Fr Alan in South Sudan: Endings and Beginnings

It has been a busy few months in the Catholic University of South Sudan, Rumbek and, as always, life is filled with activity. The economic crisis has deepened, due to the war in Sudan and runaway inflation here. Teachers, nurses, policemen, and civil servants have now not been paid since last October. How people manage to survive at all is one of the enduring mysteries. However, the South Sudanese are a courageous and resilient people and life has to go on.

Joyful Graduations

We are a new Catholic third-level institution, so this year marked the graduations of our first class. Our four Diploma in Business Administration and two Diploma in Accounting and Finance students joined us in our mother campus of Catholic University in Juba. In addition to our Diploma class, thirteen more Bachelor of Business Administration and Bachelor of Education students will graduate later this year.

For many of them, they will be the first member of their family to have earned a third level qualification. It is a source of tremendous excitement for all involved. More importantly, after decades of deliberate underinvestment in the south before independence by the Sudanese government, these men and women are among the first groups of South Sudanese men and women to be graduate as local teachers and business people. Our Bishop, Christian Carlassare, was the guest of honour on the day, and spoke with pride about the difference the graduates would make in creating a stronger, most sustainable future for South Sudan.

We have also established a group for these new alumni, so that they can continue to avail of the resources of the University as they begin their careers. Access to the internet here is among some of the most expensive globally due to our isolated location. However, with the support of the MSC Mission Office Australia, all of our computers are online, allowing them to search for employment, carry out research, and prepare CVs and applications. For our current students, it has opened up an entirely new dimension, giving them access to textbooks, videos and online software that previously they could only have wished for.

Creative Collaboration

Resources here are few and we are always looking for innovative ways to support the professional development of our students. To this end we are collaborating closely with the Department of Human Sciences in the University of Salerno. Every three weeks, our Bachelor of Education students have a special input delivered online by a senior member of the faculty. They focus on some of the latest techniques and methodologies that will help develop their teaching practice. To date we have studied cognitive difficulties in youth, the design of classrooms to facilitate greater participation, and Universal Design for Learning.

All of our students speak English as a second, sometimes third language and the demands of academia can present a significant challenge. To tackle this issue, we currently offer advanced English classes for our first and second years. In an exciting new partnership with the Loreto Education Centre, we are also setting up small group classes for students who need extra support, along with classes in English for business professionals.

New Beginnings

While these last months have been a time of saying goodbye to some, we are getting ready to welcome others. Earlier this week we launched our admissions programme for new students. While our Bachelor of Business Administration remains popular, the two Bachelor of Education degrees are our main focus. The development of well-trained local secondary school teachers is our central goal, and we see it as an essential component in the continued development of South Sudan.

As part our admissions drive, we will have students involved in talk shows on two different local radio stations, use social media advertising, put up posters around town, make announcements after Masses, distribute flyers, and most importantly encouraging our students to spread the news by word of mouth. As ambassadors for the University, their recommendation is the most effective way of engaging new students and they have been enthusiastic in their mission. As always, we endeavour to encourage as many women as possible to study with the help of our partial scholarship programme and along with our measures to facilitate mothers with young children. We are also one of the few institutions nationally that have a wheelchair toilet and a fully accessible campus. Here, education is for everyone.

Nhialic ke yin (or God bless you),
Fr Alan

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

Fr Alan in South Sudan: Holy Week in a Heatwave

Phone calls from home have bemoaned the state of the weather with a familiar regularity. Ireland, they say, is a great country, if only you could roof it. While a strong argument could be made for such a national feat of engineering, I believe that the constant rain, drizzle, mist, and downpours have shaped our psyche in a way that has left an optimistic, if somewhat damp mark on the people. It has to stop sometime, surely, or so we hope. In spite of only hazy memories of sun as a child, such as the time it was so hot the butter melted on a primary school trip to Bere Island (certainly a shock to all of us), rain certainly predominates my image of growing up in the seventies and the eighties.

So it was something of a challenge to find myself in South Sudan, with six months of heavy, if sporadic rain, followed by six months of absolute roasting aridity. After over three years here I thought I was coming to terms with the worst my new home could offer, but this year it really outdid itself. You know something is up when at the end of March the National Ministry of Education and General Instruction decided to close schools for two weeks because of an especially acute heatwave.

On the surface this could be welcomed, as many children walk more than five kilometres a day to get to school, and while the morning can be cooler, the return journey in 43ºC is a problem. The issue for us is that our primary school offers children food during the day, along with access to our clinic, and the closure meant the former was no longer available and the latter was seriously curtailed. The school made an effort with a mobile outreach by our nursing team into the community to help support those in most urgent need.

Our secondary school, despite being a boarding school, was ordered to close too and most students had to head home. A small group of about forty remained, as they lived far enough away that it would have been almost impossible to make it home and return again. So, our community for Easter this year was greatly diminished, but still full of life. Our Palm Sunday procession from the convent to the secondary school was solemn and prayerful. I had considered getting a donkey, but after an unfortunate incident during an outdoor Nativity production in a barrio in Caracas that had Mary and Joseph walking most of the way to Bethlehem (a story for another day), I swore I’d never work with animals again!

During Holy Week the University continued, heatwave or no. The lecture halls have a corrugated metal roof, but no ceiling, turning them in to a large-scale oven by the early afternoon. In fairness to the students, they did not complain, especially as exams are beginning this coming Monday. We bought extra water pots and placed the around the campus to help alleviate the problem. This year we’re hoping to fix up the building completely, installing windows, a proper floor, ceilings, and (God willing) some fans.

“No matter how overwhelming the darkness, the light of one Easter candle is enough to set the world on fire.”

