The Office of the President at The University of Scranton is honored to welcome Bishop John Rucyahana, the recently retired Anglican Bishop of Rwanda's Shyira Diocese, next month. Since his retirement, Bishop John, founder of the Mustard Seed Project, has been called to serve as the president of the National Unity and Reconciliation Commission. 

Please join us for his dynamic presentation on Tuesday, Feb. 8, at 7 p.m. in the Moskovitz Theater on the fourth floor of the DeNaples Center. This lecture is free and open to the public. Please contact the Office of Equity and Diversity at diversity@scranton.edu or 941-6645 for more information. Bishop John will present “Post Genocide Reconciliation," a special lecture as part of the University’s "Year of Rwanda Series."

Born in 1945, he lived in Rwanda until 1959, when he went into exile in Congo, and in Uganda in 1964. At the age of 21, he became a school teacher and lay evangelist. 

From 1972-1974, he studied at Bishop Tucker Theological College in Mukono where he received his theological training and was ordained a priest in the Anglican Church. After serving as a parish priest and church planter, in 1977, he became rector of St. Peter’s Cathedral in Bunyoro - Kitara Diocese in Hoima, Uganda. This was during the military rule of Idi Amin, whose soldiers directly threatened his life. In 1980, he returned to study theology at Makerere University. Three years later, John became an archdeacon of Bulindi in Bunyoro - Kitara Diocese. From 1988-1990, he studied at the Trinity Episcopal School for Ministry in Ambridge, Pa., where he earned a M.A.R  degree. In 1990, John and his wife Harriet, returned to Uganda to serve as a Diocesan Missions Coordinator until 1996. On June 8, 1997, John was consecrated as Bishop of Shyira Diocese in the northwest section of Rwanda.

During those years, The Mustard Seed Project (www.mustardseedproject.org) was formed in the United States, a non-profit organization providing acts of mercy and mission in East and Central Africa. This project was the foundation for Sonrise Boarding Primary and Secondary Schools in Musanze, Rwanda, as well as a number of orphanages in Rwanda and Uganda. In addition to his duties at NURC, Bishop John also serves as the national chairman of Hope Rwanda and the head of Prison Fellowship Rwanda.

Bishop John and his wife are the proud parents of eight children.

At the events involving Bishop John Rucyahana there will be an opportunity to browse and shop with Muraho.com. All proceeds benefit The Mustard Seed projects and the women of Musanze, many of whom are genocide widows and orphans. Muraho.com features grass and fabric products displaying African motifs. The grass used to weave Muraho.com's baskets and bowls is harvested from a field on the grounds of St. John the Baptist Anglican Cathedral in Musanze.

Muraho will be setup on the fourth floor of the DeNaples Center on Tuesday, Feb. 8, from 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. For more information, visit www.muraho.com or contact the Office of Equity and Diversity.