Africa-Press – South-Sudan. Leaders of the Moru Congregation within the Episcopal Church of South Sudan accused the church’s Juba Diocese on Friday of harassment, arbitrary suspensions of priests and the illegal closure of churches, saying the diocese has “no intention of resolving the issue amicably.”
Speaking at a news conference in Juba, Canon Isaac Oniel Yosia, chairperson of the Moru Congregation in the capital, said the group was “unilaterally dissolved” by the diocese in 2008 without the consultation or consent of its members. The congregation, formed in 1937, serves Moru-speaking worshippers.
“The laity are the ones who established the nine Moru churches and have the right to protect them from usurpation. Our return to the Congregation is non-negotiable,” Yosia said.
He said the congregation has appealed repeatedly to the church’s primate, Rt. Rev. Dr. Justin Badi Arama, seeking dialogue and restoration of its status, most recently in April. Yosia said the appeals were dismissed with “derogatory language.”
After the congregation declared its restoration on May 10, Yosia said more than 20 priests were suspended without explanation, calling the moves “an arbitrary emotional action amounting to abuse of power.”
He also accused the diocese of involving security forces to intimidate worshippers, alleging that the Nyakuron Moru Congregation Church was closed illegally in late October and that armed personnel disrupted a service on Nov. 2, beating worshippers including women, children and the elderly.
“What if lives are lost in the hands of security organs?” Yosia asked.
Yosia said a recent church bishops’ meeting acknowledged the congregation’s case and recommended forming a committee to resolve it, but that the Juba Diocese rejected the recommendation.
Tensions escalated again Dec. 7, Yosia said, when the diocese attempted to occupy the Nyakuron church. The congregation reopened it themselves on Dec. 14 after a proposed dialogue involving government officials was refused, he said.
The Moru Congregation called for dialogue under a neutral committee, withdrawal of court cases, an end to harassment and recognition of its autonomous administrative and financial status.
Rev. Dr. Wesley Bokati Natana, a congregation member, said the group is not running a parallel administration but seeks restoration of its original status as a self-supporting congregation.
“What we are requesting is to return to our original status as a congregation since we started from 1937 to 2008, which we operated peacefully here in Juba,” Natana said. He accused former church leaders of dissolving the congregation to take control of its properties.
Another member, Wilson Sebit Apollo, said the community has faced restrictions on theological education and the commercialization of sacraments since 2008. He said the congregation’s core demand is the right to worship and educate children in the Moru language.
“The church belongs to Christ,” Apollo said. “We only seek to safeguard our heritage while remaining open to all believers.”
Efforts to reach the primate of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan for comment were not immediately successful.
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