Maundy Thursday’s Mass of the Last Supper was beautiful. It began in the cool of the later afternoon, just before the sunset. Our twelve Apostles were drawn from students, interns, teachers, members of the clinic team, and people from the local community. The washing of the feet by Jesus in John’s Gospel was a powerful reminder for all of us of the need to see the ministry we offer as an act of humble service. Like Pope Francis washing the feet of women in a prison in Rome this year, all that we do should try to echo the authenticity and humility of Jesus.

On Good Friday at 7:00am we ferried all our students to Sacred Heart Parish in Rumbek for the Stations of the Cross. The Loreto Interns had been practicing all week and getting costumes ready to lead the event. It was a live-action Stations and we made our way through the centre of the town towards Holy Family Cathedral. As we walked, sang, and prayed, you could see that those we passed were moved. There is something visceral about the suffering and humiliation Jesus endured for us that speaks to all hearts. On arrival at the Cathedral, Jesus and the two thieves were tied to their crosses and hoisted into position. After finding a bit of shade, I spent the rest of the liturgy praying fervently that the crosses wouldn’t collapse and our students wouldn’t be crushed. Thankfully, our Romans knew their jobs.

Loreto Interns leading the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday, in Rumbek, South Sudan.

“Jesus falls a third time” – the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday, in Rumbek, South Sudan.

The highlight of Easter is of course the Vigil. The entire celebration from the lighting of the Paschal fire and blessing of the candle, to the readings from the Old and New Testaments, the renewal of our baptismal vows, and the Eucharist are liturgy at its best. The symbols of fire and water, light and darkness, hope and resurrection would move even the most stoic of hearts.

As you can see from the photos, our teachers in Loreto were all in for the preparation of the Paschal fire and the flames reached up to Heaven itself. As South Sudan continues to struggle in these early years of independence and persistent difficulties are everywhere, it is good to remember the promise of our Catholic faith, that no matter how overwhelming the darkness, the light of one Easter candle is enough to set the world on fire.

Renewal of Baptismal promises at the Easter vigil, with Fr Alan Neville MSC in Rumbek, South Sudan.

Fr Alan Neville MSC at the Easter vigil procession in Rumbek, South Sudan.

Happy Easter,
Fr Alan

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

MSC World Projects Appeal 2024: OLSH Global Outreach

OLSH Global Outreach

MSCs from all over the world continue to work in partnership with the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (OLSH), providing help and support to the poor and vulnerable on our shared mission: “May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be everywhere loved.”

OLSH ministry in South Africa

The Congregation of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart work together at the Holy Family Care Centre in Limpopo, South Africa, where they provide residential care for orphans and sick and vulnerable children.

At the Holy Family Care Centre, a community of Sisters, volunteers, and local staff care for between 75 and 80 children. Many of these children are living with chronic illnesses such as HIV/AIDs, TB, and other critical conditions. The children are mostly orphaned, and all are vulnerable. The community here work closely with the Department of Social Development to provide the best possible opportunities for the children in their care.

At the moment, the boys’ dormitory accommodates 23 children and two staff members. It is very crowded, with no space between the beds. With your help, the Sisters would like to buy new bed linen and mattresses, as most of the current ones are now 15 years old, and to replace some of the beds with bunk beds to give the children who sleep here more space.

The Holy Family Sisters are currently working to raise a total of €6,000
to provide more space in the dormitory for boys aged 2 to 10 years.

The onsite crèche at the Holy Family Centre helps the Sisters, along with their volunteers, to care for up to 25 children. To cater for the changing requirements of the youths in their care, they would like to build an extra toilet block so that the children can be toilet trained on low junior toilets suited to their needs. Unfortunately, due to rising costs, the Sisters need your help to fund the construction and fitting of this toilet block.

€4,900 will make a great difference in the Sisters’ ability to provide comfortable facilities
for the toddlers in their care.

In South Africa, “load shedding” is an unfortunate and frequent aspect of daily life, when the electricity in the Care Centre has to be cut. The Centre has its own back up generator, but this is only used when it is vital, as the cost of diesel continues to increase. The Centre would like to install solar panels to power their bore water well and sewerage pumps. The solar panels would ensure savings on power, which in turn will help reduce costs and prevent major systems from failing.

€9,900 will enable the Holy Family community to pay for solar panels to be installed,
including batteries and labour.

“The Holy Family Centre hopes to help each child to regain their childhood. We aim to address their physical, emotional, psychological, educational, and spiritual needs. Our main focus is to create an environment where they feel safe, loved, happy, and to extend them kindness and guidance.”
“Our Vision” ~ OLSH Sisters, South Africa

PLEASE SUPPORT OUR OLSH SISTERS IN THEIR GLOBAL OUTREACH

OLSH outreach in Brazil

In a Eldorado, a small city in Brazil, lives Sr Bruna. Here, she administers to the spiritual needs of the local community with the help of Eucharistic ministers. Together, they visit members of the parish who cannot attend Mass due infirmity or illness, bringing Holy Communion to those in need and providing spiritual solace to people who are often alone.

€900 will enable Sr Bruna FDNSC to purchase 12 pyx cases to help bring the Holy Eucharist
to sick, elderly, and infirm parishioners who cannot attend Mass.

The Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in San Paulo, Brazil, run a special programme for senior parishioners. The Sisters here have reached out to the seniors in the community to give them access to computer classes, a local choir, and other activities such as yoga and crafts for the aged. These workshops are free and are held twice a week. The meeting place for the senior groups is in great need of renovation, including a new roof and the repair of the floors. The newly renovated roof will also capture rain water, which can then be used sustainably in the toilets and gardens.

€16,000 will provide immeasurable help to the Sisters as they continue to provide a place for the seniors of the parish to gather for friendship and personal development.

