As South Sudan is once again threatened by violence, religious leaders and faithful mourn the passing of Pope Francis. An indefatigable figure of peace, he had made the fate of the South Sudanese people a priority. His death has revived calls to end the conflicts and restart the national dialogue.
Realising the Pope’s Deep Desire for Peace
In Juba, the capital of South Sudan, the emotion is immense following the passing of Pope Francis, who died on Monday at the age of 88. During a memorial mass at the Cathedral of St. Theresa, Archbishop Séamus Patrick Horgan, the Vatican’s diplomatic representative, urged South Sudanese leaders to honour the Pope’s legacy by bringing an end to the ongoing conflict.
“We must make the Pope’s deep desire for true and lasting peace a reality in the daily life of South Sudan,” said the Archbishop, recalling the Pope’s firm words during his historic visit in 2023: “No more bloodshed, no more conflict, no more violence.”
A Peace Still Fragile
Despite the revitalised peace agreement signed in 2018, South Sudan remains on a knife edge. In early March, tensions escalated when forces allied with Vice President Riek Machar clashed with the national army. The UN has recently warned that the country is “on the brink of a large-scale civil war.”
During the ceremony, Archbishop Horgan recalled the “extraordinary relationship” between Pope Francis and the South Sudanese people. The President, Salva Kiir, who attended the mass, hailed the Pope as “an icon of peace, tolerance, forgiveness, reconciliation, and harmony.” However, many faithful expressed disappointment that the President had not publicly renewed his commitment to the peace process.
A Peace Agreement in Critical Condition
Justin Badi Arama, Archbishop of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan, made an urgent appeal to the government: “The revitalised peace agreement is critically ill. We must do everything we can to keep it alive.”
Meanwhile, Mgr Santo Loku Pio, Auxiliary Bishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Juba, recalled the Pope’s significant gesture in 2019, when he kissed the feet of South Sudanese leaders at the Vatican, pleading for peace. “That gesture remains deeply moving,” he noted, lamenting that the leaders had ignored this call for reconciliation.
The Loss of an “Advocate” for the South Sudanese People
In an emotional interview, Cardinal Stephen Ameyu, Archbishop of Juba, expressed the shock and pain felt by the people: “We have lost our only advocate, the one who constantly reminded the world of our forgotten war.”
He recalled the Pope’s tireless commitment, even in illness, to highlight the sufferings of South Sudan, especially during his visit in February 2023, alongside Anglican and Presbyterian leaders. His poignant encounter with displaced persons, victims of war and natural disasters, remains etched in people’s memories.
“While so many wars are ignored, ours was too. But Pope Francis never forgot us,” Cardinal Ameyu said, paying tribute to “a great man” who was able to give a voice to the voiceless until his final breath.
