Church divisions undermine peace, threaten security in Jonglei: clerics

August 9, 2023 (JUBA) – A South Sudanese cleric has warned that the divisions within the Anglican Church in Jonglei State could undermine peace and threaten national security.

Speaking to reporters in Juba on Wednesday, the Archbishop of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan (ECSS), Justin Badi claimed local leaders mobilized armed youth to forcefully shut down churches loyal to his counterpart, Moses Anur, who was appointed to replace Ruben Akurdit Ngong after the latter was expelled and retired from pastoral services.

Badi called on the national government to provide protection to the church in Jonglei as well as allow the reopening of the churches which were recently closed down.

“The ECSS leadership is displeased with the failure of the government to give equal rights and protection to ECSS like other churches and denominations in Bor town,” he said.

Badi, a senior religious leader, also called for immediate provision of protection and the reopening of praying houses which have been affected by the activities of armed youth.

“Today,  in the name of Almighty God, we call upon the government to immediately give orders for the church in Bor to be opened for worship as soon as possible and give freedom to all ECSS bishops,  clergies and faithful to move and operate freely,” he noted.

The Police Commissioner, Major Gen. Elia Costa confirmed the closure of churches in Makuac and other areas by, but said the police could not proceed to enforce law and order because it did not want to engage in confrontation with heavily armed youth.

“It is true there has been a tension between two groups in the church. One group supports Bishop Ruben Akurdit Ngong and another behind Bishop Moses Anur but they are all from the same area and the same church.  This has caused tension which has made it difficult for police to intervene because the youth are heavily armed and do not want to listen to the police. They are heavily armed and so our personnel decided to withdraw to avoid getting into a violent confrontation with them”, explained Costa.

In August 2020, the ECSS leadership expelled Archbishop Akurdit following a dispute over increasing the number of dioceses and ordaining new bishops without the approval of the leadership of the church.

The office of the South Sudanese president intervened and Bishop Ngong was persuaded to write an apology to Archbishop Badi seeking reconciliation and an end to the crisis which started when Archbishop Badi expelled him over canonical disobedience.

The apology was accepted and could not proceed with the reinstatement process.

“The main contentious issue was that he wanted to be reinstated as full archbishop for three months. But we told him that the church laws do not go that way. He has to be reinstated as retired archbishop of Jonglei, of which he said he will first go and consult with his people”, explained Badi in June 2023.

Ngong described the outcome of the reconciliation meeting did not comply with the agreement they have reached through a mediation led by the office of the president.

“I was convinced by the president to write an apology which I was not willing to do. I wrote it and it was taken with the resolutions to the primate. So, I thought something good was going to come from that but it turned the opposite, explained Ngong. He added: “When we went to the office of the Primate this morning, I was told that I will be reinstated and retired right away. So, that one is becoming a concern.

South Sudan’s Minister of Information Michael Makuei, was part of the mediation team and expressed disappointment with the outcome of the meeting, saying the church failed to follow the resolutions of the final meeting held in the office of the president.

Makuei, also the leader of the Bor community, said the resolutions adopted at their meeting in the president’s office gave Ngong three months to reunite the church in Bor.

“When we went this morning to attend the function which people were enthusiastic to see this problem come to an end, to our disappointment as representatives of the government who were supposed to attend that function and see its ending, we were informed that the defrocking will be lifted now and that will be immediate with his retirement,” explained Makuei.

The minister emphasized that the Anglican Church was supposed to reinstate the expelled Archbishop Akurdit to the position he assumed before the leadership crisis.

(ST)