Cuei Cok

Sounds of celebration filled the air in the village of Cuei Cok as more than 200 Christians gathered for the dedication of their rebuilt church. Powerful drumbeats echoed songs of praise and the clapping hands of the people as they marched around their new building, thanking God for His faithfulness.

Following a prayer of thanksgiving on the steps of the church, the pastor opened the doors and the celebration filled the sanctuary. The building belonged to God, but the people also felt a sense of accomplishment. Each one had played a small part in rebuilding their new church home.

Samaritan’s Purse agreed to oversee the reconstruction of Cuei Cok Church if the people would participate in the building process. Members of the congregation spent months gathering raw materials like river sand and crushed rock to use in making concrete. They spent days making hundreds of bricks, using a metal hand press, and also helped create a level building site.

The villagers joined in again when the Samaritan’s Purse building crew arrived with metal framing and roofing materials. They helped the construction workers lay a foundation, build walls, place window frames, and construct a roof. Now the building was complete and it was time for a celebration.

“The church has become a symbol of how God is for everyone,” said Daniel Gumwel, a local believer and former area commissioner who attended the dedication. “It has really encouraged the community to see the church rebuilt. It has changed the community.”

Many in the crowd remembered days during Sudan’s recent civil war and wondered how they survived.

Christians and their churches were targets for government troops that swept through South Sudan, imposing Islamic Sharia law on the people and crushing any resistance. On Sundays, soldiers patrolled the rugged countryside searching for Christians who were meeting in secret under the trees.

Hundreds of believers were shot to death when Islamic troops attacked such meetings. Others died when bombs were dropped from planes as the people gathered for Sunday worship.

The entire village of Cuei Cok, including the old church, was burned to the ground during the war. The people scattered to neighboring villages or to refugee camps in countries like Uganda or the Democratic Republic of Congo. The village was deserted for 14 years.

When fighting subsided in the area in 1998, people slowly returned to Cuei Cok. They rebuilt their homes, but continued to meet under the trees for church services. No one imagined a future day when hundreds of believers would gather without fear in a restored village, to thank God for a beautiful new sanctuary made of concrete and steel.

Join Hands with Believers in Sudan

Discover how your congregation can minister to persecuted believers in Sudan and help rebuild their churches. Call 1-800-538-1980 or e-mail sudanchurches@samaritan.org to order a free Sudan Church Kit or to receive more information about the project.

To support a church rebuilding project, click here and choose "Sudan Churches" from the drop-down menu.
 
 


 

 
 
 

Population: 34,475,690 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 45% (male 7,941,909; female 7,614,225)
15-64 years: 53% (male 9,094,712; female 9,061,194)
65 years and over: 2% (male 423,389; female 340,261) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 2.71% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 39.34 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 10.6 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: -1.68 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.24 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 70.94 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 56.4 years
male: 55.41 years
female: 57.44 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 5.58 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Sudanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Sudanese

Ethnic groups: black 52%, Arab 39%, Beja 6%, foreigners 2%, other 1%

Religions: Sunni Muslim 70% (in north), indigenous beliefs 25%, Christian 5% (mostly in south and Khartoum)

Languages: Arabic (official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie, diverse dialects of Nilotic, Nilo-Hamitic, Sudanic languages, English
note: program of Arabization in process

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 46.1%
male: 57.7%
female: 34.6% (1995 est.)
 

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