
Dolly Kikon
University of California, Santa Cruz
In 2015 I wrote a monograph titled Life and Dignity: Women’s Testimonies of Sexual Violence in Dimapur (Nagaland). This was the culmination of a joint effort with grass roots organizations in Dimapur known as Sisterhood Network and Prodigal’s Home. In 2023, a second edition of the book was brought out with a new introduction. In it, I drew on three cases of sexual violence with two of them involving minors who were raped by people close to them. The issue of sexual violence and rape in Naga society is not new. When I was growing up in the 80s, we often heard of stories about female helpers and relatives from the village who were raped by male members of the households they were part of. I remember Civil Hospital Dimapur and certain private hospitals in the city as destinations for abortions that were hushed up. Since I wrote the book, a number of women have come to me to share their own stories of similar violence(s) they endured as children. In my lifetime, I have gradually witnessed a rage against sexual violence in Naga society. This is the voice of a generation who are refusing to hide the sins of their society and moving away from the problematic Naga problem, “Let us not wash our dirty laundry in public.” Rape and sexual violence are not Naga culture. Period. Instead, calling out any such existing violence, demanding justice for the victims, supporting them and their families and standing up for them should become Naga culture.
When we live in a society where the awareness towards violence against women and in particular, gender violence, is at a nascent stage, the vulnerability of young boys and males who are also victims of rape ought to become part of our call for justice. This inclusivity must shape our activism. Males and young boys are as vulnerable to sexual violence and rape at the hands of pedophiles and perverts. This is a steep learning curve, yet it is imperative for Naga society to see it from the lens of justice and care. Recently, an English Church called Father’s House, located at Chümoukedima, Dimapur has come under the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. The revered senior pastor, Robert Kikon is alleged to have molested and raped several boys, all minors with some of them as young as 11-12 years old. He has since, stepped down from his position in the church and is no longer part of it. As news of this broke, Naga social media was rightfully full of shock and condemnation, and a clarion call for justice for his victims continue to resonate in Naga society today. While there were some who knew Robert Kikon, many wondered who this man was who had committed such heinous acts.
I knew Robert Kikon since he was a child. He lived in our neighborhood and our families attended the same church, the United Baptist Church (UBC), which was our home church. It was a Nagamese church that was set up in the 1980s with the congregation consisting mainly of the families of prisoners locked up in Sub-jail, Non-Naga Christians from the Nepali, Kachari, and other migrant communities, and different Naga tribes including Ao, Lotha, Angami, and Sumi families. Robert read the Bible and sang special numbers regularly. Even as a little boy, his eyes would light up with excitement as he read Bible verses. As a teenager, he learnt to play the guitar and sang many special numbers for the congregation. In 1992, as I finished my high school and moved to Patkai Christian College and then later left for Delhi to pursue my undergrad degree, I lost touch with many people. I met Robert when he became a pastor and saw how he attracted huge crowds of believers across generations. He had become a quintessential charismatic pastor. When I learnt about the accusations of rape and molestation, and how he had exploited his power as senior pastor to perpetuate his heinous deeds, I was shocked like many others in Nagaland. Because I knew Robert as a child and saw since his early days of learning to love the lord, I know he grew up in a church surrounded by believers and prayers. His crime reflects the unresolved darkness he refused to work on, and justice should take its course. Yet, Robert is the manifestation of all the emerging problems in Naga society– the impunity of the rich and powerful, the growing inequality within society, the inability to talk about sexuality, and normalizing gender violence. Robert’s victims came from poor families, some of them orphans. As we condemn his evil actions, his actions do not represent any specific community. Just as his action is not a reflection of Father’s House, in the same spirit, it does not represent the LGBTQ community. This is indeed a sensitive topic for Naga society, so I write this essay for the Naga audience as a researcher and a concerned citizen who engages in campaigns to end gender violence in Naga society and beyond.
Given that the matter concerns a church, I went to my pastor in California at the New Life Christian Fellowship. Pastor Karen Yee drafted one of the first child protection policies for the First Baptist Church in Alameda. This policy is adopted by several other churches in the Bay area, and I felt a need to share her story and a copy of the Policy. Please note that the policy is context specific and must be altered and edited for the Naga churches. This is a wakeup call for churches including prayer homes in Nagaland to adopt strict gender guidelines and child protection policies.
Who is Pastor Karen?
