The Most Rev. Joseph Marona retired as Archbishop of Juba and Primate of The Episcopal Church of the Sudan effective Dec. 31. Archbishop Marona made the announcement of his intentions during a meeting of that church’s House of Bishops in late December.
 
The retirement, said to be due to ill health, is two years ahead of schedule, according to the Church of England Newspaper. A successor will be elected at a special meeting of the General Synod in February.
 
The Church of the Sudan and the country have both been radically transformed during Archbishop Marona’s eight-year tenure as primate. For the first time in generations peace and prosperity are imaginable.
 
Historically one of Africa’s poorest countries, Sudan is also one of the world’s largest in terms of area. Sudan endured near-continuous sectarian warfare primarily between the northern part of the country, which is predominantly Muslim, and the southern part, which is mainly comprised of Christians and animists. The Islamic-backed government was condemned for ethnic cleansing after the discovery of substantial oil reserves in the 1990s.
 
A peace treaty in 2005 ended the conflict between north and south. The Darfur peace treaty between the Islamic government and non-Arabic nomadic tribes in the western part of the country was signed in 2006. Under terms of the 2005 treaty, the south will be autonomous for six years at which time there will be a referendum on independence. Sharing of oil revenue remains a point of contention.
 
The Episcopal Church of the Sudan grew rapidly during Archbishop Marona’s tenure, despite enduring a schism and persecution. After Gabriel Roric Jur was defrocked as Bishop of Rumbek in 2003, he attempted to found a rival Reformed Episcopal Church of the Sudan with the assistance of the Islamist government. Government troops also attacked Anglican churches with impunity prior to the peace treaty. In one of the most outrageous and documented incidents, the Sudanese Air Force bombed and heavily damaged a cathedral in the southern part of the country during Christmas services in 2000.
 
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