•- Naga Council tour of Holy Land in November was most enriching and enlightening. Out of the hundreds of out of Nagaland experiences we ingested in Israel, one lesson stands out- Sabbath matters.
Israel as a nation is 4000 years old and it is a nation in perpetual warfare. If its people were not warring, they were either scattered or in slavery starting from Moses and then Daniel in 6th BC. After the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, the Jewish people were scattered all over the world, to Europe, Africa, western India and even North-East India, perhaps. They could form their modern Israel only in 1948, after a gap of almost 2000 years! It is amazing that throughout their stint in strange lands either as a slave, as aliens or second class citizens they managed to preserve their Jewish heritage. This singular factor, preserving their culture and heritage with mind numbing totality is the reason why the Jews did not disappear as a people. How did they manage to preserve their Jewish character in the face of such overwhelming odds? The answer is simple, their dedication to mosaic laws and their faith in the God of the Old Testament who is our God too.
During their sojourn in strange lands, the Jews were bombarded with faiths and customs alien to their belief system. Many were persecuted and millions died but they stuck to their guns. Even though their physical character underwent changes- Indian Jews from west coast of India look like Indians and still speak local dialects from these areas, Jews from Ethiopia, Africa are Blacks, European Jews are blond or fair-haired, Arabic-looking Jews also abound not forgetting our Mizo-Kuki-Chin brothers from North-East India- their Jewish character never changed. They still observe the Sabbath with outmost dedication. Sabbath day is a total shutdown in Israel. There’re no people and no cars on the streets except tourists and there’s absolutely no shopping. 5 million tourists on average visit Israel every year bringing in billions of US Dollars but most Israelites would rather hang themselves than do business on Sabbath for Dollars. Maybe this single-minded devotion to their God is the reason why Jews are still intact as a people and why the peoples of old, their one-time contemporaries like the Pharaohs of Egypt, the Philistines, the Moabites, the Babylonians, the Assyrians, the Romans, etc, etc have disappeared from the face of the earth.
Contrast this with ‘Christian Nagaland’ where we no longer practice even the most basic commandment, “Keep the Sabbath holy”. Sunday is no longer a Sabbath day in Nagaland. And during Christmas season it is thrown out of the window - it is a day for shopkeepers to make tons of money and Christian Nagas to flood the markets, atleast in Dimapur, thereby negating the very spirit of Christmas. Any Israeli visiting Nagaland now would be inclined to believe that ours is a pagan state.
Nagas rich culture and tradition makes us unique as a people. It is God-given and it is our identity. This has been acknowledged even by the Indian constitution under Art. 371A and the GOI has accepted the “Unique history of Nagas” which in its basics is Nagas culture and tradition. Nagas are Nagas because of this culture and heritage. Without this culture, this tradition and this identity to cover and protect us, it is inevitable that we’ll disappear as a people, culturally and racially, swallowed by Hindu India, Muslim Bangladesh and “liberal West”. Constitutional guarantees like Statehood or even greater autonomy cannot fight cultural imperialism but like the Jews we can fight back by respecting our own heritage. Christianity is part of our Naga heritage. Like the Jews again, Nagas need to honour Him and only then He will be able to protect us and our great grand children from total annihilation. Remember, Jewish history is from antiquity, so the first lesson is-keep the Sabbath holy.
Israel as a nation is 4000 years old and it is a nation in perpetual warfare. If its people were not warring, they were either scattered or in slavery starting from Moses and then Daniel in 6th BC. After the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, the Jewish people were scattered all over the world, to Europe, Africa, western India and even North-East India, perhaps. They could form their modern Israel only in 1948, after a gap of almost 2000 years! It is amazing that throughout their stint in strange lands either as a slave, as aliens or second class citizens they managed to preserve their Jewish heritage. This singular factor, preserving their culture and heritage with mind numbing totality is the reason why the Jews did not disappear as a people. How did they manage to preserve their Jewish character in the face of such overwhelming odds? The answer is simple, their dedication to mosaic laws and their faith in the God of the Old Testament who is our God too.
During their sojourn in strange lands, the Jews were bombarded with faiths and customs alien to their belief system. Many were persecuted and millions died but they stuck to their guns. Even though their physical character underwent changes- Indian Jews from west coast of India look like Indians and still speak local dialects from these areas, Jews from Ethiopia, Africa are Blacks, European Jews are blond or fair-haired, Arabic-looking Jews also abound not forgetting our Mizo-Kuki-Chin brothers from North-East India- their Jewish character never changed. They still observe the Sabbath with outmost dedication. Sabbath day is a total shutdown in Israel. There’re no people and no cars on the streets except tourists and there’s absolutely no shopping. 5 million tourists on average visit Israel every year bringing in billions of US Dollars but most Israelites would rather hang themselves than do business on Sabbath for Dollars. Maybe this single-minded devotion to their God is the reason why Jews are still intact as a people and why the peoples of old, their one-time contemporaries like the Pharaohs of Egypt, the Philistines, the Moabites, the Babylonians, the Assyrians, the Romans, etc, etc have disappeared from the face of the earth.
Contrast this with ‘Christian Nagaland’ where we no longer practice even the most basic commandment, “Keep the Sabbath holy”. Sunday is no longer a Sabbath day in Nagaland. And during Christmas season it is thrown out of the window - it is a day for shopkeepers to make tons of money and Christian Nagas to flood the markets, atleast in Dimapur, thereby negating the very spirit of Christmas. Any Israeli visiting Nagaland now would be inclined to believe that ours is a pagan state.
Nagas rich culture and tradition makes us unique as a people. It is God-given and it is our identity. This has been acknowledged even by the Indian constitution under Art. 371A and the GOI has accepted the “Unique history of Nagas” which in its basics is Nagas culture and tradition. Nagas are Nagas because of this culture and heritage. Without this culture, this tradition and this identity to cover and protect us, it is inevitable that we’ll disappear as a people, culturally and racially, swallowed by Hindu India, Muslim Bangladesh and “liberal West”. Constitutional guarantees like Statehood or even greater autonomy cannot fight cultural imperialism but like the Jews we can fight back by respecting our own heritage. Christianity is part of our Naga heritage. Like the Jews again, Nagas need to honour Him and only then He will be able to protect us and our great grand children from total annihilation. Remember, Jewish history is from antiquity, so the first lesson is-keep the Sabbath holy.
Joel Nillo Kath
Fin. Secy, NC
On behalf of Naga Council
nagacouncildmr@gmail.com