Karen is the Senior Pastor at the New Life Christian Fellowship, Castro Valley. This church is the anchor for the Northeast India Christian Fellowship in California. Pastor Karen and the leadership of the New Life Christian Fellowship have generously supported the Northeast Christian Fellowship where believers from different cultural groups across Northeast India gather and worship together. Every day, the service starts at 1 pm with a potluck lunch where mouthwatering dishes from the region are placed on the table and shared with everyone before the service begins. Pastor Karen has also been a mentor to Naga students, professionals, and families in the Bay area. Even in my personal life, I look up to Karen Yee as a spiritual leader who teaches me how to serve and follow the path of justice as a believer. Besides her role at the New Life Christian Fellowship, Castro Valley, she is also an English-speaking pastor at the Iu-Mienh Friendship Baptist Church in Richmond, California and sits on the Executive Board of Directors for the American Baptist Home Mission Society (ABHMS). Karen also served 15 years as the Associate Pastor at the First Baptist Church of Alameda, an American Baptist church, serving a multi-ethnic, intergenerational congregation of Christ followers. It was during her ministry here that she encountered a staff who was abusing children that led her to draft the child protection policy for the church. According to Karen, her goal is to live a life that is described in Micah 6:8, “To do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with her God.”
Interview
Dolly Kikon: In the long years of your work in the Christian ministry, you have also tackled the issue of a church staff abusing children. What was your experience?
Rev Karen Yee: Number one, be there for the victims, be there for the families, love them, and find counseling. There is nothing wrong in counseling. Counseling is a wonderful gift from God, and counseling is able to uncover the hurts that we don’t even know exists. As a Baptist pastor, I regard counseling as part of repentance. It is part of cleaning out what has been harmed, and so counseling gets at the root of problems and at the root of all hurts and harm. But the number one step is to believe the victim. Number two, provide help and support for the victim’s families. If they need to talk about it even three years from now let them talk, and do not shut them down. Everybody heals and grieves differently and on different time scale, so be aware of that. Protect those that are there, make sure you remove the perpetrator, so they have zero contact with the victims.
Dolly Kikon: You drafted the guideline for protection of children at your church. Can you share why you did that?
Rev Kareen Yee: As I shared earlier, I have first-hand experiences when I was a ministry in training at my Church, First Baptist Church Alameda, California. We discovered quite accidentally that somebody was doing something to some of our children. Number one we believed the children, and we sorted out who else were harmed. We tried to do our best to uncover the case, but the first thing we did was remove that perpetrator from any contact with the children, the victims’ family, and the church. We placed him under supervised ministry in another Church but informed the pastor and the staff about what he had done. We removed him from causing more harm because the priority is always the victim. We reported him toChild Protective Services (CPS) who took up the official investigation. In such matters, the church is not the one that investigates the case. Our job was to turn the perpetrator to CPS who carried out the investigation and turned the perpetrator over to law enforcement agencies.
Dolly Kikon: What was the outcome of the proceeding?
Rev Karen Yee: The perpetrator was found guilty, and he did spend time in jail. Fortunately, he confessed so we did not have to put the children on trial. Whatever we do there are always consequences, but there is also grace, forgiveness, and repentance. The perpetrator from our church was sorry, he repented. But we should never put him in a position where he is attempted to abuse children again. We decided he should not go to First Baptist Church Alameda, California because there is too much harm. Sure, he could go to church again but whatever church he attends, he would never be placed in a leadership position or to work with children or youth again.
Dolly Kikon: Can you tell us about the guideline(s) you drafted for the First Baptist Church Alameda in California? The guideline states that all deacons, deaconesses, and pastors should go through an annual children protection workshop and background check. This might be frowned upon inmany churches because the congregation perceives the pastor as someone who is infallible. In Naga society, like many Indigenous cultures, Pastors and church leaders are also treated like community elders and their roles as community leaders and church leaders overlap. What is your take as a senior pastor trained in the Baptist tradition about this matter?
