Christianity in Nagaland

See also: Nagaland Baptist Church Council

Religion in Nagaland (2011)[1]
Religion Percent
Christians
 
 87.9%
Hindus
 
 8.7%
Muslims
 
 2.5%
Buddhists
 
 0.3%
Others*
 
 0.6%
Distribution of religions

The largest religion in the Nagaland state of India is Christianity. According to the 2011 census, the state's population was 1,978,502, out of which 87.93% are Christians. Along with Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, and Mizoram, Nagaland is one of the four Christian-majority states in the country.

History

Prior to Christianity, the various Naga religions had dynamic and fluid beliefs. This is critical to understand the reasons for people's conversion to Christianity. In addition, the new religion did not merely substitute older religious structures and beliefs.[2] Christianity was introduced in the erstwhile Naga Hills to expand colonialism as well driven by missionary fervour which failed to garner numbers in the Brahmaputra Valley. As the new religion started making inroads in the Naga Hills, British administrators-turned-anthropologists started criticising the missionaries for destroying distinctive Indigenous cultures. In the early 20th century, the former began to place restrictions on missionaries activities by framing rules, imposing penalties, and increasing house tax on missionaries and new converts.[3]

British colonial era

The earliest Christian missionaries in the erstwhile Naga Hills (part of colonial Assam province) belonged to the American Baptist Mission. They received active support of British colonial officers. In the 1830s, Francis Jenkins, then Commissioner of Assam, first invited missionaries to colonial Assam. In the 1870s, other colonial military officers such as John Butler and James Johnstone also extended the invitation to missionaries for the Naga Hills. The primary purpose of these military invitations, with assurance of state security, was to 'pacify' these Indigenous communities and subjugate them to colonial rule.[3]

While the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society were one of the first Christian missionaries to enter the northeast frontier of Colonial India, their initial projects were frustrating. Starting the proselytising mission from Colonial Assam, the society's annual report in 1858 noted their 'great failure' to convert a sizeable population to Christianity after almost 23 years. Without explaining the reasons for the poor missionary performance, the report urged to 'cast their gaze elsewhere.'[2] On the other hand, British efforts to subjugate the Nagas faced persistent and stiff resistance. Amongst these were the Battle of Kikrüma, Battle of Khonoma, and also the death of several British officers.

Edwin W. Clark and Mary Clark

In October 1871 Supongmeren from Molungkimong village was baptised at Sibsagar and enrolled as an American Baptist Church member. He became the bridge between the American Baptist Missionary E. W. Clark, Evangelist Godhula and the then-animist Ao Nagas. Kosasanger Council of Molungkimong Village (Dekahaimong) dispatched 60 warriors to escort Dr. E. W. Clark to escort him. It took almost three days from Sibsagar to reach Molungkimong. Clark arrived on Wednesday, 18 December and baptized 15 new converts on Sunday, 22 December 1872 at a Village drinking well called Chungli Tzübu which was permitted by the Village Council. Another miracle for Clark after which they had a worship service and celebrated the first Lord's supper. Thus, on this day, the first Naga Church was founded with 28 Baptized members. They were Dr. Clark, Godhula and his wife, Supongmeren, 9 converts baptized on 10 November at Sibsagar, and 15 converts baptized at Molungkimong on 22 December 1872.

Postcolonial era

Nagaland was one of several regions of Northeast India that experienced Christian revival movements in the 1950s and 1960s. The "Nagaland Christian Revival Church", formed in 1962, grew out of the initial phase of this movement.[4] It had its origin in Gariphema Village of Kohima District where, in 1962, an event known as "The Great Awakening" started [citation needed].

The revival emphasised believers having a "personal encounter with Christ", the witnessing of "signs and wonders" (such as miraculous healings), and having a missionary outreach to non-believing or nominally-Christian Nagas.[4] The result was that Nagaland became an overwhelmingly Christian state, known as "the only predominantly Baptist state in the world."[5] Among Christians, Baptists are the predominant group, constituting more than 75% of the state's population, thus making it more Baptist (on a percentage basis) than Mississippi in the southern United States, where 55% of the population is Baptist.[6][7] Catholics, Revivalists, and Pentecostals are the other Christian denomination numbers. Catholics are found in significant numbers in parts of Wokha District and Kohima District as well as in the urban areas of Kohima, Chümoukedima and Dimapur.

The Naga National Council had a popular plebiscite in 1951, culminated to the 1956 Constitution whose preamble affirmed the sovereignty of God the Almighty in all the universe and the entrustment of the nation to Him who never ended to sustain the descendants of the forefathers.[8] Religious relationships with India have also a specific discipline in the Article 371(A) of the Indian Constitution that come into force in 1963 and reserves to the Legislative Assembly of Nagaland the right to approve by resolution any Act of the Indian Parliament in respect of "religious or social practices of the Nagas".[9]

A painting of Rani Gaidinliu.