Sr Maria Jose is a teacher in San Paulo, Brazil, who works with a youth group who meet weekly. She is appealing for our help in raising funds to purchase some musical instruments, enabling local youths to learn new skills individually and as a group, and to develop their musical talents. Sr Maria Jose would like to buy a keyboard, an electric guitar, a cajon, and a ukulele, to bring the youth group together in harmony and in prayer.

€1,000 will buy musical instruments to encourage unity and personal growth
for members of the youth group.

PLEASE SUPPORT OUR OLSH SISTERS IN THEIR GLOBAL OUTREACH

OLSH ministering across Africa

The OLSH Sisters have a nursery school and primary school in Zagtouli, Burkina Faso, where they provide two snacks and a meal each day for the pupils. In this way, they guarantee that vulnerable children receive muchneeded nourishment. The Sisters would now like to build a dining room, so the children can eat in comfort, and will no longer need to eat in their classrooms or outside.

€20,000 will enable the Sisters to build a dining room for the children attending the school.

The Sisters also minister in the region of Fada N’Gourma in Burkina Faso, where they have been caring for the local community since 2013. The population of this town is 34,000, with 40% of the people living below the poverty line. Taking into consideration the needs of the people of this area, the Sisters have recently managed to acquire some land and hope to build three classrooms on this site. With your support, they can help local children and their families to look forward, with hope, to a better future.

€20,000 will provide the funds needed to start building three classrooms on the new site.

“To the wonderful benefactors in the Irish Province, we thank you sincerely for the assistance you give to us. It is very much appreciated! We remember you in prayer, with deep gratitude.”
~ Sr Jenny Christie FDNSC
International Development Officer for the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart

PLEASE SUPPORT OUR OLSH SISTERS IN THEIR GLOBAL OUTREACH

Fr Alan in South Sudan: Those Who Can, Teach

Schools are always busy in South Sudan in February. The academic year here runs differently from Ireland and England, with our long holidays based around Christmas. So the back to school trials and tribulations began earlier this month. Students have to register for their studies, including paying their fees. When you have a number of children, this can be a substantial amount of money. Usually, the Catholic schools charge the equivalent of two bags of charcoal or just one chicken for the entire year. The underlying ethos is education is for everyone, but everyone should contribute something, insofar as they can. For Loreto, the fee includes a daily meal, their school books, treatment in our clinic (malaria is still around, and never, ever underestimate the number of scrapes 1,300 children can get into), and of course their studies.

Lunchtime at the primary school (Image courtesy of Paul Jeffries.)

Great minds! (Image courtesy of Paul Jeffries.)

We had our opening Mass for the Upper Primary children last Friday and I spoke to them about the great gates of the world, such as the Gate of India in New Delhi, the Golden Gate in Jerusalem, and the Arc du Triomphe in Paris (technically not a gate I know, but the kids were most impressed with the photo). Then we talked about the gate to Loreto Primary School. While nowhere near as famous, elegant, or ancient, they are beautiful in their own way.

The fact that these young children can come through those gates every day, in a country that is largely at peace right now, is a gift. As we do the school runs in Ireland, stuck in traffic, with the rain beating relentlessly against the windscreen, we can easily take this for granted. Here, the peace we are enjoying is a blessing and not one easily forgotten. Just to our north, our immediate neighbours, Sudan, are in the grip of a savage civil war for the last ten months, from which will emerge only losers. The devastation will set back the country by a generation at least and the suffering has been immeasurable. In South Sudan, we are still building here after decades of conflict, and we are aware of how quickly it can all be taken away.

A sign of things to come

Thankfully, in the Catholic University, education continues to flourish too. This is in large part due to the generosity of our MSC benefactors, who have helped us fund the complete renovation of the library, as well as the purchase of blackboards and chairs for our lecture rooms. Just this morning I joined one of our students on his first visit to the school where he will have his teaching placement. It’s wonderful to see. Over the course of the next twelve weeks, he and his classmates will experience what teaching in secondary schools is really like. It will be a steep learning curve for them, as a classroom filled with fifty teenagers in the throes of teenage angst can be a tough crowd to please. Increasingly though, the youth are seeing the value in education and the depth of their commitment is impressive. When our students graduate, they will be among the first properly trained teachers who have qualified from Catholic University in Rumbek. It is a sign hopefully of things to come.

The rest of the University students are sitting midterm exams at the moment. There is no better incentive for them to commit themselves to their studies. Just outside my office window, a number of our final year business administration students are having a small group discussion. It’s something quite typical of any university, but the fact that four of the five participants are women is something that is decidedly atypical here. In total, just over a third of our students are women, up from just twenty percent two years ago. There’s a lot to be done still, but at least we’re moving in the right direction. As I write this, there does seem to be a lot of laughter coming from them. Perhaps I have underestimated the fun that is to be had from managerial economics.

Nhialic ke yin (or God bless you),
Fr Alan

Selected images courtesy of Paul Jeffries.

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

Welcoming a new year at the Holy Family Care Centre

With the dawn of a new year, the team at the Holy Family Care Centre in Ofcolaco, South Africa, have hit the ground running. With more than 10 children joining the community at the centre in the space of a few days, the centre’s director Sr Sally Duigan writes, “The new year – and especially the school year – has got off to a very action-packed start!”

Founded in 2002 in the Limpopo Province of South Africa, the Holy Family Care Centre has been providing care for young children who are very ill, often with HIV, for over 20 years. Many of these children have been orphaned or abandoned, and have nowhere else to go. Run by the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, with the support of the MSC, the centre can accommodate 70 children and is stretched to capacity with many children needing urgent care.

Welcoming new manager JJ

The team at Holy Family recently welcomed a new manager, Jeanette Joalane Lesise, affectionately known as JJ.