Rev Karen Yee: Over 12 children were abused by the perpetrator at First Baptist Church Alameda, California, but none of the affected families left the Church. Why? Because they realized that it was one person who made bad choices. They did not blame the church and the leadership because we handled it correctly. There was protection for the victims, and one of the things we did was to help the families trust us again. I wrote a policy titled “A Child Abuse Prevention Policy”, with clear guidelines and roles on how to deal with children and young people in a church or any nonprofit organization. I pulled resources from existing organizations and state laws in California and the United States to put together this document. Background check is an existing law in this country. Any adult who works with anyone below the age of 18 must go through a background check. So, it is not something new that the Baptist church created. The guideline includes policies that are supported by our own Government to protect children and vulnerable groups. We shared the document with other churches in the bay area and many churches including the present church where I work as a senior pastor, New Life Christian Fellowship adopted the guideline. It is not easy but every year we have trainings. People go through backgrounds checks and this is all in our California Baptist churches.
Where it gets tricky is that when people assume the church is a safe place. So people in charge like pastors and church staff are safe people, or that the congregation is considered as a family, and unconditional trust is centered on the church pastor and the staff. As a senior pastor, I believe we must get beyond that. As church leaders, we must humble ourselves and say I know I did nothing wrong, so I don’t have nothing to hide. I am willing to go through a background check and sit for trainings every year because I love my church and I want to be able to tell any family that walks into the Church that we are safe. They must be able to see that the Church leaders have been trained and know the laws about child protection and sexual harassment. For me, it is okay to have my fingerprinted as a pastor to serve my church. I put out my best for the church, and that means as pastors and church leaders we must humble ourselves.
Our church follows the mandatory training for child protection policies not because we do not trust one another. I do it because I care for my church, and I humble myself and say even though I am the grandmother of half of the congregation, I will still fingerprint myself so I can show you that I care for you. It was like when Covid hit the world. We wore mask to protect one another. I wore a mask not to protect myself. I did it to protect others. It was to prevent the infection. In the same manner, at the Baptist churches in the bay area where I have worked, I along with all church employees got finger printed not for my sake. As pastor, I do it because of the love for our children, and our families in this church. I do it to let others know they can trust us. I know this is a difficult topic in a church and especially with long time members, and the older generation. They say this feels so legal, that it doesn’t feel like a family anymore. Well, I tell them as members of a family you do things because you love the children and the vulnerable want them to be safe.
Dolly Kikon: What is the American Baptist Churches’ position on queer people, homosexuality, lesbians, and transgender issues? What are the debates among Christians in the United States?
Rev Karen Yee: This is a long conversation, but there is not one belief when it comes to the Queer issue. In the Baptist churches across this country, there is a voice that ranges from no to yes, so it is hard for me to come out with one definitive answer. In the American Baptist churches, there is a whole range of positions. We have people who say, and others who say absolutely no because the Bible says no. Then there are those who interpret it saying the Bible teaches us to love and that is what we choose to do, to love all people without judgement. We also have others that say that Jesus never said anything about homosexuality. For example, the Red-letter Bible people often says if you fellow Jesus, and what Jesus said, he did not say one word either for or against homosexuality. It doesn’t mean there were no homosexuals living back then but that was not an issue of concern to Jesus. So, the Red-letter Bible people call it a non-issue. We also have pastors within the American Baptist Church family who are queer, so as you see the issue of queerness is a divisive issue.
Personally, I am not going wrestle with it. I am going to just lean on the side of love. More abuse and hurt has been done to the LGBTIQ community by Churches, so I think that we really have to look at what does it mean to love our neighbors. We have to ask ourselves, what would Jesus do? Who would Jesus include? If you read the Bible Jesus included all the marginalized people in the world and so for myself, I lean on the side of grace, I lean on the side of love, and this is because I have been called to be a bridge builder. I want to be a Pastor of a church were people have various differences, but we seat at the table and we break bread together, we worship together, we service together, we struggle together, and we love and respect each other.
Dolly Kikon: What is your take on feminism as senior pastor in a Baptist church?
Rev Karen Yee: I believe God created male and female, I believe God created all people, all individuals, and God loves every one of us. When God created us, he looked at us and said it is good in fact God says it is very good! Jesus is more about lifting people up. If feminism increases the awareness of women, builds up women, protects women, then its good. Feminism does not mean that women are better than men. Feminism is at its best when it is willing to work together with men because it is a matter of equality and justice.
Sometimes you must have groups that focuses on specific things otherwise it will not be raised up as an issue at all. That is why feminism is important. In the context of the United States feminists raised the issue of equal work, equal pay because nobody else would raise it. We believe in equal pay, which means men and woman should be earning the same amount of money for the same hours they put in. If no one want to raise this issue, then the injustice continues. So that’s where I see the feminist contribution. It is not to say I should make more money than the men, it means I should make equal money for the same labor and time I put in. We also have feminist groups that speak up for the voiceless, for the marginalized people and bring up that we are not even aware of. Feminism is strongest when it makes people aware of the injustices around us. I go back to this always.
