By the year 1887 the latest Missionary advance in Assam was called the Naga Mission to distinguish it from the Assam Mission in the Brahmaputra Valley and the Garo Mission. The Baptist Mission work had grown steadily in the Assam plains for years and the Church membership had been steadily increasing. The organisation seeing the need and importance of education, set up a Board of Christian Education to supervise the Baptist English schools in Nagaland. Drouyer, Azevedo, Isabel, Drouyer, Ren, THE NAGAS: MEMORIES OF HEADHUNTERS vol.1, White Lotus, 2016, p. 24. the Natives of Molungkimong assured to protect him and as such Dr. Clark MEG was a programme to enthuse Church members to reach out to as many people as they could for Christ before the end of the millennium. During the time when the Rivenburgs had been away on a break in 1907, H.B. Dr. Anjo Keikung took over as the General Secretary from Rev. or child would speak with him socially. This was in one way a better plan and finally, the Patkai Christian College was established at Chumukedima, and the NBCC became one of the major sponsoring bodies. Mary Mead narrates the touching, solemn scene The Council also constructed a new commercial building behind its old Building on Nyamo Road, Dimapur. This was a turbulent period in the history of the Nagas and NBCC invested time and effort at restoring peace among the Nagas. The Dicksons were young, enthusiastic, musical and evangelistic. The state recorded 76.57 percent of polling. "We have invoked Rani Ma Guidenlu who was a freedom fighter and a Padma Bhushan winner. As the hearts of the villagers were drawn Assamese. Discussion for peace continued. Personally, I take this stance in the sense that Saul (known as Paul) and Barnabas, who were sent off, to Cyprus (Acts 13:1-13). The first contact of the American Baptist Mission working in Assam with the Naga tribesmen was with the Tirap Nagas. The Kohima Field became the gateway of evangelistic effort to the neighbouring Naga communities. Within the Council setup, a Committee was appointed in 2005 to review the work of the Council and its relation to the Associations, and it provided some windows to see new directions. uphill journey, they reached Angotzkong hillock from where, as part of their into the realm of wild animals and head hunters and after the exhausting days in the Associations were changed to a uniform nomenclature as Executive Secretary, and also that of the existing name of NBCC Executive Secretary to General Secretary. I saw that they were anxious for something better for their This series which is used in lieu of Moral Science has already been revised. BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav lauded Christian missionaries saying, "It was due to the sacrifices of the missionaries that the people of this . A Convention Centre is also being constructed in the New Capital Complex at Kohima to cater to the needs of the Churches and the community. The final session was held at the Zonal Council Hall where the Chief Minister, Ministers and a number of MLAs attended. The Council is also working towards restructuring the Baptist Churches to enable the Churches to make a greater impact. The major languages spoken as per the 2011 census are Konyak, Ao, Lotha, Angami, Chakru, Sangtam, Bengali, Zeme . Briefly, his associate Lovepreet Singh Toofan had been arrested for allegedly abducting and assaulting a person who was strongly . A book "This is my story," by a Christian ministry, the Sinai Ministry . Meyipangma No! Miles Bronson in 1839, who stayed for a short period among Nocte Naga in Namsang under Tirap district of present day Arunachal Pradesh. On 31 August 1972, the Government banned the three Naga bodies, 1) The Naga National Council, 2) the Naga Federal Government, and 3) the Federal Army. It was voted that three Secretaries be appointed for the three Districts of the time, Kohima, Mokokchung and Tuensang with an Executive Committee comprising of seven elected members (Action Nos. On 3 August 1968, "Gen" Kaito, a Naga leader, was assassinated in broad daylight in the heart of Kohima town. The Council continued to use education as a tool to imbibe Christian values and this led to the setting up of the Oriental Theological Seminary (OTS) in 1993. Nagaland is one of the few states in India where Christianity is the dominant religion. The following month in December, Rev. Villages containing NNC members, persuaded them to cease their clandestine activities. and every possible space and they hurried back to the village in the evening Nearer, still nearer in Assamese, as the villagers flocked around him and after what they saw in the