Anglican Journal editor Leanne Larmondin travelled to south Sudan from March 26 to April 3 with an international, ecumenical delegation representing the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the All Africa Conference of Churches. The trip – one of the WCC’s Living Letters missions – was meant as a show of solidarity with the people and the churches of Sudan. Both the Sudanese people and the semi-autonomous Government of South Sudan acknowledge that the ecumenical world had a significant influence on the realization of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended a 21-year civil war. Four groups visited four different areas: Darfur and Khartoum in the north, Yambio and Rumbek in the south; their visits culminated in a conference in early April in Juba, the capital of south Sudan. While there, international church leaders vowed to walk with the Sudanese in their continuing journey toward lasting peace.

In the June issue, the Journal will examine the barriers to peace in Sudan.