Nyamlell: Father Michael Barton's Sudan mission: Letter from Fr. Michael, January 2006

Thursday, November 22, 2007

Letter from Fr. Michael, January 2006

I have been really busy in December and into January. In early November I had to make the exam schedule and give them to our two Catholic schools. On Dec. 9-18 I was on my bicycle visiting nine faraway chapels and ended up at the government control town of Aweil (sp?) in which there is a beautiful Catholic Church and another Sudanese priest. Then I came back to Nyamlell for the last week of teaching and first examinations ...
Then came the cleaning of the church and washing of the walls and floors. We put up lights too for the first time ever. I hooked everything up to see if it all works and then after dark - nothing. I did get the lights to work but not the microphone so no one could hear my homily for the midnight Mass. After the Mass I put my subject marks on the certificates of my pupils and went to Adhal for a video showing and Mass on the 26th, where we had another huge crowd with teachers gathering to prepare the children's certificates. I went after Mass to buy two bulls for the day.
I went on the 27th to another center for another Christmas Mass and 67 infant baptisms. On the 28th I went to two smaller chapels and had more baptisms. I then went back to register all the certificates done by grade eight boys.
On the 29th I was to go to two small chapels but the car stalled in a river and I had to walk to get help, then walked to one place and had late Mass. On the 30th I went two two chapels and on the 31st of December to still another chapel, now all on foot because I could no longer trust the car. After Mass I walked four hours back to where the car was under the hot Sudanese sun, and had a malaria attack. I put on a jacket and sweater until 11 pm when I went to midnight Mass to welcome in the New Year.
The next morning we had testing of 106 catechumens but only 8 passed and were baptized and confirmed in Marial Baai.
When the school certificates were given out, of the 13th Catholic schools in Rumbek Diocese, Marial Baai ranked 13th. Out of the 16 of Marial Baai class eight, only five would be allowed to attend our new high school.
There is hope for a better tomorrow. We got the car going and pumped it a few times manually and got home to Nyamlell.

Lots of blessings. In 2005 we had 1,300 baptisms, 202 confirmations and 43 marriages -- all done by me. Who else?

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Saint Teresa Parish

Comboni School

Nyamlell (Aweil West)

Northern Bahr el Ghazal State

South Sudan

The permanent school and the Activity Center that serves as the Saint Joseph Church, as well as a block of four classrooms in the Comboni School in Marial Baai in Aweil West in Northern Bahr el Ghazal, were completed and the Church is used for two classes of Comboni School there. Until further plans or possibilities present themselves, the Marial Baai Community will have to maintain two locally built classrooms. However, in 2009, six classrooms were built – two of them in the first permanent Church built in the entire state since the 1950s.

The Science Laboratory and two more classrooms were roofed and completed in Nyamlell, also in 2009

We celebrated the 75 years of foundation and of existence of the Catholic Church in Nyamlell, which is the second mission built by the Comboni Missionaries among the Dinka. It began in 1934 for the first evangelization of the Dinka Malual so there have been 75 years of the gospel and the sacraments in our state. It was a very big celebration and many thousands of people came and so much preparation went into it.

There was a drive to get donations from the local Christians especially by the youth, and to my amazement the youth and the elders responded marvelously and most of the costs was covered by the Catholics of the parish; the OLSH sisters helped so much in organizing so many details. It was a Christ-centered celebration of Saint Teresa of the Child Jesus and a strengthening of the Church for continued preaching of the gospel in this parish, state and country of the South Sudan.

Our school did very well and got first place in the whole state of Northern Bahr el Ghazal in the state-run class eight leavers certificate examination in 2009. Our best was first in the state and our worst was 99^th out of 1,568 class eight leavers. The best went on to high school and the worst became a policeman. The class eight in 2010 should be sitting soon for theirs and we shall see how they will do.

A non-governmental organization (NGO) in Juba had promised $50,000 when the Activity Center was being built in Marial Baai, but when finished they said that it looked like a church to them and in the end did not give a red cent or piaster of any kind. So all this was done by money that had been donated by people like you.

There are NGOs who have built classrooms but they will only do it for the South Sudan Government and not for the Church even though our results are far superior than those of the government. All these took great effort.

In 2009 the Christmas collection all over the parish in all its centers and chapels was dedicated to building of the first permanent Church in the entire County of Aweil North. This building will be for two purposes. It will serve as a Church and as an Activity Center. It will be called Saint William Church and Saint Julia Activity Center and is being built in Gok Macar, the county seat of Aweil North.

We started the construction as of December 2009 and it is much too early to say when we shall finish but it will be done some time in 2010. I am thinking that U.S. $80,000 will be the cost and one thousand will come from the local community in the form of Sudanese pounds of items.

Next we would like to build a smaller chapel in Ariath, another important center in Aweil North with a good population and many Catholics in both Gok Macar and Ariath.

We have another Comboni school in Makuei, also in Aweil North, which is up to class five. Not far is a large church that has only local grass structures. I would like to build a block of four classrooms that will cost close to U.S. $100,000, which will only be started when we have the money. So I am looking for that too. I hope to get something from some organization. Much cheaper will the repair and finishing of our last classrooms if we can by 2012. I shall move one step at a time.

In 2010 there will be two schools that are up to class eight. They are Nyamlell and Marial Baai, both in Aweil West. As I have said Makuei is our smallest school and has class five this year.

Sacred Heart High School had a great year and in 2010 we shall have Form One and Form Two and growing but also struggling as students coming from other schools like the government ones are very difficult to find as to fit the poorly taught and the well taught who have the basics in place.

We all need help, so that something can get done and that what is up and running stays that way.

Sincerely yours in the Lord of all,
Father Michael Barton, MCCJ.
Comboni Missionaries-Nyamlell,South Sudan.
Post Office Box 21102
Nairobi, Kenya 00505.