Background: Sudan

Sudan is very poor. Civil wars and refugee crises have repeatedly led to famine, e.g. in Darfur. For a long time the central government in Khartoum waged a bloody civil war against the black African Christian minority in southern Sudan. Finally, the south gained independence in 2011 as the newly established state of South Sudan. As a result, the situation worsened for Arab Christians living in northern Sudan. They faced reprisals, arbitrary arrests and the destruction of their churches. The declared goal of the government of Omar Al-Bashir was to create a Christian-free Sudan. Since the fall of the dictator and the establishment of a transitional government, the situation for Christians in northern Sudan has improved.

Mission in Sudan

For thirty years the Sharia state of Sudan was ruled with an iron fist by the brutal dictator Omar Al-Bashir. Among other things, he terrorized the Christian minority in the country. After months of public mass protests, Al-Bashir was ousted in a military coup in April 2019.

For over 40 years, the Carmel Mission has been committed to sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with the Sudanese. Because this is very difficult in a strictly Islamic Sharia state, the employees of the Carmel Mission in Sudan have to be creative and need a lot of prayer and the special protection of God. Despite all the difficulties they experience again and again that God opens doors, even where no one would have thought it possible! Our employees experience that the Muslims in Sudan are hungry – not only for food, of which they often have very little, but above all for God’s love.

The work of Call of Hope in Sudan

Despite the difficult circumstances in Sudan, our local employees and their numerous volunteers find a variety of opportunities to pass on the message of Jesus to the Muslims in Sudan, including through:

• Outreaches to distribute evangelistic literature
• Humanitarian aid for refugees and the hungry in refugee camps, e.g. in Darfur
• Evangelistic film and music evenings in rural areas
• Home, sick and prison visits with teams of volunteers
• Seminars and training courses for Christians and pastors