He understands (in response to my piece today):

Thank you for your article about Bishop Gassis and the situation in Sudan. I am a Lutheran pastor here in the United States and I had an opportunity to teach in Sudan several years ago. I was privileged to work with Bishop Andrew Elisa of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Sudan. He was one of the people who helped broker the peace agreement of 2005. Unfortunately he died 2 years ago, a big blow to the Lutheran Church, and to Sudan in general. I know of the tenuous nature of the peace agreement between South and North, and I know that it would not have come about without Western pressure. I pray for Sudan. Again, thank you very much for the article and keeping this issue in front of us. Sudan is very important strategically in Africa. A pro-West democracy in the South Sudan would be very welcome; a bloody civil war with the North imposing its will on the South and Islamizing the South would be disastrous for the future of Africa as a whole.