“I never knew or even thought that I would ever leave the City of Gold, the hub of Gauteng to Ofcolaco,” writes JJ in an update on the Holy Family website. “Here I am, in the middle of mango and sweet corn farms. Surrounded by nature, fresh breezes of air, sweet melodies of birds, beautiful sunsets, hot summer days and showers of rain as the sun goes down.”

“I am surrounded by love, joy and happiness,” JJ continues, describing herself as a “special mom to 76 kids”. “These bundles of joy are from 0 to 18 years old. Upon my appointment, Lerato* was my first, a 4-day old baby girl. After three days here at Holy Family Care Centre… I had my first experience of welcoming a three-year-old Mpho. Well, Mpho* was temporarily placed with us and 4 days later his social worker fetched him to be placed with his relative who was willing to be his guardian. As for Lerato, she will be raised here unless of course, through the mercy of God she is adopted or fostered.”

“Holy Family Care Centre is a home away from home, for myself, for passionate Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, the wonderful staff, the committed volunteers, and all children placed on our doorstep. This is now my life,” she finishes.

Grade 12 scholars

On January 24^th, JJ attended the local high school, where a celebration took place for the Grade 12 class of 2023. Sr Sally tells us, “We are very proud of two of our girls, who just obtained their Grade 12 certificates. It is the first time we have had children in Grade 12 and we are very proud of them.”

With 2024 off to a promising start, we wish Sr Sally, JJ, and all the team at Holy Family a bright year ahead!

IF YOU CAN, PLEASE SUPPORT THE HOLY FAMILY COMMUNITY
*

Highs and Lows in South Sudan – Fr Alan MSC

Whistling Tunelessly

What is the meaning of happiness? Philosophers have speculated on the topic since the beginning of the human story. The answers provided to date are varied and many, but few would include driving along a dirt road, at night, in the rain, perched precariously on a half a driver’s seat (the rest has somehow mysteriously disappeared over time) in a pick-up truck that your average NCT technician would not only refuse to examine due to concerns for their personal safety, but would happy fire bomb with a Molotov cocktail from the comfort of their office. Yet, this is where I found myself a week ago on a Thursday night, whistling somewhat tunelessly as I drove alone. Happiness. It comes in the most surprising of places.

The destination for my rather battered pickup filled with tables was our clinic, which the following day, would the site of the Loreto Graduation. Over fifty young women marked the end of their formal studies with us and are now looking forward to their Senior Four national exams in just over a week. The day is not just a graduation though. It means much more, as it is a visible sign of how far these young women have come in the face of many challenges. The number of women successfully completing secondary school in South Sudan remains one of the lowest in the world according to the UN.

So, for these young women and their family who attended, it really is something to celebrate. It symbolises a continued new chapter in the history of the country, where slowly (in reality too slowly) women are making their own way in the world. The early mornings and late nights of study, along with their daily classes, have paid off. For their graduation their families all gathered to give thanks to God for what has been achieved in a Mass with Bishop Christian. After that, it was all singing, dancing, and sharing food with one another, but overall it was pure joy. Even the hardest of heart could not help to be happy there.

A Runaway Train

Only two days later, I had another interesting experience. On the Sunday evening I was getting ready for the week ahead, planning for the work in the University and the schools, when I began to feel unbearably cold. A quick check with one of our nurse practitioners confirmed my suspicions. I had my first bout of malaria. If you haven’t had it, it’s difficult to accurately describe. Your fever alternates between being roasting hot and then freezing cold. It’s bizarre to ever think you will end up shaking with the cold, in bed with two blankets, when the room temperature is well into the 30C, but there I was. Thankfully the Sisters moved me into the Convent to keep an eye on me. Hardly necessary in my opinion, as all the world knows how easy Irish men are as patients. You’d hardly think we were sick at all! I was thankful for their care by the time I finished.

Anyway, aside from fever, there are headaches, body aches, nausea, and lots of other things that are perhaps not fit to print. The vivid dreams were something of a shock. In one in particular I found myself at a Eucharistic Congress in a large stadium, when a runaway train barrelled through the proceedings. I hopped on for fun, managed to avoid hitting three trams, before eventually crashing the train just outside a Spar in Ireland. The manager came out to thank me, took my photo, gave me flowers and chocolate, and then charged me for both of them, which I thought was a bit much.

Whatsoever You Do

Now, rambling, nonsensical vivid dream aside, the harsh reality is that malaria is easily one of the main causes of child death in our area. It always bothered me that at the end of the first year pandemic we had six or seven viable vaccines available. Malaria kills over 600,000 people a year, but still we are waiting on a vaccine. Simply put, rich people don’t get malaria, so there is not impetus to find a cure in the same way we came together to tackle Covid. The part of malaria that is most responsible for deaths is the fever. Young children often don’t have the strength to deal with the high temperatures, but all that is needed to reduce their temperature is a simple paracetamol.

Today is the feast of Christ the King and our Gospel from Matthew is one of Jesus’ most challenging and pointed lessons. It’s the story of the final judgement and the separation of the sheep from the lambs. Those who cared for the poor, the naked, the imprisoned, and the sick are welcomed into the Kingdom of God as the Father’s own. Those who don’t, aren’t. But I think there is more to the story. When the people question Jesus, he replies, “Whenever you did this for the least of your brothers and sisters, you did it for me.” We are not just called to serve those in need. Jesus wants more. He wants us to recognise the presence of the divine in them. To see the image of God in everyone, especially those typically most despised. We are all one family. When one suffers, we all do.

It took five days for me to get over my first experience of malaria. I was lucky to have a clinic nearby, access to medication, and a caring community. Not everyone is. That is why the work of not just the school, but the clinic here is indispensable. Life has its highs and lows, and as we give thanks for one, we must remind ourselves to work to help those in the other. That is what Christ demands of us. Nothing less will do.

