With gratitude to the Synod for the travel grant which was awarded to Redstone for its 2008 Partnership in Mission Trip to Sudan the following report is given.
A group of 10 members of Redstone Presbytery, 5 clergy and 5 lay people, 5 men and 5 women, were commissioned by the Presbytery to travel to Sudan to strengthen and encourage the partnership with the Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church. The trip was also designed to provide educational opportunities for the group members to meet with the leadership of the Sudanese Church and visit sites where it is currently involved in ministry and mission. A ten day experience had been been planned from Jan 15th-Jan 25th.
Due to problems with the entry permits which had been secured by the Church in Khartoum the group was detained in Dubai for 5 days while new permits were sought and issued in Khartoum. This seriously limited the opportunities for the group to visit sites and to spend time with the leaders of the SUdanese Church. In spite of the compressed time, the Redstone delegation was able to visit the Nile Theological College, Gereif Bible School, an Internally Displaced Persons Camp where a church is located and ministry takes place, a ministry to street boys in Khartoum, schools run by the Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church and to meet with the Chair of a government commission dealing with human rights issues for non-Muslim is in the nation's capital. 4 of the members of the group were able to delay their departure from Sudan and arrangements were made for them to travel to the Nuba Mountain area of Sudan where they met with church leaders from a number of congregations and at a new training center for Church leaders.
The trip, even though the time in Sudan was brief, provided an excellent and inspiring opportunity for strengthening the ties between Redstone Presbytery and the Sudan Presbyterian Evangelical Church as well as enabling those who participated in this experience to return to the presbytery and strengthen our congregations' identification with our partners in Sudan. Members of the mission trip team area also available to share their experiences and to tell the story of the ministry and mission of our Sudanese sisters and brothers with congregations in the Synod of the Trinity. We are grateful for the financial help which the Synod provided and look forward to being able to 'repay' in some measure our debt by sharing our stories as we have opportunity.
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