Pope Francis has left an important mark on South Sudan. During his tenure as pontiff, he consistently advocated for the implementation of a peace agreement, introduced South Sudanese leaders collectively to foster belief, and visited the capital, Juba, to advertise reconciliation in the young nation.
A large banner of Pope Francis stood behind the altar at the chapel of St Lawrence Minor Seminary in Rejaf, a village located in the vicinity of Juba, South Sudan’s capital. As they entered for midday prayers, students knelt down facing an image of Francis, who died on Monday. Up to his last days, the leader of the Catholic Church advocated for reconciliation in the struggle-ridden nation, the place a peace deal was signed in 2018 to finish a five-year civil war that killed more than 400,000.
Whereas battling double pneumonia last month, Francis sent letters from his hospital mattress to South Sudan’s rival leaders, President Salva Kiir and Vice-president Riek Machar. He asked them to embrace dialog to resolve mounting tensions and stay the return of civil war. “I am deeply saddened by his death, we have misplaced a legal pope, a pope who was loving and caring” says Fr. James Rombe, 30, a priest in the archdiocese of Juba and the vice-rector of Rejaf seminary.
As a theology pupil in Rome between 2017 and 2021, he recalls meeting pope Francis on several occasions. “He gave everything to work for peace: his dedication, dedication, prayers, encouraging our individuals, pushing our individuals to dialog in inform to bring peace,” Rombe said. Francis’s shuttle to the country was postponed several occasions, nonetheless he then again kept an active stance on the South Sudan peace process.
A 2018 peace deal offered for the swift formation of a transitional govt of national cohesion. And the following year, to foster belief among the stale rivals, Kiir and Machar, Francis invited them to take part in a spiritual retreat at the Vatican. At the gathering he performed one of probably the most spectacular gestures of his mandate: kneeling down and kissing each their toes. “Everyone was worried” Fr. James Rombe recalls. “He taught our leaders a spacious lesson on humility and the correct way to be a servant leader.”
Whereas they shaped a cohesion govt in 2020, South Sudan’s leaders have no longer been able to totally implement the peace agreement. Elections have been postponed twice and are now speculated to take place in 2026. Since January, tensions have flared, with inform confrontations between the South Sudan Other folks’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) and forces loyal to Machar. Several regional attempts at mediation have failed and the UN has warned of a return to a “plump blown civil war”.
Despite the escalation, each parties have issued messages of condolence and praised the Pope’s give a boost to for his or her country. “Pope Francis will be remembered as a beacon of hope, compassion, and cohesion. His efforts to advertise peace in our country have left an indelible mark,” wrote president Salva Kiir.
For his part, Riek Machar’s party said: “We are eternally grateful for Pope Francis’ tireless efforts for peace and stability in South Sudan”, mentioning the April 2019 spiritual retreat as a “pivotal match that laid the foundation for the implementation of the peace agreement.”
