Seriously wounded in the legs, he got back on his feet and is now walking alongside the people of South Sudan. The bishop of Rumbek Christian Carlassare will be a guest at the PIME Congress where he will bring his testimony also collected in a book
Bishop of Rumbek since 25 March 2022, Christian Carlassare, a 45-year-old from Vicenza, had to go through the trauma of an attack that seriously injured his legs, on the night of 25 April 2021, before finally being able to return to his diocese. He has experienced in his flesh the hatred and violence that so many people in South Sudan have experienced for decades and continue to experience. Today, after a tiring year, full of challenges, but also of new projects and prospects, the bishop above all wants to look ahead, trying to promote peace and reconciliation, to build a future of hope for all. That’s what he also tells in the book Journeying with Africawritten with Pierluigi Vercesi, journalist of Corriere della Sera (Libreria Editrice Vaticana, pp. 160, 15 euros), which he will present at the PIME Center on 17 September as part of the 2023 missionary congress.
«I am serene and happy – he tells us from Rumbek -. There is a long way to go and it is not always possible to respond to all needs and requirements. But there is also so much beauty that emerges from the people and above all from the young. Let us go forward with simplicity, humility and joy to guarantee a presence and a service which must contribute to bringing about unity and reconciliation. Forgiveness is beautiful and right, but it also asks us to take a journey together, the first step of which is that of truth to create a space for true conversion”.
How is the situation in South Sudan today?
“It’s very complex. The government is quite strong thanks to the peace agreement and the quite divided opposition. Some territories are more peaceful, in others there are many tensions. The Upper Nile, for example, carries many contradictions and unresolved problems, therefore there is fear of the explosion of new conflicts. The economic situation is very critical and poverty is getting bigger and bigger. The devastating floods have reduced many of the population to poverty due to the loss of livestock and the impossibility of cultivating crops. Some groups have moved with their herds, creating instability especially in Equatoria. The government has begun to form the Commission for truth, reconciliation and trauma care: one wonders if the population is ready to talk about the wounds and injustices suffered without letting negative and counterproductive feelings resurface. At the same time, many are wondering if the country is really ready for a democratic exercise like the 2024 elections can be.
Today, South Sudan is also welcoming many people fleeing war-torn Sudan…
«More than 100,000 have already arrived in South Sudan, especially in the Upper Nile region. The situation is very difficult because they have lost everything and can’t find anything here. The UN has already taken action and the Church too is trying to be present above all through Caritas. Some refugees have been moved to the capital Juba and makeshift camps have been set up in addition to those that already existed. In Malakal, however, due to overcrowding, there were clashes with some dead. I believe that many will try to get out of the fields to settle where they hope to rebuild a future. Which is not easy because they have lost everything and have to start over in a country marked by the economic crisis».
It is history repeating itself in reverse.
“Somehow yes. Sudan was seen as a stable country, where many South Sudanese affected by the civil war had sought refuge. But then the conflict breaks out in Sudan and now the South Sudanese are in great danger. They can only go back, but the country has very little to offer, if not the certainty of being at home, but a house destroyed and to be rebuilt, with resources that have often been dispersed”.
After the bombing, what was it like for you to return to Rumbek?
«I had to take on the sufferings and wounds of this diocese together with many priests, religious and lay people who are involved in evangelization and human promotion. We have followed the example of Monsignor Cesare Mazzolari, who died in 2011, who since the 1990s has been committed to reviving this diocese which was particularly affected during the war of liberation of South Sudan”.
What are the toughest challenges?
“Wounds often bring division instead of solidarity and communion. This is the greatest challenge, that of unity. But also the most beautiful because we can truly be children of a merciful Father who never abandons us. The diocese of Rumbek is active in many fields. There is particular attention to young people who are suffering from the trauma of a country that has little to offer in terms of opportunities. Furthermore, we carry on the ministry of justice and peace, through many committees present in the area; the diocesan radio committed to informing and sensitizing the people; women’s promotion activities; but also schools and Caritas… I find myself overwhelmed every day by so many questions and needs that I can – or we can – only partially answer, but always trying to guarantee attention and participation in people’s efforts».
Did the visit of Pope Francis give you comfort and courage?
«First of all, it was a courageous choice. He has clearly shown how much his concern is directed towards the suburbs and all situations of marginalization and poverty. For the people, his presence was a source of hope and a call to commitment for a peace that does not come from the palaces of power, but from below, from the will of the population, even if it is wounded, oppressed and often reduced to poverty. It was also a call to say “no” to divisions, violence and corruption in order to create a peaceful, supportive and more humane society. For the Church, it was a very strong warning to bishops, priests and religious to stand on the side of the victims, heal their wounds and work for peace”.
