Bishop Carlassare: “Let us stand together to build a good future”

“Let us stand together, all of us, to build a good future for this Church, transmitting our faith to future generations,” Bishop Carlassare said at the courtyard of the St. Martin de Porres Parish of Bentiu Diocese, the venue of his installation. He added, “As we celebrate this Eucharist today, let us live the mystery of being a Eucharistic Church, which means a Church that gives thanks, a Church that is grateful for the gifts we have received, a Church that is united, a Church that becomes bread for the hungry, partakers of the graces of God.”

“The Church is not just the Bishop, Priests, and the Religious; it is all of us, together,” Italian-born member of the Comboni Missionaries of the Heart of Jesus (MCCJ) said, and posed, “Who am I without you? Who is the Bishop without his own people? Who is a leader without his own people standing behind him?”

He lauded the unwavering faith of the South Sudanese people, and described it as a faith that refuses to give up even in the face of immense difficulties. “How can we, people of faith, give up? How can we abandon our Lord, whose power offers eternal life?” the Catholic Church leader posed, adding, “Every disappointment is an opportunity to seek deeper, to see beyond, to strive for a more lasting and abundant life, to find a reason to continue, and never give up. This, I believe, is also a characteristic of this community. The people of Bentiu, and indeed all of South Sudan. Never give up. Never.”

Bishop Carlassare, who was ordained a Priest in September 2004 and commissioned to South Sudan, where he ministered in the country’s Catholic Diocese of Malakal till his Episcopal appointment in March 2021 continued, “We are celebrating the life and the gift of faith that we have received. Even though we are grateful, we are also in pain because of the immense suffering our land and our people endure.”

“We still carry the scars and wounds of rebellion, of not being the brothers and sisters we are called to be, children of the same Father. Even though we bear the suffering for our sins, we are here today to rejoice and look forward with hope,” Bishop Carlassare said. He drew a parallel between the beginning of the newly erected South Sudanese Diocese and the biblical story of Elijah, acknowledging its material poverty but celebrating the spiritual wealth found in faith and the Eucharist.

“This Diocese of Bentiu starts very poor. We are truly very poor. But the little that God has placed in our hands is like the water given to Elijah. It is the bread and wine given to us in the Eucharist, as we see in today's Gospel reading, that will carry us on. This is the wealth we have, not any other, but the presence of God among us; our faith that will never fail, and Jesus who will lead us as the master of our lives and the leader of our communities,” Bishop Carlassare said.

He went on to call for a renewed commitment to overcome divisions. The Catholic Church leader said, “The mountain of God is not across the border; it is here with us. It is our capacity to overcome divisions, hatred, and nonsense, to stand together in solidarity to build a society, a city, and villages where we can not only survive but live with dignity.”

The Vatican announced the transfer of Bishop Carlassare from Rumbek Diocese to the newly erected Diocese of Bentiu on July 3. He started his Episcopal Ministry in Rumbek in March 2022 after his Episcopal Ordination was delayed for almost a year following the April 2021 attempted assassination, when he was shot in both legs.

In his August 11 homily, Bishop Carlassare highlighted the dangers of a life focused solely on material wealth, warning that such pursuits can lead to internal conflict and spiritual poverty. “In times of peace, people can become so satisfied with themselves that the only things they think about are business, money, and peace. But that model of peace, money, and business leads us back to a certain conflict within ourselves,” he said.

The Catholic Church leader continued, “We are learning that this is not the solution. We are built upon God and His Kingship, and we must take God seriously, along with His Gospel and His teachings. When we receive this gift and acknowledge that we are created by God and united as one family, the family of God, we gain the strength to build something new”. He reaffirmed his dedication to leading his Diocese with the strength that “comes from God, not from human power.”

Bishop Carlassare lauded Catechists, who he said laid the foundation of faith in Unity State, and encouraged the continuation of their ministry. “The Catechists in this land did great things. They served in the midst of conflict; they witnessed Christ even when there were few Priests. They were the founders of this place, and they never abandoned the people. Let us continue in their example. This will build a strong Church in this Diocese of Bentiu,” he said.

Also speaking during the installation celebration, the main celebrant, Stephen Cardinal Ameyu Mulla of the Catholic Archdiocese of Juba, lauded the resilience of the people of Unity State, noting that despite the many challenges they face, their faith has remained steadfast. With his August 11 installation, Bishop Carlassare becomes the first Catholic Bishop of the Diocese carved out from the Catholic Diocese of Malakal and the eighth Episcopal See in South Sudan.

Bentiu Diocese measures 37836 square kilometers and has a population of 1,131.886 of which 621,643 are Catholic faithful, representing 54.92 percent of the total population of the territory of the Diocese, according to 2024 statistics.

Jude Atemanke – ACI Africa