In early November, a South Sudanese contingent from the Diocese of Parramatta made the journey to Adelaide for the one-year memorial of the death of Emeritus Bishop Paride Taban from South Sudan.
Bishop Taban was the first bishop of the Torit diocese in then-Sudan, renowned for his peace efforts during the debilitating war, genocide and famine. Some of the Bishop’s family members live in Adelaide and Bishop Taban visited them and the South Sudanese community in 2014.
His motto was “Help your brothers and sisters in their difficulties” which he lived up to. He was detained and arrested with three other priests in 1989, and until 1990 was one of only two active bishops in the region. He was sent to Rwanda after the 1994 genocide for reconciliation efforts, and after his retirement, he established the Kuron Peace Village in 2005. He died at the age of 87 on 1 November 2023 in Nairobi, Kenya.
The South Sudanese community from the Diocese of Parramatta was honoured to join their community in Adelaide for the event and participate in the choir.
James Atanasious, the Peace, Justice, and Ecology Coordinator at the Diocese of Parramatta and member of the African Choir at Mary, Queen of the Family Parish in Blacktown said, “Bishop Taban is an icon of peace for the people of South Sudan.”
“To have representatives from the South Sudanese communities and their friends from the Diocese of Parramatta to celebrate Bishop Taban was wonderful,” he said.
Memorial Mass for Bishop Paride Taban at St Augustine Church, Salisbury, in Adelaide on All Souls Day. Image: The Southern Cross (supplied)
The Memorial Mass was celebrated in St Augustine Church, Salisbury, in Adelaide on 2 November and was led by Fr Michael Musyoka Kyumu with concelebrant Fr Joash Okeyo who arrived in Adelaide from Kenya in July this year.
In his homily, Fr Michael spoke of the gifts of the mostly African congregation and their heritage as he acknowledged St Augustine, the church’s namesake, as an African and one of the great theologians and fathers of the Church.
Fr Michael described Bishop Taban as exemplary of the mission of St Augustine with his belief in the importance of education as a key to young people’s independence and freedom from poverty.
Bishop Paride Taban at St Augustine Church, Salisbury, in Adelaide on All Souls Day. Image: The Southern Cross (supplied)
The Bishop Paride Taban Education Foundation was founded in 2021 in South Australia to help enable underprivileged and orphaned young people in South Sudan access good quality education.
Faustino Aboka, the Project Director of the Bishop Paride Taban Education Foundation, and parishioner of St Luke’s Catholic Faith Community, Marsden Park, commented on the joy and love everyone felt for him.
“Everyone was so compassionate with each other and the sacrifices that people made to be present in Adelaide from all over Australia and to show community spirit and the love people have for the bishop.”
“We remember Bishop Paride Taban and everything he did for the South Sudanese people during the war and his support for marginalised people as unforgettable,” Faustino said.
Bishop Paride Taban at St Augustine Church, Salisbury, in Adelaide on All Souls Day. Image: The Southern Cross (supplied)
Grace Arach, a member of the African Choir with James Atanasious was thrilled by the effort of the various choir members to ensure the success of the celebration.
“I was moved by how much people love Bishop Paride Taban. They turned up to sing and perform traditional dances,” she said.
Choir members James Koji and Anizia Inyasio expressed their feelings of the bishop’s legacy for refugees in Uganda, and his love and care for the needs of others in society.
“[He] changed lives and brought hope to a dark and broken Sudan, South Sudan and the world,” said James the Choir trainer and a former youth animator in Uganda Refugee Camps.”
To see images from the event, please visit Southern Cross: Memorial Mass for South Sudanese bishop – The Southern Cross
