Pope Francis and two other Christian leaders were on a peace mission to the newest nation in the world when he said on Saturday that churches in South Sudan “cannot remain neutral” and must speak out against injustice and abuse of power.
Francis spoke to Catholic bishops, priests, and nuns in Juba’s St. Therese Cathedral on his first full day in South Sudan, while the Archbishop of Canterbury and the head of the Church of Scotland conducted services elsewhere.
South Sudan declared its independence from Sudan in 2011, but a civil war broke out in 2013 as different ethnic groups turned against one another. Even after the two main antagonists reached a peace agreement in 2018, interethnic conflicts have continued to claim many civilian lives and force them to flee their homes.
Religious leaders ‘cannot remain neutral before the pain caused by acts of injustice,’ Francis said. ‘Brothers and sisters, we too are called to intercede for our people, to raise our voices against the injustice and the abuses of power that oppress and use violence to suit their own ends.’
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