You were captured by the SPLA rebels (Sudan People's Liberation Army), why did they do that?
The capture and the hostage crisis of 500 days, was mainly for money and publicity. My release was facilitated by the Vatican ambassador in Addis Ababa through the letters of my mother, which the Nuncio would translate and send to Dr. John Garang (the SPLA’s leader) with the original. He had five letters of my mother with him, pleading to release her son before she died of cancer. The Nuncio was the go between, for this humanitarian gesture and for the safe passage of the Salesians from Kenya all the way by road to Ethiopia and back through the rebel held area till I reached Lokichokio.
Tell me about your experience of being captured by the rebels and the life with them?
The experience in the bush with the rebels and all that went through me is a long, long narration and may be for another article. But if you feel I should give it in short, here it is. The first 50 days were real hell. I couldn’t take it. I cried, I challenged the promises of God. “Have you seen a prophet go hungry, have you seen a prophet go naked....” here Lord, here is one; you have forgotten me, I gave you everything and you are so silent, my Lord. My Lord, why have you forsaken me... It took 50 days of privations, exhaustion, humiliation and misery to make me say the second part as Jesus said: “Into your hands oh Lord I commend my spirit”. Once I surrendered, the rest of the days were in freedom and serenity and peace, ready for everything, sickness, hunger, thirst, nakedness (in fact for 500 days I had nothing but the only clothes on, when I was picked up) and even death. To put it simply I grew from a dwarf to a giant as far as spirituality is concerned. What I picked up on life and love and meaning and motivation in those 500 days could match a 5000 day experience in normal life. It held the worst days of my life as well as the best, nay more, the whole process of turning the worst to the best. I went into the life of a prisoner a fragile reed but I came out a mighty oak, reconciled at heart with those who condemned me as a rebel priest & Salesian, ready to be a loving rishi, loving Buddha, loving Christ, priest & Salesian.
