Nagaland Baptist Church asks believers to choose between Trishul' and Cross'

Guwahati: After the Nagaland Joint Christian Forum’s bid to stop the elections, the Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC), the state's biggest church organisation, has launched a fresh campaign by asking believers to choose between the ‘Trishul’ and the ‘Cross’ while fearing that voters getting seduced by money and development offered by those whose hands seek to “pierce the heart of Jesus Christ”.

The influential Christian organization in an open letter to all political parties in Nagaland has asked to rely on the state's own strengths for development.

"We can develop ourselves if we can say 'enough is enough'. For that matter, leave the Naga political solution alone and let it take its own course. If it were possible, it would have happened a long time ago," NBCC general secretary Rev Zelhou Keyho said in a letter of appeal addressed to all political parties.

Strongly opposing what it called the "invasion" of Hindutva forces in Nagaland, Rev Keyho said that the party in power at the Centre is fighting tooth and nail to assert its presence in Nagaland, a Christian-majority state.

"We cannot deny that the Hindutva movement in the country has become strong and invasive in an unprecedented manner over the last few years with the BJP, the political wing of the RSS, in power," Rev Keyho said.

The letter further said, “Our people are fond of propaganda and because of this we often miss the reality unnoticed. But India has experienced worst persecution ever in 2015-2017. You will be fully aware that persecutions have been tripled in recent years. Pastors, evangelists and missionaries are dragged openly in the streets, harassed and insulted and many made to suffer. Their homes destroyed and children discriminated in schools. Worship places were burnt down and believers are often disturbed and harassed. The Bible is openly burnt and confiscated.”

The NBCC in its letter also flagged the point to which Congress leaders have been rising in neighboring Meghalaya assembly elections. “In the past 3 years many of NBCC Church partner leaders from abroad were denied visas and barred from entering India. The most recent happening is the refusal of visa for the Baptist World Alliance President, Rev. Dr. Paul Msiza, whose entry was denied to visit Northeast India and this happened just yesterday,” the open letter said while regretting, “God must be weeping when Naga politicians are running after those who seek to destroy Christianity in India and in our land.”

In what may be called an attempt to influence the electorates, the open letter to political parties further said, “Dear Sir, if you believe that God has raised you to be a politician for the Naga people, fear God and no other thing. But if you are trying to do it yourself for some other reasons you cannot run away from God now or later. God exists and he will never let things go our way if we misuse his name as Christians. May I also impress upon you as a leader that running for political office for development is only half of your task. The other half is to protect and safeguard your faith and the principles, which your people hold dear. Development is not everything but when we put our house in order development and others will follow.”