Nyamlell: Father Michael Barton's Sudan mission: School crowd welcomed return of Father Michael

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

School crowd welcomed return of Father Michael

This letter was sent by Father Michael Barton from St. Teresa Parish in Nyamlell to Jane Lichtenberg, arriving in late February:

Dear Jane,
I got back here in mid December and a big crowd was waiting for me at the airstrip and accompanied me back to the mission. I had to leave one bag in Nairobi and another in Loki and I came with 33% of my luggage. I hope I shall meet the other 66% someday in the future.

I helped in the next days with the final examinations and tested the catechumens and then it was Christmas. As it had rained very much while I was away and there had been a big flood and the River Lol was still too high for a car to pass, Fr. Pax stayed in the center parish and I went out by bicycle to Gok Macar. We had midnight Mass under the stars with the shepherds, and then in the morning many confessions and testing of the candidates and catechumens and had baptisms and confirmations during the Mass and 111 infant baptisms after the Mass. Then we went to another chapel for another round of testing, Mass, baptisms and confirmations and another 80 infant baptisms.

Those last infant baptisms were done at night with a flashlight. They all have now seen how fat I have become and so maybe that is why the only meal I was given was some rice when all the sacramental and liturgical work had been finished. I went back with the flashlight to fall exhausted on my sleeping bag for the night.

The next night was in Adhal halfway between Gok Macar and Nyamlell where we had another huge crowd and testing, confessions and Mass and confirmations and 130 infant baptisms. Finally, I got home and we had a little Christmas celebration between Ray and me.

I have been out every day since then to different chapels and with fewer people but always a lot of work. While I was out someone got in through the window of my room and stole money and ransacked an already messy room. I think that was the second time it happened. They did not find where I had hidden the big money but even the little money would have been very useful.

The SPLA government has improved the roads going to the state capital Awiel and has taken more of the mission land.

I was supposed to go to Rumbek for a diocesan assembly but the others left me behind in Awiel and so I have some time to answer letters and correspondence. On my way back from Awiel I found a very old man walking with a cane and with a 50-cent hat on and a 50-cent shirt on.

The building of the four classrooms is going on well but well behind schedule. Now with all the trouble over the fraudulent elections, supplies coming from Kenya have all but stopped. Also, the NGO who is building them with my money has Internet (access) and I shall try to use it once a month or so.

On Ash Wednesday I will go to more chapels and will be out for most of Lent. March 24 will begin a teachers course and then a new school year.

Pax vobis cum. Father Michael D. Barton

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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.