An ancient indigenous religion known as the Heraka is followed by a few people (4,168) belonging to the Zeliangrong tribe living in Nagaland. Rani Gaidinliu was an Indian freedom fighter who struggled for the revival of Heraka, the traditional animist religion of the Naga people.

Statistics

The 2011 census recorded the state's Christian population at 1,745,181, making it, with Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, and Mizoram as the four Christian-majority states in India.[10] The state has a very high church attendance rate in both urban and rural areas. The majority of churches are found in Kohima, Chümoukedima, Dimapur and Mokokchung.

Christians in Nagaland
Year Number Percentage
2001[11]
1,790,349
89.96
2011[1]
1,739,651
87.93
Historical Christian Population in Nagaland[12]
YearPop.±%
1901 601—    
1911 3,308+450.4%
1921 8,734+164.0%
1931 22,908+162.3%
1941 9−100.0%
1951 98,068+1089544.4%
1961 195,588+99.4%
1971 344,798+76.3%
1981 621,590+80.3%
1991 1,057,940+70.2%
2001 1,790,349+69.2%
2011 1,739,651−2.8%
Source: census of India

Hinduism and Islam practiced by the non-Naga community are minority religions in the state, at 7.7% and 1.8% of the population respectively.

Percentage of Christians in Nagaland by decades[12]

Year Percent Increase
1901 0.59% -
1911 2.22%

+1.63%

1921 5.5%

+3.28%

1931 12.81%

+7.31%

1941 0%

-12.81%

1951 46.05%

+46.05%

1961 52.98% +6.93%
1971 66.76% +13.78%
1981 80.21% +13.45%
1991 87.47% +7.26%
2001 89.97% +2.5%
2011 87.93% -2.04%

Tribes

Percentage of Christians in the Scheduled Tribes[13]

Tribe Christians Percent
Konyak 2,32,619 97.92%
Sümi 2,34,762 99.34%
Ao 2,24,525 99.07%
Lotha 1,71,771 99.23%
Chakhesang 1,53,740 99.27%
Angami 1,39,781 98.62%
Sangtam 74,439 99.26%
Zeliang 71,305 95.23%
Yimkhiung 66,514 99.32%
Chang 63,603 99.03%
Rengma 62,285 98.94%
Khiamniungan 61,246 99.35%
Phom 52,255 99.19%
Pochury 21,704 98.89%
Kuki 18,514 98.65%
Tikhir 7,468 99.08%
Kachari 3,938 30.21%
Viswerna 3,536 96.51%

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Indian Census 2011". Census Department, Government of India. Archived from the original on 13 September 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
  2. ^ a b Eaton, Richard M. (1984). "Conversion to Christianity among the Nagas, 1876-1971". The Indian Economic & Social History Review. 21 (1): 1–44. doi:10.1177/001946468402100101. ISSN 0019-4646.
  3. ^ a b Thejalhoukho (17 May 2024). "Contested customs in the Naga hills: Baptist reformers, colonial ethnography and the construction of a modern Naga identity". Asian Ethnicity: 1–18. doi:10.1080/14631369.2024.2355643. ISSN 1463-1369.
  4. ^ a b Allan Anderson, ed., "Asian and Pentecostal: The Charismatic Face of Christianity in Asia", p237-238.
  5. ^ Olson, C. Gordon. What in the World Is God Doing. Global Gospel Publishers: Cedar Knolls, NJ. 2003.
  6. ^ American Religious Identification Survey Archived 14 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine www.gc.cuny.edu.
  7. ^ Mississippi Denominational Groups, 2000 Archived 29 December 2011 at the Wayback Machine Thearda.com. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
  8. ^ Sakha, Thüpukhoto (17 November 2015). "History from Naga Nationalism from the religious perspective". Eastern Mirror. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  9. ^ "How do Naga peace and Article 371A belong together?". Economic Times. 11 September 2019.[dead link‍]
  10. ^ Wijunamai, Roderick (9 October 2020). "The early story of Christianity in Northeast India". Himal SouthAsian.
  11. ^ "Total population by religious communities". Censusindia.gov.in. Archived from the original on 19 January 2008. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
  12. ^ a b http://www.cpsindia.org Archived 18 May 2021 at the Wayback Machine › BlogsPDF Web results The Christianisation of the Northeast – Centre for Policy Studies
  13. ^ blog.cpsindia.org/2016/10/religion-data-of-census-2011-xxxi.html
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