Every hot button issue begins with your values. I can’t argue with you to believe what I believe. Arguments never change people’s mind. You know what changes peoples mind? Relationships and values. So, when we learn to speak to each other and communicate and share why this is important to me, not to try to convince you but just to share why I believe in my values. Only when our values change, our positions change. That is why I am about communication. Talking and listening to one another.
That is how we change heart and mind, and this in turn leads us to change our values. I can honestly say that I don’t believe the same thing I believed when I first became a Christian. Who I am now as a Christian is a person of faith who has evolved overtime.
I have grownup, my values and positions have changed. I have more exposure to communities and voices that I did not have when I was a young pastor. I have met people who believe in certain ways, and I have listened to them. These conversations have made me reflect who I am, and what I believe in. This means embracing a journey about what it means to grow up in Christ, because I can read a scripture and someone from Nigeria reads the same scripture and someone from Nagaland reads the scripture, and the three of us, even though it’s the same scripture will bring our own interpretation, our own presupposition, our own backgrounds, our own cultures, and our own experiences. So that one scripture cannot just be my interpretation. We must listen to other interpretations as well so then we get the fullness of God. Why do I believe the multicultural ministry? Why do I believe intergenerational ministry? Because only then we will understand the fullness of God. God is not so small that, it’s only what I believe, period. I have to open up my heart fully and allow my mind to grow to be informed by others to able to see the fullness of God. Too many of us function like this: what I learn from Sunday School must and is the only way and this how it must be forever. That is not growing up, that is drinking milk our whole life instead of solid food and growing in our faith.
Dolly Kikon: Final question. What is your suggestion for young believers who hear certain things and go to social media to discuss matters? How should believers use social media when they have encountered news that trigger them?
Rev Karen Yee: Turn it off. I will give you an example. We go for our church retreat every year and I tell people you need to take this route to get to the retreat, I tell them not to listen to Google maps because it takes you down a very windy road. I tell them to follow the direction I give them that will take them along the Pacific coastline with beautiful beaches. But every year some people don’t listen to me and instead follow the google map and take the awful road and get carsick. Would you follow social media over a person you trust? So, we must discern. Where are you getting your information? Do you get your news on social media from unknown sources? Or you get it from people you trust and informed sources? I will say not all social media is bad but sometimes it is better to shut down and seek advice through people you trust and know. More importantly, you need to seek wisdom from the Bible and from the Holy Spirit which means you need to pray and read because human beings are fallible. So go to the Lord, pray, and pour out your heart, share your hurt and listen to how God speaks to you. You will know when God is leading you. To let the spirit speak to you, it is better to turn off social media sometimes, and at other times, it is even better to turn off too many voices. But it is never a bad thing to turn on the Holy Spirit.
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THE POLICY WRITTEN BY PASTOR KAREN YEE
First Baptist Church of Alameda
Child Abuse Prevention Policy
July 2014
Shared Principles
The leaders and members of First Baptist Church of Alameda commit to the following principles in an effort to provide a safe place for all children and youth:
1. Child neglect, physical, emotional, and sexual abuse are criminal actions which will not be tolerated, whether that abuse is perpetrated on the church premises or elsewhere.
2. As a church community, we will offer victims of abuse support, love, encouragement, and appropriate referral for services. This extends not only to current victims but also to those in the church who are adult survivors of child abuse.
3. For the safety of children and youth, we will regularly monitor sex offender databases and similar resources so that leaders will be aware of potential offenders in the church neighborhood.
4. All staff, Diaconate members, and all volunteers who work with children and youth will undergo mandatory screening. No adult who has been convicted of child abuse or domestic violence and no adult who has a founded child abuse or domestic violence complaint will be accepted for volunteer or paid work in any church-sponsored program or activity for children or youth.
5. All staff, Diaconate members, and all volunteers who work with children or youth will perform their legal role as mandated reporters of suspected abuse.
6. As a church community, we will provide annual educational programs regarding the nature and impact of child abuse, as well the church’s policies and procedures in this area.
