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Karamoja is a large district in the northeast of Uganda. Within the large Karimojong people group there are distinct and sometimes sharply divided clans who for generations have raided and killed each other to acquire cattle. As such, Karamoja has historically been ignored and marginalised within the rest of Uganda.
Hard to reach with the gospel
“A people who have been marginalised, waiting to hear of the hope we have, and of their true value in Christ.”
To protect themselves, almost all rural Karimojong live in hedged and fortified circles of homes, called manyattas, that make them resilient to attack, but also isolated and resistant to the spread of the gospel. Some local churches exist, largely in the towns. They struggle with the clannishness, dependency and aggression around them, and often get squeezed into the mould of the local culture rather than presenting a distinctive witness to society. Early missionaries engaged the Karimojong and invested in education and in church structure. However, there has only been surface acceptance of the gospel and limited evidence of lives changed by Christ. Therefore AIM has plans to send missionaries to work among the Karimojong, working with the local church to reach them with the gospel. But what role can short termers play?
Explore your calling
Essentially, short termers have the opportunity to be involved in the same ministries as missionaries serving longer term. Our hope is that through serving on a placement, short termers will support and help long term missionaries but also be able to explore their own calling and begin to understand what mission work is actually like.
Share the gospel with the Karimojong
Among the Karimojong, that could mean serving as part of a short term team seeking to work with secondary school students, building relationships, discipling them, and passing on discipleship techniques and structures. Or, it could mean serving on an individual placement and getting involved in a range of ministries. Is God calling you to share the gospel with the Karimojong, a people desperately in need of his love? A people who have been marginalised, waiting to hear of the hope we have, and of their true value in Christ. If you’d like to know more, contact Tom at stc.eu@aimint.org or 0115 983 8120.