S Varah
In a matter of one hundred and three scores (approximate) changes in Naga life have been at a remarkably swift pace. Christianity and western education are accounted for such fast changing. Naga learn things quickly; too quickly, perhaps, to adapt to modernity that our original world view and values it holds is now on the brink of vanishing forever.
We know what Christ’s religion can do; we also know how much ‘name sake’ can affect. After all, religion is a matter of practice. The religion we believe tells us the reality of Plan of Redemption as well as eternal damnation. Today’s evils which did not, many of them, exist before Christianity are on the up; our church has horribly failed to bring them down despite ceaseless fiery preaching about the reality of Heaven and our possibility to make that real in Christ. Our church today is too much institutionalized. Naga electoral processes and the level of corruption in education institution will impact Naga future with many adverse returns if the present trend is not disturbed. Others are debating on quality education while we are being engrossed with bogus appointments and ‘teacherless’ schools. Big people who are bribed or people who palm crease are not our concern; our less privileged and destitute are. Are not our church and school inter-related if future and the kind of it will be is a common cause? We are concerned for the larger portion of our children who are being denied of learning like others have.
Naga are not at all lagging in every human field of learning and progress. Better privileged young Naga, hard work apart, are growing even in distant shores, at higher grounds. We are proud of them. Countless dropped-outs, wannabes and frustrated sections are also staging what they do not want but pushed to do. Out of these so many useless and worrisome factors, the ones who are enthusiastically recruited to so-called ‘quick dough’ and frolicsome profession and practices are eating our inside out. Who do we hold accountable for all these? Alcoholic fathers? Morally loose mothers? Poverty? So called underground people? Are not political workers, church workers in the charge sheet? Laws under an established system should be there. But there are scores of local, church-made and home-spun laws for punishing the wrongs. We have had enough bad reflections from all these.
Where is the remedy to all these social, culture, political and school diseases? Let us be certain of one thing before we embark upon alternatives: corruption. Even ten thousand christs come down from the sky will not undo and banish them. We can reduce them; not think about eradicating them. One way to affect reduction of evil practices in the school system can be vigorous discussion in the form of community-centered workshop led by better informed sources that are inseparably part of the community itself. The focus of discussion, apart from other legal proviso, values and procedures, should be towards claiming the stake over community school in terms of teacher recruitment, completely free from interference outside the purview of community/khel/village. This does not, of course, sanction freedom from government acts, school discipline and ordinances or statutes.
Our church may be engaged not only with professedly Christ-centered jobs and lost-soul-saving exercises with less fruits, but it can be part of service to humanity, reflective of far reaching future, hope and beyond modeled by the art of likable living together and grow together. As our church today is consumed with modernization, history-making and networking with intent for physical growth garnished by semblance of godliness, and all the while institutionalizing, the least of soul for which heaven emptied itself to save, is forgotten. Why not allow church to participate in teacher recruitment because a would-be-teacher is entrusted with the charge of our children that is future real? The job of a teacher is not a mere profession; it is a commitment; one’s devotion to making Naga home different from others as we claim ours as His. Unless we revere this institution manned by respectable men and women who pledge loyalty to Him and His creation, we are no different from others. One who bribes to become a teacher is also partaker of the loots who robs school. Present disturbed academic environ right from Nagaland University down to the lowest is really disturbing as one imagines the kind of life our upcoming generations shall inherit. Generally there are three classes of thief: politicians, thieves and, of course, our children. Teachers should not be included in the list.
