Bishop Hiiboro urges for unity, nonviolent engagements and self-reliance

Speaking passionately to clergy, laity, and community leaders, Bishop Hiiboro declared that unity, healing, and peace must begin within the Church itself.

By Emmanuel Mandella

In a powerful pastoral address, Bishop Eduardo Hiiboro of the Catholic Diocese of Tombura-Yambio has called on South Sudanese communities to embrace nonviolent engagements, strengthen self-reliance, and rise above divisions that continue to tear apart families, churches, and the nation.

Speaking passionately to clergy, laity, and community leaders, Bishop Hiiboro declared that unity, healing, and peace must begin within the Church itself.

“A divided Church cannot be a healing Church,” he stressed, warning that without a spirit of reconciliation and healing, the message of the Gospel would be “empty words in the ears of a traumatized people.”

The Bishop emphasized on the urgent need for South Sudanese society to abandon the toxic language of violence, tribalism, and gossip, and instead adopt a new culture of communication rooted in respect and compassion.

“Our country suffers due to some of our bitter language,” he said. “Poisonous words are destroying families, institutions, and communities. But nonviolent communication is the path of healing. It means eliminating bitter words from our tongues and minds, and choosing those that build, encourage, and restore hope.”

Drawing on the trauma experienced by citizens after decades of conflict, Bishop Hiiboro underscored the role of the Church as a voice of comfort and encouragement:

“Our people are traumatized, and they need Good News, not more pain. As church workers, as believers, our words must heal. You can only give what you carry in your heart. If your heart is poisoned, your words will poison. If your heart is peaceful, your words will bring peace.”

He compared the Church to a radio station that should always broadcast messages of hope citing that, “We must be the family where people run to hear good news, always open, always healing, and always building.”

Turning to the theme of economic independence, Bishop Hiiboro urged South Sudanese to embrace self-reliance as both a practical necessity and a moral responsibility in an era where international aid is shrinking.

“The world is turning inward, America first, Europe first, Asia first, can we not also say: Africa first? South Sudan first? We cannot depend on foreign donors forever. Self-reliance is not a burden; it is dignity. It is strength. It is a source of peace,” The Bishop emphasized.

The Bishop praised local initiatives already sustaining Church institutions under Catholic Diocese of Tombura Yambio, through farming, community projects, and local giving. While acknowledging that external support would always have a role, he insisted that dependency must no longer define South Sudan’s future.

“Self-reliance is humble, it is dignified, and it is sustainable. Even when we have shortages that is not the end of the road it is fuel to push us forward. We must live within our means, strengthen our institutions, and take ownership of our future,” he said.

While talking about healing society from the family upwards, Bishop Hiiboro stressed that reconciliation and healing must begin at the family level, where divisions often run deep.

“In too many families, brothers and sisters of the same parents no longer get along,” he lamented. “If families are divided, how can communities and institutions survive? Healing must begin in the home, and from there flow into the wider society.”

He urged the faithful to live out the Church’s Jubilee of Hope by visiting, encouraging, and supporting one another, reminding them that “hope is not an idea, but a mission.”

In his prophetic call at such times, Bishop Hiiboro’s message was both sobering and hopeful. He called on all South Sudanese leaders, believers, and citizens alike to embrace calmness, humility, and faith as tools for building peace.

“In our fragile situation, only God can give us the wisdom to be calm, the wisdom to discern, and the strength to respond without error,” he affirmed.

In his closing words, the Bishop’s appeal was clear and uncompromising.

“Let us rise above the bitterness. Let us speak peace, live self-reliance, and heal our families and communities. South Sudan will not be healed by violence, nor by dependency, but by unity, dignity, and hope.”