It has been a yr since militant group M23 took town of Goma within the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), but despite trauma and suffering, God is reportedly at work.
It is believed that over 3,000 people died following the capture of Goma, while 700,000 people were forced to flee their homes. Executions, rapes and kidnappings also followed as did the closure of key infrastructure like banks, courts and the airport.
However, the Anglican Bishop of Goma, the British-born, Martin Gordon, said that town has witnessed a Christian awakening, with 1000’s of individuals turning to Jesus.
Christian ministers in certain parts of sub-Saharan Africa often cite the issue of visiting all parts of their parish as an actual challenge in ministry. Large areas, scattered communities and limited transport and infrastructure make it difficult for everybody to get the spiritual care they need.
Bishop Gordon told the Church Mission Society, “There were parishes that we been unable to succeed in for 3 years, but this yr we’ve been capable of visit and encourage the those who they are usually not forgotten.
“The suffering in Goma seems to have captured the eye of many within the Church globally, and now we have been overwhelmed by the generosity of churches and individuals. As a result, when the situation was at its hardest, we were able to offer a money gift to every of our staff and clergy and even our teachers who hadn’t been paid for six months due to closure of the banks.
“And again, at Christmas we blessed 200 families with a present of a chicken and a sack of rice to have a good time.”
M23 is backed by the Rwandan government, which in keeping with the DRC has designs on its resource-rich eastern territories. For their part, Rwanda claims that the DRC is harbouring individuals wanted in reference to the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
Added to this are Islamist groups who, benefiting from the conflict between the DRC government and M23, have managed to conduct atrocities of their very own.
In such a society, Bishop Gordon said that churches were one in every of the few institutions within the DRC that generally hold the people’s trust.
“It is at the guts of each village and community. When war got here, people looked to the churches for each form of help, in addition to for hope,” he said.
“They were used as shelters, as distribution centres and we saw an increased attendance in a lot of our parishes that weren’t displaced.
“Those who didn’t normally attend began coming for prayer. Those who were more sporadic began attending more recurrently.”
He said that in 2025 increasing numbers were asking to be baptised and confirmed but conceded that life was still tough within the region.
“Times are incredibly hard in Goma straight away,” he said.
“The 2025 invasion adds yet one more layer of trauma to greater than 30 years of conflict. And many still struggle to make ends meet. But amidst the suffering, we testify each day to God’s faithfulness, and we proceed to place our trust in him, because the one who will ultimately bring about peace.”
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