Supporting our Brothers and Sisters in Sudan

A vivid memory of my week in the southern Sudan is that of guards in camouflage uniforms holding loaded AK-47 assault rifles, providing security for government officials attending the liturgies in which I participated. 

I was in the southern Sudan during Easter week, visiting the Diocese of Rumbek where I dedicated Hope and Resurrection School, a secondary school built largely through gifts given to Hope for Humanity, a non-profit corporation organized by members of Christ Church, Glen Allen, in Richmond.  Jennifer and Darryl Ernst, the organizers of Hope for Humanity, were part of the team that joined me in the Sudan, along with diocesan missioner Buck Blanchard, the Rev. Hillary West of Christ Church, Glen Allen, journalist Alberta Lindsay, and photographer Margaret Nea.  We were joined on our way to the Sudan by the Rev. David Copley, the director of mission personnel for the Episcopal Church Center.