Church Policies
Regarding Behavior of Leaders
1. All staff, Diaconate members, and all volunteers who work with children and youth must participate in annual child abuse educational programs and undergo mandatory screening.
2. Any individual who is identified in the screening process with a conviction or founded child abuse or domestic violence complaint will be removed from all leadership positions. Conditions of church attendance and ministry involvement will be negotiated with the pastor, moderator, and Christian education team leader, taking into account any legal restrictions that may apply to the individual’s behavior.
3. Individuals must regularly attend the church for a minimum of six months before being placed in any ministry role that involves children or youth.
4. Adequate and active supervision must be maintained during programs, as well as before and after programs. Leaders must be prompt to ensure that no children arrive prior to leaders.
5. Children’s and youth programs will be planned so that two adult leaders (ideally one male and one female) are present at all times. In instances where there is an exception and only one adult leader is present, a second adult will be asked to monitor the activities by random visits throughout the program.
6. Leaders should stay in sight of other people at all times when working with children or youth.
7. No adult church member will spend unsupervised time alone with any child or youth, either on the church premises or elsewhere, without the awareness and consent of that individual’s parent or legal guardian.
8. Transportation of a child or youth must be approved by a parent or legal guardian and should be organized in such a way that an adult and a minor of opposite sexes are not alone in the vehicle.
Regarding the Physical Plant
1. All rooms used by adults and minors together must be accessible, remaining unlocked whenever in use.
2. All rooms used by adults and minors together must have open visibility, with either an unobstructed window in the door or the door left open.
3. Because restrooms cannot be equipped with observation windows, no more than one child or youth can occupy a locked restroom at any time. No stall that cannot be easily escaped by a child should have an internal lock.
Regarding the Reporting of Suspected Abuse
1. If a child or youth begins to disclose abuse, the leader must be honest and upfront about the requirement to tell someone else. Do not promise to keep the information secret.
2. The leader should listen closely, remain impartial, ask open-ended questions, communicate that you believe the child or youth, and tell him/her what your next steps must be in order to help.
3. As soon as possible, the leader should make handwritten notes, recording the date, time, place, and everything said by the child or youth.
4. Leaders must report any abuse disclosure to the primary church representative, the Pastor. If the pastor is unavailable or involved in the alleged abuse, the Moderator is the first alternate and the Christian Education Team Leader is the second alternate representative. The pastor, if not involved, will then be notified of the report as soon as possible.
5. The church representative/pastor will carefully review the information and confirm facts before reporting the allegation to the legal authorities. Provided they are not named as the abusers, parents or legal guardians will be informed immediately of the disclosure and given the option of reporting the information directly to the legal authorities.
6. The church representative/pastor will report the allegation to the appropriate agency, such as Child Protective Services or the Police Juvenile Division. Reports made in good faith are protected from civil litigation. The legal authorities will make determinations regarding the validity of the allegation, criminal investigation, and legal action.
7. The church representative/pastor will work with the American Baptist regional staff, an attorney, and the church’s insurance company as necessary.
8. Aside from the communication requirements specified above, the disclosure of abuse, reporting process, and results will be held in strict confidence.
Regarding Treatment of the Victim and Alleged Abuser
1. At all times, adequate care will be shown for the well-being of the victim. Safety is the number one priority, and every means will be taken to protect the child or youth. The victim is not held responsible in any way.
2. If an accusation of child abuse is disclosed, the alleged abuser will be required to refrain from attending church services and ministries until more facts are gathered by the church representative/pastor.
3. If an accusation of child abuse is reported to legal authorities, the alleged abuser will be removed from all leadership positions and required to refrain from attending church services and ministries until the investigation is concluded.
4. The alleged abuser will be invited to meet confidentially with the pastor on a regular basis for support and counseling. S/he will be presumed innocent until proven guilty, and will be treated with respect and shown God’s love at all times.
5. If the alleged abuser is convicted or the child abuse or domestic violence complaint is founded, s/he will be excluded from all leadership positions. Conditions of church attendance and ministry involvement will be negotiated with the pastor, moderator, and Christian education team leader, taking into account any legal restrictions that may apply.
6. If the pastor feels any child or youth continues to be at risk of abuse, the pastor will inform those necessary to insure protection.
7. Victims of child abuse and those who abuse may need support, counseling, or other services beyond those that can be provided by the church. In this case, the pastor will provide whatever referrals may be appropriate.