The Roman Catholic Pope Francis made a three day visit to South Sudan at the end of his 2023 Africa tour, joined by the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and Moderator of the Church of Scotland, Iain Greenshields. As reported by NPR on 5 February 2023: “Francis begged South Sudanese people to lay down their weapons and forgive one another, presiding over Mass at the country's monument to independence hero John Garang before an estimated 100,000 people, including the country's political leadership.”
World Watch Research analyst Yonas Dembele comments: “South Sudan has endured crisis after crisis since 2013. Many had hoped that tolerance, democracy and human rights would flourish in the majority Christian nation. However, the clash between the two main ethnic groups (represented by the president and the vice president) led to a civil war that resulted in hatred, death and destruction. Over the years, many aid workers have been kidnapped and killed, and churches and Christian training centers have been attacked. It remains to be seen whether the Pope’s call for peace and reconciliation will be heeded.”
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