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Catholic Bishop in South Sudan Recalls Shooting Ordeal, Says “the Lord guided the bullets”

Bishop Christian Carlassare during Thanksgiving Mass on 26 March 2022 following his Episcopal Ordination. Credit: Fr. Wanyonyi Eric Simiyu, S.J. (Rumbek)

The Catholic Bishop of Rumbek Diocese in South Sudan has recalled the 26 April 2021 incident when he was attacked and shot in both legs and attributed his survival to divine intervention.

Bishop Christian Carlassare who spoke to the Pontifical charity organization, Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) International, said “the Lord guided the bullets” and that he prays for the conversion of those behind the attack. 

“That day, I was faced with two young men who were pointing guns at me, during the night, and with nowhere to run. They shot me, but thankfully the Lord guided the bullets and I wasn't hurt too badly,” Bishop Carlassare has been quoted as saying in an interview contained in a Tuesday, April 5 ACN report.

In the report, the member of the Comboni Missionaries says the two gunmen “hit the muscles in my legs but missed any vital areas. This was a moment of grace, because it gave me the humility to be like the people, bearing the same wounds as the people.”

Bishop Christian Carlassare during Thanksgiving Mass on 26 March 2022 following his Episcopal Ordination. Credit:  Fr. Wanyonyi Eric Simiyu, S.J. (Rumbek)

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Bishop Carlassare says he interprets his own ordeal, the getting “back on my feet”, and the returning to South Sudan to take up his new Episcopal ministry “as a sign” showing that South Sudanese “too can get back on their feet, despite the wounds caused by an endless conflict, despite the presence of so many weapons, so many territories occupied by militias and displaced people.”

In the face of situations that point to “despair”, the Italian-born Catholic Bishop goes on to say, “we have to provide hope that their wounds can be healed, that we can get back on our feet and walk along the path of peace."

Bishop Carlassare was appointed Bishop for Rumbek Diocese on 8 March 2021. His Episcopal Ordination was postponed to 2022 following the shooting incident. 

In an ACI Africa video recording from his hospital bed at the Nairobi Hospital in Kenya on 27 April 2021, he described his shooting as life-threatening but called for reconciliation and “justice with the same heart of God” among the people of God in Rumbek Diocese.

Reflecting on the peace process in South Sudan in the April 5 ACN report, Bishop Carlassare who took canonical possession of Rumbek Diocese on March 25 says, “We live in a country where Christianity is often no more than skin deep; it hasn't grown roots in the life of the population.” 

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Bishop Christian Carlassare placing a cross on the grave of the late Bishop Caesar Mazzolari in Holy Family Cathedral on 26 March 2022 after Thanksgiving Mass following his Episcopal Ordination. Credit: Fr. Wanyonyi Eric Simiyu, S.J. (Rumbek)

“Violence should be far from Christianity, but it is very much present. So many people take to weapons and use them to achieve their interests and goals,” the 44-year-old Catholic Bishop adds. 

There is much work to be done for the population to stop suffering because of the conflicts, instability, endemic poverty and lack of services,” he further says, and adds, “The attack I suffered was a clear sign of this."

Bishop Christian Carlassare, Priests, women and men Religious and Laity at grave of the late Bishop Caesar Mazzolari inside Holy Family Cathedral on 26 March 2022 after Thanksgiving Mass. Credit: Fr. Wanyonyi Eric Simiyu, S.J. (Rumbek)

The Catholic Bishop who has been described by one of his confreres as a person who “lives his faith and his vocation as a missionary with sincere earnestness and love for humans” says his experience in Africa “has shown me that stability is very fragile, and you need to give things time, and not jump to conclusions about what is going on.”

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Patrick Juma Wani is a South Sudanese journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. Patrick holds a Diploma in Journalism and Mass Communication from Makerere Institute for Social Development (MISD) in Uganda. He has over 7 years of extensive experience in leading the development and implementation of media, advocacy, communication and multimedia strategy and operations, with an excellent track record of editorial leadership, budget management, and stakeholder outreach. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.