companion relationships
SUDAN

The Diocese of Renk in the Episcopal Church of Sudan is one of  24 dioceses in the Province which was established in 1976. The Most Rev. Daniel Deng Bul, former bishop of Renk, is the current primate of the Episcopal Church of Sudan. In 2005 the government of Sudan signed a comprehensive peace accord with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement after a 22 year civil war. Tensions continue between the Arab dominated government in the northern provinces and the non-Arab southern territories. A referendum to be held in 2011 will decide whether the South remains a semi-autonomous province of Sudan, or seeks independence. Attacks against Southern settlements and towns by government forces or government sponsored militias continue, and the Khartoum government remains resistant to transferring control of the oil fields in the South to the SPLM led southern government.

The humanitarian needs in Sudan are particularly acute in the South, including the Upper Nile district where Renk is situated. The church is essentially the only reliable  reliable provider of social services there. With help from partner churches in the Dioceses of Chicago and Virginia, the Diocese of Renk has built schools and health clinics, and established micro business enterprises, and  welcomed thousands of refugees returning after a 25 year civil war. In  January 2010 a team led by Bishop Lee visited Renk to document in video and photographs the people and ministries of the church in Sudan. The images and interviews will become an archive for diocesan leaders in Renk, and a resource for sharing Renk’s story with congregations here in the Diocese of Chicago and the wider Episcopal Church.

To learn more about the companion relationship with Renk contact Jackie Kraus, chair of the subcommittee on the Diocese of Renk.

Renk, Sudan

Bishop of Renk: The Rt. Rev. Joseph Garang Atem

Address: PO Box 1532 , Khartoum North , SUDAN

Office phone: +249 11 775 742 Fax: +249 (0)11 775 742

Email: ecs_renk@hotmail.com

SUDAN MEDIA TEAM

In January 2010 Bishop Jeffrey Lee and three members of a media team—The Rev. Kevin Goodman of St. James Cathedral, Charlie Simokaitis of All Saints, Chicago, and Connie Wilson of All Saints, Chicago— visited the Diocese of Renk to produce a photographic and video archive of the people and ministries of the diocese. Their ten days in Khartoum and the Diocese of Renk included a meeting with Sudan's primate and the former bishop of Renk, The Most Rev. Daniel Deng Bul; a joy filled service with Bishop Joseph Garang Atem at St. Matthew's Cathedral; the naming and dedication of churches in Halaga and North Pelouch; and visits to medical clinics and schools where the church is the primary social service provider for the South.  "Our visit mattered more than probably we can appreciate," said Bishop Lee in a meeting with diocesan staff in Chicago on his return.

While in Sudan the team recorded three video messages on their experiences, and videographer the Rev. Kevin Goodman posted them to YouTube.  An expanded video of the trip will be available later this year, and distributed to The Episcopal Church missions office, the Episcopal Church of Sudan and Diocese of Renk, and congregations of the Diocese of Chicago. Below are links and a short description of the three video messages.

Sudan Video One

January 10, 2010

http://www.youtube.com/user/SaintJamesCathedral#p/a/u/2/UNwMoaf1AuM

Khartoum, Renk Town, message from Sudan Primate Daniel Deng Bul

Sudan Video Two

January 11, 2010

http://www.youtube.com/user/SaintJamesCathedral#p/a/u/1/IrJBCk-ICE4

St. Luke’s Church, Renk Town,; Glory Church, Renk Town; St. Matthew’s Cathedral, Renk Town; Renk Theological College and medical clinic; new church consecration St. Paul, in Halaga; St. Barnaba Church, Geiger

Sudan Video Three

January 16, 2010

http://www.youtube.com/user/SaintJamesCathedral#p/a/u/0/4lbJHzZ6AcA

St. John’s, Mellut; medical clinic and school, Mellut; St. Barnabas, Maban; church plant, Maban County; former mosque converted to church, St. Stephen’s, North Pelouch; St. Andrew’s, Wadokona.

About the Episcopal Church of Sudan Founded:  1976 Members:   2 million Dioceses:   24 Primate:  The Most Rev. Daniel Deng Bul Yak    Diocese of Renk Founded:  1995 Members:  20,000+ Congregations:  12 Bishop:   The Rt. Rev. Joseph Garang Atem

The Anglican Communion’s witness in Sudan began in 1899 through the work of the Church Mission Society. Originally part of the Jerusalem Archbishopric (reorganized as the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East in 1974), the Diocese of Sudan became a province of the Anglican Communion in 1976. It now numbers 24 dioceses and 2 million members. Our companion diocese, the Diocese of Renk, was established in 1995 under the leadership of Bishop Daniel Deng Bul Yak, who was succeeded in 2008 by Bishop Joseph Garang Atem. The diocese has 12 congregations and over 20,000 members. Its most pressing concern is helping preserve the Comprehensive Peace Accord between the northern based government of Sudan, and the southern Sudan People’s Liberation Movement. The peace accord was signed in 2005 after 23 years of civil war.