Who are the Ik?
The Ik are a small farming and hunting community in North East Uganda, squeezed between the large, powerful Karimojong and Turkana pastoralist tribes. They struggle to survive amidst droughts and floods and have been displaced from their traditional homeland. Consequently they’ve suffered from famine; their small numbers make them very vulnerable. They struggle against isolation, marginalisation, and to enter Ugandan national life with their own culture and voice.
What do they believe?
An Ik legend tells how God created herders by letting cattle down to them from heaven by a rope and giving them spears. To the Ik, he gave only the digging stick, with the order never to kill. They are very proud of their peace-loving culture. Only in recent years have they acquired firearms for hunting and protection against raiders.The most important annual event is the ‘blessing of the seed ceremony’, which begins the agricultural year. Another ceremony marks the ‘opening of the harvest’.
What is being done to reach them?
The Rauchs from Germany led a TIMO (Training In Ministry Outreach) team living and working among the Ik, sharing the gospel with them from October 2016 -2018. The Ik were very welcoming and open to the gospel. Outreach now continues through Ugandan missionaries.
