On February 3, Pope Francis will arrive in South Sudan on his African tour. This long-awaited visit is a strong sign of ecumenical peacebuilding. In a guest article for "kirche heute," Dorina Waldmeyer of Mission 21 highlights the importance of this ecumenical perspective.
Dorina Waldmeyer, South Sudan Program Officer of Mission 21 since 2018, is eagerly awaiting the days of February 3-5. Then Pope Francis will visit South Sudan. The world's youngest state still suffers from violence after a brutal civil war. During the visit, the Pope will call for reconciliation and consideration for the civilian population.
For the Roman Catholic parish bulletin "church today" Dorina Waldmeyer describes how important this trip is from an ecumenical perspective. To this end, she interviewed the Catholic general secretary of the South Sudan Federation of Churches (SSCC), Father James Oyet Latansio, in advance. The latter speaks of an "ecumenical pilgrimage of peace". It is a visit that supports, encourages and gives hope at a time when violence and injustice are still present on a daily basis - even though a binding peace agreement was signed in September 2018.
For Mission 21, too, this visit is associated with great hope. Because we support the Action Plan for Peace of the Federation of Churches and thus also the ecumenical peacebuilding in South Sudan.