PLEASE HELP US TO TRANSFORM LIVES IN SOUTH SUDAN

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

Give Peace A Chance – Fr Alan MSC in South Sudan

The world of education in Central Africa is small and even after only a short while you can link up with people from all over. With this in mind I Whatsapped a friend who is a religious priest who runs a Catholic university in Khartoum to see how he was doing. In short, not well at all. When he replied he said he had been forced to shutter the university and he is currently in Port Sudan. What state things will be in when he returns remains uncertain. What is certain is that the violence in Sudan has persisted far longer than even the most pessimistic estimations.

It was only last week when one of his students called into our office in the Catholic University of South Sudan, Rumbek. He was hoping to finish his degree in computers here, but the near totally absence of computers, coupled with prohibitively priced internet access, means that it was an impossibility. Still, he is happy to be home with his family safe and sound.

In the midst of the violence to the north, coupled with ongoing tensions in the Tigrayan region of Ethiopia, and following a terrible attack on a school in Uganda that even made the European news, it important to stop and be thankful of the peace that we currently enjoy here in South Sudan. Sure, we have our ups and downs. The University’s entire electricity supply, consisting of four old car batteries and a few solar panels, decided to give up the ghost, so there was a lot of running around to jury rig a solution. Still, in no time at all the printer was working again. No lights, but thankfully the lack of sunshine is rarely a problem here.

In the last few weeks we had loads to do, and the odd power cut aside, it was all good. We had a full week of teacher training for our Loreto Primary School teachers during a midterm break. It included class preparation and management, the history of the Sisters, and the nature of Catholic identity in school (run by myself). As you’d imagine the team of primary teachers are just the best. When you are singing the Gloria during the Mass they are the ones with their hands right up in the air. When you are dealing with over 1,300 boys and girls enthusiasm is a must!

Peace happens quietly. It’s violence that makes most of the noise or at least it does most of the time. The Senior 4 Students (the equivalent of our sixth year class) take part in an annual peace walk. This year we walked the 45km from Loreto to our neighbouring parish of Cueibet. We had an early start, beginning at the school grotto with some prayer and then we hit the road. The girls were delighted to get out and about in the community. The people in turn were happy to meet our students, especially when they found out what they were doing. Not so long ago such a trip would have been impossible, due to the proliferation of small arms, banditry on the roads, and widespread insecurity. That day we made plenty of noise, singing and laughing as we walked, and before you knew it we arrived in Cueibet in time for a simple Mass for peace in South Sudan and a warm welcome from the people of the parish.

The sister congregation of the MSCs, the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, welcomed two new members from Indonesia to their Mapourdit community

The students get help with coding

Loreto Rumbek students out planting trees and weeding their plots of groundnuts,

Since I wrote last we had two people over from Ireland, Linda Cardiff and Brendan Smith, to work with our University students on computer coding. We have just purchased two laptops, doubling the number of computers on the campus. You’d be amazed how many student you can fit around one screen when you really need to! We also had two new arrivals to the Diocese. The sister congregation of the MSCs, the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, welcomed two new members from Indonesia to their Mapourdit community. One is a trained teacher and the other an excellent nurse. We wish them the very best. Finally, as it is the season for cultivation, our students and teachers were out this week planting trees and weeding their plots of groundnuts, the national staple. Taken individually these are all small things, inconsequential in the eyes of national media its pursuit of the dramatic and the immediate. For the people of Lakes State though, this is significant, as after a long time of insecurity things are slowly building and life is flourishing. Peace is certainly a fragile thing, as evidenced by the world around us, but it is something worth fighting for.

Nhialic ke yin (or God Bless)

Fr. Alan

PLEASE HELP US TO TRANSFORM LIVES IN SOUTH SUDAN

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

Life Goes On – Fr Alan in South Sudan.

It has been heartening that many people got in touch over the last month to see how things were here, due to the ongoing civil war in Sudan. The situation there is dire, as rival leaders seek to gain as much power and wealth as possible, regardless of the suffering they cause. The only time they think of their people is when they look down to see who they are standing on. The loss of life in the conflict and the subsequent humanitarian crisis have sent shockwaves around an already fragile region.

Tens of thousands of the people now fleeing Sudan into northern South Sudan are themselves South Sudanese refugees who had fled South Sudan in 2013 because of the civil war here. Over the past few weeks they have arrived exhausted, carrying their meagre belonging, and uncertain what will happen next for them or their families. They have come at the worst possible time, as the rains have just started. Flooding usually cuts off the roads around the country, making it far more difficult to transport aid to impacted regions. To complicate matters further, by now people have used up most of their stores from last year’s harvest and it is a waiting game to see how long they can hold on for before they are forced by necessity to harvest what they have just planted. Finally, South Sudan’s largest export is oil from the north of the country, pumped through Sudan to Port Sudan. With the civil war this has all come to a sudden halt. This has fuelled hyperinflation nationally, making basic food and medicine prohibitively expensive in the market. The rains, which are seen as a real blessing, also unfortunately bring with them mosquitos and malaria. A single treatment for a family member can cost almost a month’s wages.

Uncertainty, however, is often the norm here and the South Sudanese are nothing if not resilient. How they manage continues to be something of a mystery to me. They have little alternative though. Within Loreto School and the University things are continuing as normal for the moment. In the school we have just welcomed a whole new group of first years students the Sunday before last. As part of our policy of cooperation and integration, they have come from all over the country, from different backgrounds and ethnic groups. They will be looked after through a fantastic system of school families, where students in second, third, and fourth year will act as their mother, grandmother, and great-grandmothers. Judging by the dancing and singing around the school last Saturday night I think they will be fine.

university students taking exams

In the University we are coming to the end of our first term and are due to finish exams on Saturday. The number of students enrolled has almost doubled this year and there is already a healthy interest among people hoping to apply for our next academic year. Our focus remains on raising up business leaders, who will build the South Sudanese economy, and training teachers for secondary school. We hope to begin a new Bachelor of Education programme this year in commerce, religious education, and citizenship. In addition, we will continue growing the Catholic ethos aspect of our curriculum, with courses on ethics, theology, and introduction to the Bible as part of our ongoing human formation.

