of him, and his great admirer, in most of his responsibilities l, have had stepped into them to replace this great veteran. We shall truly miss him”, he continued, “Bishop Macram, a man of God indeed. He spent many hours daily and weekly in his little Bishop’s chapel. His fidelity to a life of prayer remained through all the dark days in the end, where his breviary and some prayer books were the only companions, he kept with him for his reading and prayer life. One could talk of his administrative skills and his erudition, his courage or braveness, his love for the poor and needy, his fight for justice, and his profound understanding of canon law and his knowledge of history but it was his love for the Church, especially the leadership of the Church, that marked him”.

Bishop Eduardo says in his Monday, June statement, “he had such talent and his gifts all pointed towards him playing a role of significant leadership in the Church, especially as his relationship with his priests grew stronger”.

The member of the Comboni Missionaries of the Heart of Jesus (MCCJ) died on Sunday, June 4, MCCJ Superior General, Fr. Tesfaye Tadesse Gebresilasie announced in a statement that indicates that the late Bishop died in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, USA.

The late Bishop Macram was born in September 1938 in Khartoum and ordained a Priest in June 1964 in Rome, Italy. He returned to his home Diocese of El Obeid in 1965, and served as assistant Parish Priest in Wad Medani.

Following the fall accusation by then the president of Sudan for supporting the rebellion of South Sudan and Nuba mountains paid him the huge price of being exiled from his country when he faced a major threat to his life, bishop Eduardo noted.

The prelate added, “We thank him for his creative work for the church in Sudan and South Sudan, his leadership of the Bishops Conference (it was he who influenced the setting up of the Catholic Radio Network, Catholic University, Rights of the Nuba People) and his care for the works of compassion and welfare in the diocese of El Obeid, Nuba people, the Republic Sudan and the whole New Republic of South Sudan. We are all in debt to this Holy Man”.

Bishop Eduardo’s Invitation to All Episcopal Vicars, Parish Priests, Heads of Institutions, and All the Faithful of CDTY on Corpus Christi Sunday

                                                                                                                  June 2, 2023

To: Episcopal Vicars, Parish Priests, Heads of Institutions, and All the Faithful of CDTY!

Dear Brethren,                                                                                              

Ref. Corpus Christi Procession Announcement

June 11^th, 2023, is the Feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ…Corpus Christi. Since the 13th century, one of the ways to honor this Gift to us is by processing through the streets with the Blessed Sacrament and publicly showing our belief in and offering our adoration to Our Lord in the Eucharist.

Theme:  Walking with Christ for Rich Harvest of our Farms, An increased Birthrates in our nation.

We pray for this year’s increase in our farm produce and high production of Birthrates. Since we, as a diocese through our parishes, cannot celebrate Holy Mass together and come to Church and receive Jesus at this time, He will come to YOU! Beginning at 8:00 a.m. on this Sunday indicated.

As we travel throughout the parishes in our diocese from 8:00 to 10:00 a.m., we will go through as many blocks as possible from where our parishes are located, blessing the residents who live there. Please encourage your faithful to come along the ways where Jesus will be passing, those who may be at homes or places of their works When you hear the passing of Jesus in the procession, come outside and stand in front of your house or place to receive a blessing. Hopefully, it will be a beautiful day!

I would like to suggest to you that, you can use any splendid means to carry Jesus, by hand, car, horse, bicycle, motorbike, etc, and engaging some groups to lead will be fine.

NB. The Feast of Corpus Christi and its Relationship to the Eucharist

The Eucharist is the source and summit of the whole Christian life. The feast of Corpus Christi is a celebration of Christ’s Real Presence in the Eucharist. It parallels the celebration of Holy Thursday in commemoration of the institution of this sacrament. When the Eucharist is carried through the streets in solemn procession, the Christian people give public witness of their faith and devotion toward the sacrament of the Eucharist

The Sacrament of the Eucharist is a sign and cause of the unity of Christ’s Mystical Body because it stirs up an active “ecclesial” spirit in those who are more fervent in their Eucharistic devotion. Eucharistic adoration cannot be detached from the liturgical and communal celebration of the sacrament or from the commitment to the poor and to justice. One draws strength and justification from the other.

The Corpus Christi procession is a centuries-old tradition of the Catholic faith to process the Real Presence of Jesus — the Eucharist — in public. The feast of Corpus Christi was established, in 1247.

Processions, ordinarily led by the cross, are an expression of the fact that the Christian life is a constant movement toward God and that prayer is always a kind of “walking with God”; they are a public image of the Church in continual pilgrimage here on earth.