What’s left?
“A very vivid memory. We often continue to recall those days and his words. Some have pointed out to me that when he left there was a drizzle interpreted as a blessing. But since that day we have had no other rains: could this be a parable of the situation in the country? Now as a Church we would like to discuss and plan initiatives in continuity with Francis’ visit”.
Together with about eighty young people he made a pilgrimage from Rumbek to Juba to meet the Pope. What did it mean?
«The journey is often an experience of spirituality and communion between those who begin a journey together. We think of the great pilgrimages as well as the civil rights marches. The Pope himself presented himself in South Sudan as a pilgrim of peace. Here we did not want to leave him alone. We set off, pilgrims in prayer, young people of different ethnic backgrounds, ready to walk together and meet the communities along the way, bearing witness to a possible peace. We have seen the friendship and communion among young people grow little by little. At the same time, we met many people in the various parishes where we stopped during the nine-day walk. Many have accompanied us for some stretches. Upon arrival in Juba, a large crowd greeted us and marched with us through the streets of the city. And so we realized that we had not walked just for ourselves, to get to Juba, to meet the Pope, but that we had walked for the whole nation, and many, in their hearts, had walked together with us in prayer and the communion of intentions and the desire for peace and reconciliation for this country”.
Does this walking have a particular symbolic value for you who used to walk long distances to reach the missions and were seriously injured right in the legs?
«My first mission in this country was characterized by “itinerance” to visit the many chapels of a parish with a vast territory. Mission as a humble encounter with the people. A poor mission, but which discovers the richness present in every person. The pilgrimage re-proposed the same dynamic of evangelization. And we would like to repeat it every year with a group of young people as a way to reach those who are considered the most distant: people who are not considered and left aside as unreachable. I am thinking, for example, of those who live in the most isolated rural areas or of the semi-nomadic herdsmen who follow the cattle. But also tired, wounded people who no longer walk. I got up after the attack that injured my legs, thank God. This country too can get up and set out again along the path of forgiveness and peace, leaving behind the past of violence and injustice”.
How important is it to walk in daily life with the young people of your diocese? What are the challenges and hopes for them?
«It is important that young people can have a vision of a goal to reach and commit themselves above all to study: school today is no longer an impossible dream and represents a promise of liberation for many young people who no longer accept to live without opportunities, to be manipulated by the powerful or crushed by an oppressive culture or, as in the case of many girls, being forced into marriage when they are too young to resist and plan a different future. Another level of commitment is that in society, which requires free, well-trained people who are ready to put their qualities and abilities to service. At the moment there is much talk of peace, but there is no education in peace. Young people are pushed into competition which creates dissatisfaction because they are unable to achieve what they aspire to. Many are disturbed by the trauma of poverty and violence and have no means of freeing themselves from it. Others suffer from behavioral disorders if not outright mental illness. Still others let themselves be tempted by alcohol and drugs. Suicides are on the rise. Walking together therefore means letting yourself be conquered by the hope that the goal still exists and that it is worth giving everything to get there».
PIME Day: 92nd Missionary Congress
The Congressino PIME – the big party traditionally held on the third weekend of September and this year takes the name of PIME Day – is back with many events. At the center is always the delivery of the crucifix to missionaries and lay people leaving for various countries of the world. So, date Sunday 17th September at 10.30 for the Mass celebrated by Bishop Giuseppe Vegezzi, auxiliary of Milan and in charge of missionary pastoral care in Lombardy. The bishop of Odienné (Ivory Coast), Alain Clément Amiezi, and that of Rumbek (South Sudan), Christian Carlassare, will concelebrate with him. The latter will also present his book Journeying with Africaat 14.
Workshops for children and the extraordinary opening of the Peoples and Cultures Museum are scheduled throughout the day, with the possibility of guided tours.
Above all, the afternoon will be a good opportunity to get to know the many paths for young people promoted by PIME as well as the experience for students of Time Out.
The day will also be preceded by numerous events Saturday 16th September. In particular, the new courses of the Accademia Senza Frontiere will be presented (3-5 pm), followed by the concert of the Cluster music school. Also in the afternoon, playful and sporting activities and workshops for children are planned. On both days it will be possible to visit the new exhibition created by the editorial staff of World and Missiondedicated to Saint Teresa of Lisieux, patroness of the missions, 150 years after her birth.
All the events will take place at the PIME Center in Milan, in via Monte Rosa, 81 (centropime.org).