When trying to learn how to play the guitar years and years ago, one of the first songs I practiced was by the Beatles. The lyrics are known by practically everybody and they seem relevant to where I find myself today: Obladi, Oblada, life goes on, brah Lala, how the life goes on. As I said earlier, how things go on here at times, I’ll never understand, but people have no choice, so they just get on with it. Self-pity is a luxury no one can afford. They do the best they can with what they have and they do it better than I ever could. Let’s continue to pray for the situation in Sudan and to pray for each other.

Nhialic ke yin ( God bless),

Fr. Alan.

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

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Fr Alan in South Sudan: The Papal Visit

Juba International Airport is chaotic at the best of times. It is only for the hardiest of travellers, with a sense of reckless abandon, and the sturdiest suitcases. On Friday, the 3rd of February, though, it reached new heights. As I flew back into Juba, the Pope was beginning his ecumenical pilgrimage to South Sudan, along with the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Moderator of the Scottish Presbyterian Church just two hours later. The crowds were heaving with singing and dancing, officials were everywhere waving arms and shouting, and (ironically for a peace pilgrimage) there were plenty of military to make sure everything went without a hitch.

The Vatican, and Pope in particular, have been involved in promoting peace in South Sudan for the last decade. When he met the President and Vice Presidents in Rome in 2019, the Pope stunned those present by getting down on his knees, kissing their feet, and begging that they would work for peace in the world’s newest country. This powerful act of humility demonstrated more beautifully than words ever could how committed he was to building a different future for a people in need of hope.

After dropping off my bags, I joined the group from our Loreto school lining the road to welcome the Pope. If I was tired after my flight, it was nothing in comparison to what they must have been feeling. Over the previous nine days, they had walked as part of a pilgrimage of peace from our school in Rumbek to Juba. A group of ninety students, interns, Religious, and youth walked from village to village on the way to the capital, witnessing to peace. Each evening they performed a play in the marketplace on the theme reconciliation and nonviolence.

“Brothers and sisters, it is time for peace!”

With all the police cars racing up and down the official route, we almost missed the Pope as he drove from the airport in his usual understated Fiat. He was to spend the first day meeting with the President, politicians, and the diplomatic corps. His message was encouraging, but given that twenty-seven people were killed the day before in a vicious revenge attack just three hours outside of Juba, uncompromising:

“Years of war and conflict seem never to end and recently, even yesterday, there have been bitter clashes. At the same time, the process of reconciliation seems stagnant and the promise of peace unfulfilled. May this protracted suffering not be in vain; may the patience and the sacrifices of the South Sudanese, this young, humble and courageous people, challenge everyone and, like the seeds sown in the soil that give life to plants, allow peace to blossom and bear fruit. Brothers and sisters, it is time for peace!”

The following morning the Pope met with priests and religious working around the country in the Cathedral. He remembered those sisters and priests who had been murdered in recent years, but also offered words of encouragement. Immediately afterwards, our youth who had walked from Rumbek had an opportunity to meet the Pope and have their photo taken with him on the steps of the Cathedral. He had heard their story and wanted to meet them personally. To say that they were on cloud nine afterwards would be an understatement. It would be something that they would never forget.

Later that day, the Pope met with internally displaced South Sudanese living around Juba, only a small group of over 2,000,000 people who have had to leave their homes due to flooding or fighting. Many have been living in camps for so long returning will be next to impossible. Mapourdit, where the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart minister, was a refugee camp before Independence, but has not become a permanent settlement. Pope Francis agreed with many of the local leaders that this cannot be the way.

“Only with peace, stability and justice can there be development and social reintegration. There is no room for further delay: great numbers of children born in recent years have known only the reality of camps for displaced persons. They have no memory of what it means to have a home; they are losing their connection with their native land, their roots and their traditions. The future cannot lie in refugee camps.”

On Saturday evening the Pope joined Archbishop Welby, the Rev Iain Greenshields, and church leaders from around South Sudan to pray for peace. In particular, they identified the problem of violence against women as a pervasive reality and spoke of the role women have played and will play as peacemakers, justice seekers, and future leaders. The response of the people there was joyous, even if many had to wait hours in 40C heat just to witness it.

Finally, on Sunday, we celebrated Mass with the Pope in the John Garang Memorial Park. It was a capacity congregation, and if you weren’t there by 4:00am, you weren’t getting a seat. When the Pope drove around the site at the beginning giving his blessing, he was greeted by cheers and ululations. In his homily, he spoke of St Josephine Bakhita, one of the patron saints of the country, and her fight from slavery to freedom, overcoming some of the worst challenges imaginable. Instead of becoming embittered by her struggle, she used it to inspire her and those around her to witness to her faith.

“Hope is the word I would leave with each of you, as a gift to share, a seed to bear fruit. As Saint Josephine reminds us, women, especially here, are a sign of hope, and in a special way I thank and bless all the women of the country.”

As the Pope started his journey back to Rome, we hopped onto the bus and joined our rag-tag collection of cars on the drive back to Rumbek. Only last year, this journey would not have been possible due to insecurity, but things are more settled now – hopefully a sign of things to come. Fourteen hours, one flat bus tire, and one broken down car later, we arrived back in Loreto Rumbek. An amazing journey for all of us, but for South Sudan one that is continuing.

Nhialic ke yin,
Fr Alan

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

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Fr Alan in South Sudan: Do they know it’s Christmas time?

