Off to South Sudan *Updated

The visit was first suggested by the Diocesan Sudan Link at the end of 2011 as a way to strengthen the link between the Diocese and the Episcopal Church of Sudan through training Church leaders at the small college, about one hundred miles from the capital, Juba.

The Sudan Link intends that this pioneering visit will lead to further involvement in the future from other pairs of clergy in the Salisbury Diocese. As well as teaching at Bishop Ngalamu Theological College in Mundri, the clergy will be visiting other Churches in the area.

Jane says, "I am looking forward to this visit with great anticipation, as I have taught Sudanese students previously, at Leeds University, and they were among the brightest, most hard-working and most committed. It is a huge privilege to be going to their country to share their life and experiences, and to see a country which I have previously only glimpsed across the border.

"I think the teaching will be a voyage of discovery as much as the physical travelling - and I look forward to learning from the Sudan Church, which has endured so much and remained so faithful and so strong."

Andrew says, "I am approaching our trip with a certain trepidation, much excitement and a sure hope that we are going for God’s purposes to do God’s work in God’s care.  I have only lived in Africa at all, from the ages of 1 to 3, in Ghana, so have little recollection.  With Jane, I expect a riot of new experiences, new culture and new understanding.  I go with open heart eyes and ears in the expectation of returning quite changed, and having learned much more than will be my privilege to teach. 

"I am looking forward, perhaps most, to experiencing a culture where Christ is lived out in every aspect of life, though I am trying to engage in as few pre-conceptions as possible.  I have asked many, and will continue to ask more, to pray for us and for the growing and learning Episcopal Church of Sudan."

Every Diocese in the Church of England has a link with another Diocese in the Anglican Communion, but the Diocese of Salisbury is unusual in having a link with the Episcopal Church of the whole province of Sudan, which spans both Sudan and the new country of South Sudan. The Diocese of Salisbury has been linked with the Episcopal Church of Sudan since 1972.

Click here for the Sudan Link pages