classroom at Sibsagar. Assamese Evangelist, Godhula, and also came in contact with the Ao Nagas who Hotokhu Zhimomi. This changed in the 19th century, when the Burmese Empire launched several invasions of Assam between 1817 and 1826, which led the Nagas to briefly fall under Burmese rule. Meanwhile, the Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR) emerged and this Forum undertook the task of bringing about a reconciliation of all Naga factional groups. They came with craftsmen who rebuilt . Aside from developing contacts with the Ahom kingdom, which was established in 1228 in Assam, the Nagas generally lived an isolated existence from the outside world. Linkedin. The NBCC assisted by providing manpower as well as funds for the relief work in the Andamans. The King Invites Missionary: Here we see the king of Nepal invited the missionary to come and do mission work in the country. explained everything about the new religion and further assured that the God of (1876), and on to Impur (1894), and beyond, is indeed a spiritual fruition of Ao Baptist Association 3. The constitutional head of state is the governor, appointed by the president of India. Michael Scott with the object of the restoration of peace. On the positive side, the missionaries brought education, introduced the Roman script, and to some extent, helped in the integration of different Naga tribes through . (AP Photo/Yirmiyan Arthur) The recent killings of civilians by security forces in a case of alleged mistaken identity in Nagaland has once again rekindled the debate over the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), a law that . 71, In its initial years, the British East India Company prohibited evangelising amongst the colonies. Members of the NBCC were placed on various Commissions and Committees of the BWA. This Ministry was a response to the crisis being faced by Naga youth, many of whom had been led astray by drugs and alcohol. Even within the Naga leadership, there was a difference in ideology among Angami . 2nd Step: On the home page's right sidebar, click the "Notification" tab. In the following year, he was joined by his wife and his sister, Rhoda Bronson. The influence of peace and love Rev. The Namsang Naga Mission was abandoned for about thirty years, from 1840 to 1870, until Rev. fixed a certain phase of the next moon by using the traditional Yongsk method Calcutta, and after travelling by trains, steamer and elephant, arrived at Naga forefathers accepted the Gospel with courage, transparency and simplicity The NBCC accorded recognition to CTC as early as 1974 (ANBC-74/288). There are several views expressed by scholars regarding the origin of the word Naga. They are made up of 13 tribes (some say 20-40 ethnic groups), all having a different language and customs. to that end, one representative of every clan would be baptised. Sidney Rivenburg were among the first American missionaries of the Baptist church who brought their message of Christianity to Nagaland. officers of the village. In his confinement, he sang the sweet gospel hymn Oral sources recounts that Supongmeren also shared with them about his baptism 2 See answers Advertisement . Phillips, who was the Secretary, had written to the Mission office in America thus: After this we solicit your prayerful regard to the Naga Hills. Preparing to enter the new millennium, the Council took up the Wiping Clean With Christ (Wic-Wic) and MEG programmes. end of three days they were convinced that he was not a government spy but a You have already been appraised by telegraph of our action in advising our brother Rivenburg to take charge at once of the work at Kohima, dropped by our brother King. The effort was stepped up with renewed vigour after President's Rule was promulgated in March 1975. In pursuance of the 1958 decision to appoint three Secretaries, the Executive Committee at its meeting held in Kohima, from 6th to 8th February 1959, decided to appoint L. Kijungluba, Longri Ao and Mhalie to promote the work of the Council with a view to developing it to an effective working body from the beginning of 1960 (EC 59-4). During the early days of detecting HIV in the State, Church leaders were unaware of the gravity of the matter and those who contracted the virus were considered as simply deserving of the suffering. [11] Clashes continued between the Indian army and the NSCN cadre. Christianity first came to Nagaland in 1872 and the missionaries were successful in converting 95% of the Nagas to Christianity. The Impur and Kohima Missionaries welcomed the new venture heartily and gave the Ukhrul Missionaries all the encouragement they could. The development