“Growing up in Ireland, it was impossible to get through December without hearing Do They Know It’s Christmas? repeatedly. Like crackers with bad jokes, or recipes that try (in vain) to make brussels sprouts tasty, the song was an essential and important part of festive season. It electrified people and called them to act in solidarity with the people of East Africa who were suffering from famine in 1984. As I wandered around the Loreto convent in Rumbek almost forty years later, I could hear it again – repeatedly. One of the sisters in the community is a keen Christmas music aficionada – and when I say keen, I mean really keen!

The run up to Christmas in Rumbek has certainly been busy. We finished up work in the Catholic University on the 16th, concluding the first half of our bridging course with our new students. Due to conflicts that eventually led to South Sudanese Independence and the civil war of 2013, levels of education remain stubbornly low. Consequently, everyone beginning our degree programmes must undertake six weeks of intensive maths and English to prepare them for third level studies. We are hoping to welcome almost forty new students who are planning to study a degree in either business administration or English and English literature. We have a record number of women joining our courses, which is a real gift. They benefit from a scholarship programme supported by the Mission Support Centre that reduces their fees and supports their studies. In our small way, we are looking to redress the gender imbalance in education that excludes that vast majority of women.

This last year has been one of the most peaceful in Lakes State, but it does not happen by chance. Initiatives on many levels in both Church and state work to create a safer, more secure environment. Just before Christmas, Sr Orla planned a peace walk with the young women from the Loreto internship programme. Over twenty of us began before dawn and walked towards Cueibet, a parish some 50km away. We got most of the way there, before the temperatures went up to the high thirties. Part of the reason for the walk was to model how young women from different ethnic groups all around the country journeyed together in solidarity and encouraged people they met, especially young girls, to pursue a brighter future.

We all went to a local parish where I was celebrating Mass for Christmas Eve. It was to begin at 8:30pm, but, based on my experience from being there last year, I settled on a wall outside and welcomed people as they gradually arrived. In no time at all, the church was packed to the rafters, and we all welcomed the birth of Jesus with joy and song. Previously, it would not have been possible to have so many people out that late at night, but now the streets were busy with groups of people on their way to their churches. They absolutely know it’s Christmas time.

For Christmas Day, the girls who stayed with us for the holidays cooked the food, while I was off for another Mass. Each year a group remain in the school, either because they live far away from Rumbek or they cannot go home due to a forced marriage issue. Either way, we all sat down to a lunch of pork, sakumawiki (like cabbage, but not really), tamalaka (a peanut and greens like sauce), paper food (not sure how to describe that one), and Irish potatoes (which are just potatoes, but in the market that’s what they are called). We were joined by our Bishop and some guests, including boys from the La Salle school who also couldn’t make it home. The day ended with Sr Orla introducing the girls to Monopoly, which in retrospect, based on years of inevitable conflict in Irish homes, was not the best idea. Still, good fun was had by all, even if the Bishop’s team cheated.

So, we are looking forward to the New Year with a sense of anticipation. The new library renovation for the University supported by the MSC benefactors will be completed in January. I won’t have to worry about the bat droppings landing on my desk anymore through a ceiling that looks like Swiss cheese, and the students will have a place to study and do group work. The Pope is planning to come to South Sudan in February as part of an ecumenical peace initiative. The Loreto team and students will lead an eight-day walking pilgrimage to Juba for the event. It should be a wonderful occasion. Please do keep us in our prayers, as you are most assuredly in ours.”

Wishing you and your families every blessing for 2023,
Fr Alan

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

PLEASE HELP US TO TRANSFORM LIVES IN SOUTH SUDAN

Fr Alan in South Sudan: Advent

It’s Advent in South Sudan, which means that everybody is busy with endings and beginnings. It is a beautiful time here right now, as the rains ended in October and the land is still green. We have been enjoying a time of relative security for the last few months, which has allowed us to harvest the groundnut crop in peace.

This week in Loreto Secondary School is taken up with the end of term exams, so all of students are diligently going over their class notes, working in study groups, and preparing as best they can. I usually go for a walk around 6:00am, as the sun comes up and before the heat of the day sets in. Already, there are students sitting under trees or in classrooms getting ready. However, this is nothing unusual. It happens right throughout the year. The girls know that education is their best way of ensuring they and their family have a better future. School is serious business.

It’s not so serious though that they can’t take time to have fun or get involved in important extracurricular activities. Last Friday, a group participated in a local government project around the rights of women. On Saturday, our Peace Club staged a roadside play in the local village. Before a group of the chiefs, families, and school children, they debuted their new drama on the need for peace in South Sudan. There was also poetry, traditional dance, some speeches, and plenty of laughter. It was the first time that they, as a group of young women, addressed the chiefs about their hopes for the future. The Benydit, or head chief, was delighted with the work and encouraged them to continue.

In the Primary School the kids have been busy too. Last week, we had a fancy dress competition, where kids created wonderful papier mâché lions and cows, along with weather conditions, mathematical symbols and shapes, fruits and vegetables, and traditional costumes. On Thursday, the focus was on arts and crafts, again related to their studies. They drew pictures of insects for biology, model villages and farms for citizenship, and the water cycle for general science. Everything was made from scrap paper and reused cardboard. Their creativity was extraordinary.

While things are winding down for Christmas in the schools, we are only getting started in the Rumbek Campus of the Catholic University of South Sudan. We have had a new intake of students for our degree programmes in English and English literature and in business administration. Right now, they are taking part in an intensive six-week course in English and maths to improve their basic standard and prepare them to begin their classes at the end of January.

It is an exciting time, because it is hoped that from this group we will have a new generation of well-trained secondary school teachers and business leaders. We are carrying on with our partial scholarship for women to encourage greater participation. We already have quite a few enrolled and a number of these are mothers who are returning to education, something that rarely happens here.

