SUDAN: Catholic Church in the Sudan to Mark 50 Years of Existence as Local Church in 2024
Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA
In the year 2024, the Catholic Church in the republic of the Sudan located in Northeast Africa, will mark 50 years of being a local Church in its own right when it ceased to be a “Missionary Territory,” local Ordinaries of South Sudan have said.
In their message shared with AMECEA Online after the conclusion of a three-day Ecclesiastical Province Meeting in Juba from 27-29, June, the prelates said, “As we prepare to celebrate the Golden Jubilee (fifty years) of our Church growth and the Fortieth Anniversary of the National Eucharistic Congress, we thank God for all those who have contributed to these great events of our faith.”
They appreciated all their brother bishops who have served dedicatedly for the Church including His Eminence Gabriel Cardinal Zubeir Wako, Archbishop Emeritus of Khartoum, Sudan, Bishop Paride Taban, Emeritus of Torit Diocese and Bishop Erkolano Lodu Tombe, Emeritus of Yei Diocese.
“We also thank God for those who have gone before us and we pray that the Church will continue to flourish, and to play its part in bringing about God’s Kingdom of peace, justice, and love in our nations,” reads in parts the statement signed by eight bishops on Friday, June 30. As they appreciated the late Bishop Emeritus Macram Max Gassis who died last month for his assertiveness especially to speak for the poor and oppressed; for justice, peace, human rights, and freedom of religion; and as a fierce opponent of slavery and war.
The Catholic Church in Sudan has approximately 1.1 million Catholics, which is about 3.2% of the total population. Sudan forms one ecclesiastical province, consisting of one Archdiocese and one suffragan diocese. The Sudan bishops and those in South Sudan form one Conference of Bishops: Sudan and South Sudan Catholic Bishops Conference (SSSCBC).
