An African Boomerang

Yousif is a rare individual. He’s a refugee from Sudan in East Africa, a Fine Arts graduate, a trauma counsellor, and a recordist who has worked with Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory. Brutal wars and starvation have displaced over 12 million Sudanese in recent years and Yousif’s family were among those who escaped to Australia.
 
He credits Australian missionaries who came to the Numa Mountains in the South of his country in the early 20th century with restoring the faith that had first came to Nubia on the Nile River nearly 2000 years ago. They brought progress and change to a region long troubled by extreme violence and grave human rights violations. They established the education facilities, medical care and brought technical advances that gave him a start.
 
Now he is returning the favour. With Global Recording Network, he’s been audio-taping stories from the biblical narrative for the Arande people near Alice Springs and in the Yolngu Matha language on Elcho Island. He’s also delivering trauma counselling both here in Australia and for the people of his war-torn homeland.
 
It’s remarkable that the venture of those Australians to bring the Gospel to Africa nearly a century ago has boomeranged. Rising teenage sprint star Gout Gout is a South Sudanese Christian like Yousif. I think their proactive faith is reminding Australians of the valuable gift they received from missionaries who sacrificed so much to bring it to them.