1. the cross bearer carrying the cross or banner, flanked by the candle bearers;
2. religious associations, devotion groups, Institutions like schools, etc., perhaps carrying their own banners;
3. religious in their habits;
4. the clergy, in choir dress (and copes if available);
5. the concelebrants of the Mass;
6. the two thurifers in front of the canopy, customarily swing the thuribles with their inside hands. (Note: They should not walk backward. But the boat bearer walks to one side of them, not at the center. When required, he goes to the thurifers and places incense in the thuribles in the course of the procession.)

Brothers and Sisters, we bring Christ, present under the sign of bread, onto the roads of our city. We entrust these streets, these homes, and our daily life, to his goodness. May our roads be the roads of Jesus! May our houses be homes for him and with him! May our life of every day be penetrated by his presence.

With this gesture, let us place under his eyes the sufferings of the sick, the LACK OF PEACE AND VIOLENCE IN OUR COUNTRIES, the solitude of young people and the elderly, temptations, and fears — our entire life. The procession represents an immense and public blessing for our city: Christ is, in person, the divine Blessing for the world. May the ray of his blessing extend to us all!

With our theme, please let us from now on be Walking with Christ for a Rich Harvest of our Farms, An increased Birthrates in our nation.

Know this brother, in the Corpus Domini procession, we walk with the Risen One on his journey to meet the entire world. See you all on Sunday!

With love and blessings,

+ Barani Eduardo Hiiboro Kussala

Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Tombura-Yambio

Fr. Santino Wise Makuei, “Use the Great Gift of the Holy Spirit that You have Received to Pray for Your Brothers and Sisters”

By Sr. Henriette Anne (FSSA)

“Dear friends, today is one of the great joys, for the Spirit has been poured out in our hearts, today is the day we sent forth to proclaim peace and forgiveness from the one who is everlasting peace, he continued, let us take an example of our brothers and sisters who came to Juba from Khartoum, the IDP, they have nothing to eat, they don’t have clothing, medication, they are in a difficult situation, we are the ones to pray for them, we are the ones to contribute for them, we are to be in solidarity with them, these are our people, they are our brothers and sisters, so we are to pray for them”.

Reflecting on the Gospel of the day, “Peace be with you! Peace be with you!”, Fr. Santino stressed, “So for us today we need also to pray for our dear ones and especially for the government of Khartoum to have reconciliation, the healing of wounds and all forms of division”.

He further pointed out that there are varieties of gifts of the Holy Spirit that are meant to be used for the benefit of the entire body of Christ, “some people are really talented, they can preach, they can sing well, among other gifts, I invite you that just like the human body is made up of many parts that work together, so we too are the members of the church united as one body in Christ, let us use our different gifts for the benefit of each other”, he narrated.

Fr. Santino who is among the three priests that were ordained last month by the Apostolic Nuncio to Kenya and South Sudan, noted that the Holy Spirit intercedes for the believers to live sinful pride behind and give glory to God in all that they have achieved adding that the Holy Spirit is a gift for those who have shared in Jesus’ glorification through Baptism.

“Keep the Prophetic Voice that Pope Francis Asked of the Church in Juba”, US Ambassador to Bishop Eduardo

Bishop Eduardo Hiiboro Kussala of the Catholic Diocese of Tombura-Yambio met the US Ambassador to South Sudan, H.E Micheal J. Adler at his office in Juba.

The US Government has been funding peace-building programs through Interfaith Council for Peace Initiatives in Western Equatoria and through Justice and Peace Commission.

 The two men shared more about the need to intensify peace-building activities all over. 

From the widespread conflict in WES and beyond to the return of a full-scale war in

Sudan, violence has gone wild.

We live in times of crisis, the likes of which we have not seen for almost three-quarters of a century, Bishop Eduardo the Ambassador.

Inspired by Pope Francis’ 2020 encyclical Fratelli Tutti and his recent appeal to church personnel at Kator Cathedral in Juba, that the church must always explore ways, the Catholic community can bring bold, creative proposals to current problems and help build a post-pandemic world more attuned to a Catholic vision of integral ecology, human development, and peace, stressing to bishop Eduardo to be the Prophetic Voice in South Sudan.

It is crucial to uphold Catholic Peacebuilding in Times of Crisis: Hope for a Wounded community, such roles pay.

CDTY remains grateful to the US government for standing firm alongside South Sudanese during hard times and working times.

Bishop Eduardo extended a warm invitation to the Ambassador to visit Western Equatoria State.

