The Gospel News

people into their country - apart from making things unattractive for them within Turkey. Our brethren cannot work legally, and their passports cannot be renewed because they have not done their military service. So they are without valid documents. We gave significant financial support to our brethren, some of which they will send to their elderly relatives who they say are literally starving. They are clearly suffering in many ways, not least from post traumatic stress. Only the Lord can resolve their issues and the world?s problems, and we so wish and pray for His early return.

South Sudan is the world?s newest nation, theoretically comprised of the Christian, black African South which seceded from the Moslem, Arabic North after years of civil war which claimed a few hundred thousand lives and created millions of refugees. However, the border area includes Darfur and other unstable areas, meaning that South Sudan has a steady influx of Moslem refugees seeking shelter from the fighting and famine. South Sudan itself is unstable, with much of the territory outside the main towns in the hands of various rival militias and cattle herding tribes at war with each other for pasture. The roads are severely potholed, not tarred and largely impassible. The only way of safely getting around is by rickety aircraft or barges along the Nile or other rivers. There is no functioning postal system, hardly any banking system, no use of credit cards, an airport with no security scanners - and almost everything is imported, which along with the hefty cost of transport makes life very expensive. And yet as a nominally Christian nation, the people of South Sudan know very little about their faith. There are very few Bibles around - everything has to be brought in from Kenya or Uganda. And there?s no postal system either. So here is a nation which is crying out to be given Bibles and to be taught the Gospel. It was a common sight at our meetings to see people eagerly sharing a Bible.

Jan-April 2014

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There?s very little teaching of any Christian doctrine going on because there are few pastors with any real idea about the Bible. It?s part of our work at Carelinks to seek to take the true Gospel to those areas where it?s not been preached, and South Sudan is one of them. We?re pleased to report great response to our work on the current visit, and the first Christadelphian baptisms there.

The first baptism in South Sudan was of brother JOSEPH from Aweil, a town near the northern border with Sudan, pictured below.

He is typical of so many. He fled to Ethiopia on foot as a child. His father was killed, his mother and grandmother had the back of their legs cut and their ears cut off [mutilated people are a common sight]. He and one other person were the sole survivors in a bombing raid on one village. He was buried alive when a bomb landed near the hole he and an old lady were hiding in, and it took them hours to dig themselves out of the soil on top of them - they were almost buried alive. We?ve made a video of his story, we?ll put it online soon Lord willing. We asked how he managed to forgive so much, and he has some profound comments. Like many other such ?lost boys? as they are called, he wandered through Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda, feeling a strong sense of calling