LIVING UNDER PERSECUTION AND GENOCIDE
African Christians in South Sudan suffered years of warfare and persecution at the hands of the Arab-Islamic government. Hundreds of churches were destroyed and countless believers were killed, especially after the National Islamic Front took control of the government in 1989. The Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed in 2005 granted South Sudan autonomy for six years to be followed by a referendum on independence.

HELPING THE CHURCH, THE PEOPLE, AND THE NATION
Samaritan’s Purse has been working in South Sudan since 1993, meeting the critical needs of hundreds of thousands of people during and after the civil war. As the peace agreement was being finalized, Christian leaders in the South asked for our help to:
• Rebuild all the church sanctuaries that were destroyed by the National Islamic Front.
• Train pastors and evangelists to replace those who were martyred.

THE NEED IS URGENT
The Comprehensive Peace Agreement gives South Sudan the right to vote on independence in 2011. As this deadline approaches, tensions are increasing, and there are no guarantees about how long we will be free to rebuild churches.

PROGRESS REPORT (through June 2008)
• Samaritan’s Purse teams have already identified several hundred churches that need to be rebuilt, and we are still surveying the countryside.
• 155 churches have been completed since 2005.
• Our goal is to have 200 completed churches by the end of 2008.
• We have opened a pastor’s training school in the strategic Nuba Mountains.
• Our teams are distributing 250,000 Bibles in six languages to local Christians who will lead Bible studies.

WHAT DOES IT COST?
• The churches we are currently building are in more remote areas and typically cost $75,000 to $100,000 each.
• Samaritan’s Purse minimizes costs as much as possible by mobilizing the local church members to gather materials, manufacture hand-pressed bricks, and assist with the labor.
• A major expense is transporting materials to towns and villages scattered across a land the size of Texas that has no paved roads or building suppliers.
• Construction materials in South Sudan are so scarce that they can cost 10 times more than they do in the United States.

HOW CAN I HELP?
Samaritan’s Purse is grateful for churches and individuals who feel led by God to sponsor construction of specific church sanctuaries in South Sudan. Full sponsorships and co-sponsorships are available.

Sponsors receive progress reports and photographs from the field, including:
• an introduction about the church
• an update during the construction process
• a final report following the church dedication