St. Theresa Mission Hospital Annual Budget Successfully Passed

Members of Board of Governors

Maridi County Receives 2nd Runner-up, Miss Little Africa

By Bongomin Walter Joshua

As South Sudan will join the rest of the world to mark the June 5^th International Environment Day, Rita Joy Samantha will have an amazing and incredible story to tell.  The ten-year-old South Sudanese who is 2nd runner up, miss little Africa 2022/2023 is currently in Maridi to fulfill her goal of planting 100 trees before 5/6/2023.

Rita, who also miss little ambassador for the environment, has come to Maridi as a volunteer to the Africano Mande Foundation (AMF) organization, and together with her team, they will plant trees across Maridi town. She has already planted 31 trees in the compound of the South Sudan National Revenue Authority (NRA), Juba, with the help of NRA Assistant Commissioner General, Honorable Africano Mande Gedima. 

AMF executive director, Sami Charles Mande acquainted Rita with the activities that are being carried out by two of the organization’s departments (technical service and production). AMF is a nonpolitical, nongovernmental, and legacy Foundation named after Africano Mande Gedima, the first governor of Maridi state.

Rita Joyce Samantha was crowned as the 2nd runner up, miss little Africa 2022/2023, in a beauty competition that was held in South Africa making South Sudan number three in Africa out of 54 contestants.

Coaches, Referees, and Football Administrators Commence Training in Maridi

By Bongomin Walter Joshua

Whitaker Peace and Development Initiative (WPDI), in partnership with the South Sudan Football Association (SSFA), launched a five-day training for referees, coaches, and administrators in Maridi. The exercise, which is being conducted at the Maridi Women resource center and facilitated by FIFA coaches’ instructor Dr. Salyi Lolaku Samuel and his counterpart from the referees’ department, Mr. Sadiq Repent William runs from Wednesday, May 24^{th –} 29^th 2023.

Speaking during the official opening of the training, the commissioner of Maridi County, Honorable Miiri Alfred emphasizes that sports are a unifying factor adding that there is no segregation, discrimination, or nepotism in sports

The program co-coordinator for WPDI, western Equatoria state, Mr. Mande Daniel said 24 coaches, 12 referees, and 10 football administrators are currently taking the course under a project “peace through sports”.

Mande further describes the importance of the project, “as a peace organization, we are able to unite the youth and once they are empowered in all aspects, they can build this country, develop it and take it to a higher level.”  

Nora Viola, one of the trainees aspiring to become a professional match official, said she hopes to acquire more knowledge on how to control a football match and the laws that govern the beautiful game.

The two-year pilot project starts today and once the training is done, there will be a peace engagement day, and thereafter 12 football teams will be formed to participate in a peace tournament, 6 for girls and six for boys. A total of 204 players from the 12 teams will receive sports supplies courtesy of WPDI once the training comes to an end.

The organization is looking for funding to take the project to other counties of western Equatoria state. Maridi, Juba, and Torit have been selected in the Republic of South Sudan to pilot the project.   

CODEP Inaugurates Borehole at Gangura Payam

By Baraka John

Hundreds of members of the community at Gangura Payam gathered on Monday 22^nd May to witness the official inauguration of a water point in the area constructed by the Catholic Organization for Peace and Development (CODEP).

In early February this year, CODEP launched a wash project aimed at digging seven boreholes in different locations in Western Equatoria State. The targeted areas include Maridi, Mambe, Yambio, Gangura, and Ezo.  

The project being funded by the Sudan Relief Fund is with the sole objective to curb the shortage of water in the targeted location.  

Speaking during the inauguration, Rev. Fr. Mbikoyo Charles the director of CODEP applauded the Catholic Diocese of Tambura-Yambio for his tremendous efforts in initiating the wash project to save the lives of communities as well facilitate the work of the Church.

Fr. Charles urged the Christians and community of Gangura Payam to sustain the new borehole through monitoring its functionality to enable long-lasting and providing support to them and the parish priest.   

On his part, Mr. Phillip Paulino the Deputy Payam Administrator on behalf of the Payam Administrator stated that the community in the area had been struggling for many years to access clean drinking water which mostly forced them to work long distances to access water points.

The community was spotted jubilating and appreciating the Diocesan initiative to respond to the immediate need of the people in Gangura Payam.

At the inauguration ceremony were the community and Parishioners from Corpus Christi Catholic Church Gangura, CODEP’s deputy director Mr. Ngbaanisa Davide Ariyot coordinator, Davide Rusano Chairperson PPC at Corpus Christi Catholic Parish, Gaaniko Denel Elias youth among others.