South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Simon Deng
The metropolitan Archbishop and primate of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan, Justin Badi Arama, has instructed 20 visiting pastors to obtain official permits from the diocesan bishop of their ordination before arriving.
Manyang Gabriel Kon, the Press Secretary of the Archbishop and Primate, Justin Badi Arama, said that the diocesan constitution and the provincial canon must include official letters citing the reason for the visits.
“The advice is that they (pastors) should return to their diocese where they were ordained. If you want to come to operate in the Diocese of Juba, definitely the diocesan bishop from where you were ordained will write an official letter to the authority of the Episcopal Diocese of Juba,” said Gabriel.
“According to our constitution and law, you cannot just come to any church and start working. You are free to come to Juba, but not to operate, because churches in Juba have their pastors in charge, and they have pastors who are already working,” he explained.
The Diocese of Juba does not send people to other dioceses without official letters, and the opposite is true for pastors coming to Juba, as official communication is required from the diocesan bishop.
On June 2, 2025, the Archbishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan (ECSS), Justin Badi Arama, suspended 20 priests serving under the Internal Province of Amadi in the Juba diocese.
The suspended pastors and the leadership of the Internal Province of Amadi have not yet released any public statement specifying a clear reason for the action against the pastors from the Internal Province of Amadi.
According to an official letter issued by the metropolitan bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Juba, seen by the Dawn newspaper, the Archbishop suspended the 20 priests and instructed all archdeacons to implement the directive without delay.
The 20 suspended pastors included Isaac Oniel Yosia, Henry Menosoan, and Elisapa Badigo from Lui, Jacob Selim and Zakaria Kuyu from Mundri, James Dosoman from Yeri, and Rejoice Aya from Uganda, among others.
