Nyamlell: Father Michael Barton's Sudan mission: In thanksgiving from Nyamlell

Saturday, November 27, 2010

In thanksgiving from Nyamlell

Father Michael Barton sent this e-mail on Thanksgiving Day from his parish in Nyamlell:

Here they are registering for the January 9 referendum for independence for the South Sudan.

There was an attack yesterday (Nov. 24) in our parish with some injuries of soldiers but it was still far from the parish center.

The superior of the OLSH Sisters read an article and looked at a map and decided to withdraw their Sisters on December 13th even before the end of the school year and so this will be more burdens to bear.

In October I developed a terrible lung infection and could not get any proper help and so it got worse and fever and a cough were so bad until I went and told a nurse that I was not going to move until she helped me and she did. It was a bad month but I only missed three classes in the whole time and now I am all right again.

White ant is another problem. They have gone to the rafters in some of the classrooms and in my room and the dinning room. So I got burnt or used engine oil and two class boys painted away to save our roofs from termites.

Last Saturday we had a wonderful day of recollection for our class eight pupils who will finish before Christmas. We prayed and laughed and even confessed and adored and celebrated a wonderful class of 2010. I am sure they will do well and will get good results.

In early November I got a Sudanese priest to live in the rectory and help with some liturgies. He will remain until the end of December. His name is Father Angelo Agany.

Today is Thanksgiving and I shall have some rice and lentils when I go back home and join with you in thanking God for HIS GOODNESS TO US.

Michael

1 comment:

Anonymous said...: Dear Fr. Michael Barton's. I am very please to hear that you are still in Sudan, where there is much need of spreading/preaching the gospel of Lord. The people of God in Southern Sudan specially in Juba and Nyamllial has admired and benefits from your work, I will pray that let the almighty Father give you long stay in South Sudan so that you will continue to serves them. God bless Fr. Michael in his work and spreading of the Good news of the Lord. Amen.
My name is Silvestro Gworit Lado Sabbah. the son of Aloysius Lado Sabbah the Catechist of St Martin De forest Chapel Luri Rokwe Juba Sudan.; December 16, 2010 at 5:37 AM

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.