Catholic pilgrims in South Sudan, Uganda celebrate Loa centenary
Thousands of Catholic pilgrims who trekked hundreds of miles from Uganda, Torit and Juba over the weekend joined the celebration of the 100 years of Our Lady of Assumption Loa Parish of Diocese of Torit.
Loa Parish was built in 1921 by two clerics from the religious congregation of the white missionaries.
Catholic pilgrims from Adjumani District in Uganda trekked over 200 miles to celebrate Lao Parish centenary.
Prof. Mairi John Blackings, who is the chair of the documentary committee of Centenary Celebrations of Loa Parish, said those who walked from Uganda were following the footsteps of the missionaries when they entered Ma’di region.
He said the celebration of the church was for the first time since its establishment in 1921 due to decades of civil wars in Sudan and South Sudan.
Mairi, who is also the academic registrar at the University of Juba, said the centenary celebration in Loa is also meant to encourage the community to return home after six years of being in exile.
What it means
The celebration is considered as a sign of unity to bring together the Ma’di community after some of them fled their villages during the 2016 civil war.
“We are celebrating hundred years in faith and a hundred years of the church in Torit diocese,” Prof Mairi said.
“When you look at the history of the church in the region, we have not been able to celebrate any of the anniversaries; the 20th anniversary was not celebrated, 25 years was not celebrated and any of the anniversaries was never celebrated,” he added.
According to a book published by a documentation committee of the centenary celebration, the first contact between the Ma’di people met with the white missionaries was in 1912 when Fr. Albino Colombaroli and Fr. G. Zambonardi left Gulu in search of a ‘‘well-disposed people’’.
As they reached Nimule, the tax collector, Mr. Gore suggested that they see chief Loku of Lokai, the present Loa.
In 1920, with the permission of the District Commissioner DC of Opari, a Father and a Brother were destined to the foundation of a mission station among the Ma’di of Sudan.
On January 24, 1920, Fr. Pedrana and Brother Simone Fanti arrived Opari. They wanted to open a mission there but the DC Mr. Welsh told them to proceed to the area of Lokai that is Loa where they should settle.
On reaching Loa, Father Pedrana had, unfortunately, leave on February 4, 1921. Brother Fanti was left alone to start the building work. On April 2nd, 1921, Father Moresco and Brother Allesio Chaivegato from Moyo of Northern Uganda with some catechists to join Brother Fanti.
The missionaries have also built schools that helped the community to have access to education.
The only place is known at that time was Nimule, a passage for ivory and slaves’ expedition and the first Eucharist celebrated in Ma’di land was in 1910 at Nimule Perecia.
The missionaries were not the first encounter between the Ma’di and the whites. The first unpleasant encounter was with the Turks or the Tukutuku as the Ma’di call them.
The Turks were brutally raiding the place for slaves and ivory. This imagery of the barbarism meted out by the Turks often merged with the brutality of the Belgians in Congo. A testimony to the presence of the Turks among the Ma’di is Fort Dufile of Uganda, which was used to ferry slaves and ivory made the Ma’di in Loa to perceive the catholic missionaries, not humans.
‘‘Mundru ’ba ku. Which means the whites are not humans,’’ the Ma’di said.
Loa is widely held to be a corruption of the word Lou a faraway cultivation ground’’. This particular Lou was in a place called Avori, which was given to the missionaries, probably as a ‘’no one’s land’’.
Loa is located along Juba-Nimule about one kilometre from the main. It is about 3 hours’ drive from Juba.
