July 9 marks the date that South Sudan will celebrate its official independence as a sovereign nation. It's a date that has loomed large on the calendar for the Episcopal Church of Sudan (ECS) since the January 2011 referendum, when the people of South Sudan voted overwhelmingly to separate from North Sudan. This vote came following the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement which brought a tenuous peace and end to about 50 years of civil war.

Maintaining such a peace was at the forefront of a three-day conference of the American Friends of the Episcopal Church of Sudan (AFRECS), which met June 17-19 at Christ Church, Glen Allen, in the Diocese of Virginia. A group of about 100 partners, advocates and others interested in supporting the ECS gathered under the theme "The Church and Sudan: Partnering for the Future."

• Annual Council 
• Prevention of Sexual Misconduct 
• e-Bazaar 
• Open Positions 
• Cycle of Prayer 
• Diocesan Calendar