On Fourth Anniversary of Civil War, Effective Church Leaders Continue to Etch their Way through Displacement, Harm, and Danger in South Sudan

By Jade Kassis

News and Analysis

This month marked a grim fourth year anniversary for the civil war in South Sudan. In mid-December 2013, a political power struggle broke out between President Salva Kiir Mayardit and his former Vice President Riek Machar Teny. As fighting broke out, the initial gunfire quickly ignited what soon became a full-scale civil war.

Over the years, attempts to build a lasting peace agreement were made but have thus far failed miserably. In August 2015, President Kiir and former Vice President Riek Machar signed the Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (ARCSS), but the deal fell apart in July 2016, following days of heavy fighting between their respective troops.

Today, four years after the civil war began, there is still no peace in sight. On the 13^th of December 2017, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, appealed for urgent action to be taken by all sides in order to bring the resultant humanitarian crisis to an end. Grandi observed that many refugee children arrived to neighboring countries “unaccompanied, separated, and deeply traumatized.” Additionally, many children are unable to attend school due to insecurity and economic hardship. Furthermore, refugee women arriving in neighboring countries face sexual abuse and violence on a daily basis and have reported being raped repeatedly, their children being abducted, and their husbands killed. To make matters even worse, displaced refugees are at severe risk of malnutrition, disease, and a lack of adequate medical care or proper shelter. Consequently, millions of South Sudanese refugees have become dependent on emergency assistance from humanitarian organizations.

According to the United Nations’ Humanitarian Response Plan for 2018, the situation in South Sudan is expected to continue to deteriorate in the coming year. Although the UN High Commissioner emphasized the High Level Revitalization Forum as the “key to ending the suffering of South Sudanese refugees and the killing of innocent civilians,” there remains a lack of clarity pertaining to how the “revitalization” will look.

Theological Reflections and Recommendations

There is no “quick fix” to the South Sudan conflict; however, there remain measures that can be taken to reduce the violence, brutality, and hostility in the country and potentially create space for a long-lasting peace agreement. One such measure is the empowering of civil society and other constructive forces. The church, especially, can play a vital role when it comes to peacemaking and reconciliation among peoples. Churches have the potential to reach many corners of the country and remain patiently engaged long after the national and international actors have left. ABTS has, especially since the 1990’s, been involved in the theological formation of many South Sudanese leaders. Some of our graduates are among the most effective church leaders in South Sudan today. Nevertheless, religious communities are “not immune to the polarization that has divided the country.”

Ultimately, who inherits the kingdom? As Jesus tells us in Mathew 25,

³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶ I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

The word of God never relieves us from our responsibility towards others. Our deeds of compassion are to be considered as the extended hand of the church, Christ’s own body, to our wider communities. How else can we explain our love for God to a world in turmoil? Often, however, we can feel overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of suffering and conflict we see or experience in our world, feeling impotent in the face of it all. Yet even the smallest deeds, those we might otherwise think unworthy, are of profound importance. To this day, we speak of “a certain poor widow put in to the collection two very small copper coins.” Christ saw this humble act and commended it before others, honoring this widow and teaching us to follow her lead.