Plans underway for the installation of Juba Archbishop Elect, Vatican, Bishops Supportive

Bishops in Sudan and South Sudan under SCBC have thrown their weight behind the new Archbishopof Juba expressing gratitude to the Holy Father for reconfirming Archbishop-Elect Stephen Ameyu, a stance the Bishops had voiced in a December 19 letter.

“We are indeed, deeply in debt of thanks for the last reconfirmation of His Grace Stephen Ameyu as the Archbishop of Juba,” reads the letter signed by SCBC president, Bishop Tombe Trille Kuku.

SCBC “re-acknowledges the decision of the Holy Father to whom we pledge our total loyalty as supreme pontiff and successor to St. Peter and Vicar of Christ on earth, accepting the resignation of Rev. Archbishop Paolino releasing him graciously from long term service and appointing Rev. Stephen as the new Archbishop of Juba.” 

“We reconfirm with gratitude the steady position of the Holy Father towards the people of South Sudan in general and the Church in particular; his repeated calls for peace,” SCBC wrote and reminded the people of the World’s youngest nation the Holy Father wished the country well.

“His significant fatherly attitude of touching each of us through the concrete and sincere gesture of kissing our feet in the person of our leadership, strengthening our Church by his prayers and the recent provision of the Shepherds Leadership to the diocese of El Obeid; Torit;  Marakal and Juba,” the Prelates say.

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The Sudanese Bishops have appealed to “brethren in faith, to respect the feelings of the majority of Catholics in the Archdiocese: mothers, fathers, young men and women, children, priests, religious women and men, who are profoundly hurt by the actions and behaviour shown by few who said to represent the indigenous in tribe rather than the indigenous Christian-Catholics!”

“We encourage and respect the Catholic Faithful in the Archdiocese to use their Christian given rights to express their opinions correctly and with respect, the integrity of faith and morals, show due to their Pastor, Pope Francis and taking into account the common good, the dignity of individuals, but refrain the use of inappropriate language,” the Bishops urge the faithful and add, "Do not leave room for the devil" to work on you!” 

“It is our fervent prayer that the people of the Archdiocese of Juba will see reason and come back to the church that is founded on the obedience to the authority of God,” the Bishops concluded.

Magdalene Kahiu contributed to the writing of this story. 

Fr. Don Bosco Onyalla is ACI Africa’s founding Editor-in-Chief. He was formed in the Congregation of the Holy Ghost Fathers (Spiritans), and later incardinated in Rumbek Diocese, South Sudan. He has a PhD in Media Studies from Daystar University in Kenya, and a Master’s degree in Organizational Communication from Marist College, New York, USA.