To the Christian Faithful and All People of Good Will on the Occasion of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement
by Most Reverend Macram Max Gassis
We all join together in thanking the Almighty God for the recent signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement that marked the end of the civil war, which caused so much death and devastation.
We believe that the power of prayer and the Spirit's providential guidance has been significant factors in bringing about this Agreement.
True peace is much more than the absence of war. What is needed now is our continued prayers along with our individual and community efforts in order that the tasks of peace building be effective.
More than fifty years ago when militarily powerful nations were on the verge of nuclear war, Our Holy Father, John the Twenty Third, called attention to the reality that true peace depends not on military might but on well ordered and harmonious human relationships "whose foundation is truth, whose measure and objective is justice, whose driving force is (self giving) love, whose method of attainment is freedom". (Peace on Earth, no. 149).
The Holy Father had also noted that in building such human relationships "scientific competence, technical capacity and professional experience, although necessary are not in themselves sufficient". For such peace building, among Christians and persons of good will, "Faith should be preset as a beacon to give light, and Charity (self giving love) as a force, to give life". (Idem, no. 152) These insights of Pope John the Twenty Third can serve us well as we take up the difficult but necessary tasks of building truly peace filled communities.
The peace we seek to build in civil society is an order and harmony in the community so that individual persons and the communities themselves can develop fully and freely. Such peace building has social, economic, political, cultural and religious dimensions. We urge each and everyone as citizens responsible for building such a peace to contribute according to their God given talents and capacities.
I. Regarding the Religious Dimension of Such Peace Building, We Urge Our Catholic Faithful:
- Keep Sunday as the Lord's Day:
In every place, large or small, where Catholics live let our faithful come together on every Sunday to observe the Lord's Day with prayers and reflections on their Christian responsibilities to themselves and those around them, particularly those in need.
By coming together in this way, we invite Jesus to be among us as the center of our community, since He Himself promised, "Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in your midst". We urge all Catholics to gather together, whether a priest is available to celebrate the Eucharist with them or not, because in their actual coming together, they bring Christ among themselves and are able to acknowledge Him as Lord and Saviour.
We urge this because we know that we do not have sufficient clergy and pastoral workers to lead all such gatherings. Our diocesan pastoral offices will supply suggestions for Sunday prayer services without a priest. However, in order to begin immediately such prayer services, we urge our faithful on Sundays to:
- Praise the Lord in song;
- Read the scripture together and then spend some time in silence reflecting on what the Word of God may mean in our daily lives;
- Say the Rosary, asking our Mother Mary to intercede for us and protect us, especially as we attempt to build peace in our communities;
- Make a contribution, in kind or in cash, no matter how small, for the good of the community;
- Discuss together how the group or individual Christians in the group can choose to be of service to their brothers and sisters, particularly those who may be in special need, e.g. the sick, elderly, recent arrivals, etc.
- Find in The Eucharist our Source of Unity and Strength
In the Eucharist we possess Jesus Himself, Risen Christ, Who comes among us as our "Bread of Life" in order to strengthen us to live our Christian way of life. Our Holy Father has designated the months ahead until October, 2005 as a Eucharistic Year in which the theme is "The Eucharist, Sum and Source of our Christian Life and Mission". The Pope invites us to find in the Eucharistic Sacrifice of the Mass the model and means of living our daily Christian lives, particularly in our concern for the needy brothers and sisters in our midst. In our efforts to build peace in our communities, we have Christ Himself in the Eucharist to unite us and strengthen us on our way.
- Respect the Religious Beliefs and Freedom of Conscience of all people
- Reconciliation
Our civic communities are multi-ethnic and multi-religious. As Catholics we encourage all persons to follow their conscience and we respect their religious beliefs and practices. We foster our faithful to join with other faith based groups to engage in common initiatives for the benefit of our people. "However, we do not have a spirit of timidity, but of love, power and self control" (Tit. 1:4). We must feel called to live out our faith with pride and without fear or shame as the greatest gift to be developed in our peace time.
Ask pardon for offences committed. Forgive or reconcile with those who have offended you.
II. Regarding Participation in Peace Building in Civil Society, We Urge Our Catholic Faithful:
- Take part in civic education initiatives that will better inform you of your basic human rights and civic duties, particularly those related to cooperation with local authorities.
- Take responsibility for protecting and promoting your own basic rights and fulfilling your civic responsibilities especially your right to take part in the process of self-determination.
- Take responsibility to help protect and promote the basic rights of others, mindful especially of the infirm, the elderly, single parents, other vulnerable groups and recent arrivals.
- Be careful to guard against all forms of greed for material benefits and lust for power.
- Be vigilant in dealing with those who offer financial or other forms of material support; See if we share common values and objectives with them.
- Join together and network with all people of good will in efforts to meet community needs and to build a truly peaceful society.
Conclusion
We recall the words of St. Paul, "glory be to God whose power working in us can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine" (Eph.. 3:20). These words encourage us to put into action what we suggested above while trusting in the Lord's providential power and guidance to enable us to be effective instruments of His peace.
We place our efforts in a special way under the care of Mary, Mother of God and Queen of Peace, that she intercede with Her Son so that all the people of Sudan come to enjoy a just and lasting peace.
Signed:
H. L. Erkolano Lodu Tombe
President of SCBRC & Bishop of Yei
H. L. Macram Max Gassis
Vice President of SCBRC & Bishop of El-Obeid
H. L. Paride Taban
Bishop Emeritus of Torit
H. L. Joseph Gasi Abangite
Bishop of Tombura/Yambio
H. L. Caesar Mazzolari
Bishop of Rumbek
This item 7807 digitally provided courtesy of CatholicCulture.org