In addition, we are refurbishing our library and student centre. Previously, the building we used was dilapidated and bats were in the process of eating through the ceiling. The entire power supply came from an old solar unit and a couple of second-hand car batteries. The floor was cracked and pockmarked, although potholed might be a better description. As I write, the builders are putting in a new ceiling. Once that is finished, they will plaster the walls properly and we have sourced a durable, but inexpensive, tile for the floor.

Some may argue whether this is the most urgent need. However, education is the essential foundation of a country that, if done properly, will ensure development that is sustainable for everyone. It is about giving someone a rod, instead of offering them fish year after year. Our students make real sacrifices to be here, whether they are in primary, secondary, or third level, but with their energy, vision, and commitment the future is bright indeed.

Ben Nhialic areer kek a yin,
Fr Alan

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

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Fr Alan in South Sudan: A visit from the MSC Superior General

Soon after arriving in South Sudan in November 2020 for my current appointment, I received a WhatsApp message from Fr Abzalón, the Superior General of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart, wishing me the best with the new mission and saying that he would like to visit one day. In the height of the pandemic, travelling anywhere seemed unlikely, and the possibility of coming to Rumbek would test even the most credulous of believers.

Less than two years later, though, I was in Juba to welcome him early on a Wednesday morning. When I first arrived in 2017 on a research trip, the airport was a simple tent, with no chairs that worked, and a length of runway. Now we have graduated to a building with one carousel, a sort of Central African Knock International Airport if you will. After a brief prayer to St Jude, he successfully negotiated the labyrinthine entry visa process, and we were off.

Challenges and resilience

Part of the Superior General’s mission was to see what was happening in Diocese of Rumbek and to explore if there was a need for a greater MSC presence. To that end, we spent our first day meeting with the head of religious missionaries in the country and then the coordinator of the Jesuit Refugee Service (both coincidentally Irish) to get the lay of the land and a sense of the reality of the people. That evening, we had dinner with Christian Carlassare, the newly ordained Bishop of the Diocese of Rumbek. He returned to the country just last March to be ordained, following an attempt on his life in 2021. Over cremated nyama choma (a speciality of grilled meat), the Bishop told him of the many challenges the Diocese faced, but also about the resilience of the people who persevered through a long fight for Independence and the Civil War of 2013.

Before sunrise, we were back to the airport for our flight to Lakes State. The closest approximation to the domestic departures experience is if you imagine the chaos in Dublin Airport earlier this year, then squeeze it all into one-tenth of the space, occasionally switch off the power, raise the temperature about 20C, and then you’re about half-way there. However, our guardian angels were working time and a half, and by 8:10am we had arrived in Rumbek and were heading to Loreto, which would be Fr Abzalón’s base for the week.

Exploring Loreto and beyond

Fr Abzalón had the opportunity to explore the Loreto compound, beginning with the Mary Ward Primary Health Care Clinic. In addition to looking after all the students and staff, it has responsibility for nine local villages encompassing 27,000 people. Most come for vaccinations, nutritional support, and especially malaria treatment. In the primary school, there are 1,400 day pupils, with a further 340 boarding girls in the secondary school. We are coming to the end of the first semester, so everyone was intent on their revision for exams. That afternoon he came to the Catholic University of South Sudan, Rumbek, where I work as principal. There, he met the young men and women who are training to be the teachers and the business people of the future.

It’s hard to believe in recent years that to drive into the east of Rumbek would mean that you were taking your life in your hands. It would be highway robbery, except there was no highway and if you got away with just being robbed you would be doing well. With the arrival of the new governor last year there have been far fewer problems. On Friday, we joined the final-year students and some of the staff to be part in a peace walk to the Parish of the Good Shepherd in Thonaduiel. We started off like good pilgrims at dawn and arrived eight hours later and 45km away, finishing with a short time of prayer. It was a witness for the villages we walked through of the country that could be built together if peace were to flourish.

South Sudan celebrated its Independence on the 9th of July 2011, and every year since then it has been a day for processions, speeches, and sports in Freedom Square. They have an understandable sense of pride over the establishment of their nation, but are conscious too of the outstanding issues that remain, most notably peace building, the rights of women, and the first elections that are due to take place next year. The Loreto students were out in force for the day and their marching was featured on national TV, to the great excitement of all the girls.

Pioneering work

The next few days allowed Fr Abzalón the chance to visit some of the local villages in Maker Kuei, where we are based. People live in simple conditions with a quiet dignity and have a genuine warmth for visitors. He took a cooking class to learn how to make combo (a type of stew containing vegetables, peanuts, and meat) over a charcoal fire. He also attended some of my CRE classes in the secondary school and shared what life is like in Guatemala, his home country. It was a special blessing to have him celebrate our Sunday Mass for the students outdoors under the shade of the neem trees.

As his week came to a close, Fr Abzalón still had a lot to see. On Tuesday, we went to visit the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in Mapourdit. The Daughters are the trailblazers of the Chevalier Family in South Sudan. They have been here for over twenty-five years and they endured many hardships before the country won Independence. Today, they continue their pioneering work in education and healthcare under the most challenging of conditions.

Thursday came around quicker than anticipated and Fr Abzalón headed back to Juba to get a COVID test and an onward flight to Rome. Looking back on his experiences he wrote to us that same week:

“The mission … is a wonderful and prophetic project of education and integral promotion, especially of young women. The community there struggle day by day to build and transform this challenging and complex, but at the same time, beautiful reality. The Chevalier Family is present in South Sudan.”
– Fr Abzalón Alvarado Tovar MSC
Superior General of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart

Ben Nhialic areer kek a yin,
Fr Alan

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

PLEASE HELP US TO TRANSFORM LIVES IN SOUTH SUDAN