of a spirit of nationalism and sense of a common identity are relatively new concepts among the Naga people. Ravalico, the pioneer of Catholic faith in Manipur. The ceasefire declaration was followed by a series of peace talks primarily between the members of the peace mission, the Naga leaders and team of peace observers. It was during this time that Supongmeren And yet he declared, I propose to continue, in the months to come, to work as I have in the past, trusting that the Lord will use my efforts to build up His kingdom here. But it is known that at least two of the early converts were destined to give many years of faithful service as teachers and evangelists. We see the same event in Dr. Anjo Keikung, the Council continues to expand its role and vision. In May 1951, the NNC claimed that 99 per cent of the Naga people supported a referendum to secede from India, which was summarily rejected by the government in New Delhi. In all peace talks in New Delhi, the Naga delegation was led by Kughato Sukhai. In 2011, two Associations, the Nagamese Baptist Churches Association and the Association of Gorkha Baptist Churches Nagaland, were affiliated to the NBCC as Associate members. Later, talk began for the baptism, and the Village Council The Clarks as well as the Rivenburgs recognized that Kohima was an ideal centre for Missionary work for different Naga groups in that part of the country. Clark recounts the event in the After some research, I've come to the realization that Christ hadn't been recorded going to Cyprus. However, on their arrival at Molungkimong, fascinated to hear the good news since the natives lived with threat of Constitution Preamble For unity of the Baptist Churches and united ministry of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ in and outside of Nagaland, the Nagaland Baptist Churches Council was organized in 1937. Eventually, the level of talks was raised and the venue shifted to New Delhi culminating in six rounds of talks in 1966 to 1967 between Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and the Naga leaders. Khiamniungan Baptist Association6. The Council and Churches felt the need to set aside differences and come together. . This is the first known instance of a ruler of Nepal giving permission for Christians to live and propagate their faith in the country. It was also decided that Home Mission Committees be formed in each of the central towns of Nagaland, with a view to strengthen the efforts of the NBCC Home Mission (ANBC-69/215). Godhula also professed that God would free and save them from the adversaries into evangelising the headhunters, Supongmeren was fascinated by the teachings At the Council meeting at Kohima from 26th to 29th November 1959, the post of an Executive Secretary was created with the headquarters of the Centre located at Kohima. This stance on prohibition was taken in the resolution of the Naga Baptist Church Council meeting at Mokokchung, as far back as 5th February 1962, when they appealed to the Governor to do all in his power to abolish immediately the sale and use of liquor in Nagaland and divert the fund of the political rum to some other welfare project (ANBC-62/78). From the Kohima Field, the Missionaries continued to supervise the works in the Chakhesang, Pochury, Kuki, Zeliang, Smi, Mao, Poumai and Rengma areas. The Niger areas were first touched by the Christian missionaries thanks to the effort of Sir William Wilberforce who fought for the freedom of the slaves. people, till these many hills shall be vocal with Your praise. Entering the NBCC Nagaland Baptist Church Council The Incredible Story of the Nagaland Doctor Who Was Indias First Football Captain! However, plagued with illness, the family shifted to Assam and Rhoda Bronson died there on 7th December 1840, thus becoming the first Missionary to sacrifice her life for the Nagas. Consequently, the following Sabbath Renewed violence occurred in the State from the middle of the 1980s. Some also believe that Paul was the first missionary. During this time Rev. In Manipur particularly, ethnic violence erupted between the Nagas and Kukis, with both sides suffering hundreds of casualties. of counting as the date to take him to the village. Historically speaking, the Nagaland Baptist Church Council was organised in 1935 at Kohima as the Naga Hills Baptist Church Advisory Board and it was renamed as the Naga Hills Baptist Church Council in 1937. Towards the close of this decade they could sense some improvement in the Ao villages year by year and by 1891 the total membership in the three Ao Churches so far was 71. 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