Relegius Leaders
1 Moses ( 14th century BC ) Hebrew Prophet
2 Buddha ( 5 or 6 century BC ) Nepal
3 Jesus of Nazareth ( 6-4 BC ) Israel
4 Gregory the great ( 540 - 604 AD ) Italy
5 Muhammad ( 570 - 632 ) Western Arabia
6 St. Benedict ( c 480 - 547 ) Italy
7 Francis of Assisi ( c 1181 - 1226 ) Italy
8 Martin Luther ( 1483 - 1546 ) Germany
9 St. Ignatus of Loyala ( 1491 - 1556 ) Spain
10 John Calvin ( 1509 - 1564 ) France
11 John Wesley ( 1703 - 1791 ) England
12 Sir Ramakrishna ( 1836 - 1886 ) India
13 Pope John Paul II ( 1920 - ) Italy
14 The Dalai Lama ( 1935 - ) Tibet
Great Leaders
1.Queen Hatshesut ( c 1509 - c 1469 BC ) The First Queen of Egypt
2.Pericles ( c 495 - c 429 BC ) Athen, Greece
3.Ashoka ( c 300 - c 232 BC ) The Great Ruler of India
4.Qin Shi Huangdi ( c 259 - c 210 BC ) Founder of Chinese Empire and become the first Emperor
5.Augustus ( 63 BC - 14 AD ) The first Emperor of Roman
6.Constantine the great ( 280 - 337 AD ) Rome Emperor
7.Justinian ( 483 - 565 ) Byzantine Emperor
8.Charle Magne ( 742 - 814 ) The first ruler of Europe
9.Mehmed II ( 1432 - 1481 ) Sultan of Ottpman Turkey
10.Suleyman I ( 1494 - 1566 ) The greatest of Ottoman Sultans
11.Tokugawa Leyasu ( 1543 - 1616 ) Samurai War Lord, Japan
12.Charles V ( 1500 - 1558 ) King of Spain
13.Philip II ( 1527 - 1598 ) King of Spain
14.Elizabeth I ( 1533 - 1603 ) Queen of England
15.Oliver Cromwell ( 1599 - 1658 ) Lord protector of England
16.Louis XIV ( 1638 - 1715 ) Sun King and absolute ruler of France
17.Peter the great ( 1672 - 1725 ) European power, Russia
18.John Sobieski ( 1624 - 1696 ) The last great King of Poland
19.Cathrine the great ( 1729 - 1796 ) Russia
20.Frederick the great ( 1712 - 1786 ) King of Prussia
21.George Washington ( 1732 - 1799 ) The first President of United States
22.Abraham Lincoln ( 1809 - 1885 ) The 16th President of United States
23.Victoria ( 1819 - 1901 ) Queen Victoria, England
24.Ptto von Bismarck ( 1815 - 1898 ) Prusso-German
25.Winston Churchill ( 1874 - 1965 ) Britain
26.Charles de Gaulee ( 1890 - 1970 ) France
27.Franklin D. Roosvelt ( 1882 - 1945 ) US President
28.David Ben-Gurion ( 1886 - 1973 ) Founding father of Israel
29.Gamal Nasser ( 1918 - 1970 ) The first President of Egypt
30.Ronald Reagan ( 1911 - ) The 40th US President
31.Margaret Thatcher ( 1925 - ) British first woman Prime Minister
32.Mikhail Gorbachev ( 1931 - ) The Last Soviet Leader.
MILITARY COMMANDERS
1.Alexander the great ( 356 - 323 BC ) King of Macedonia
2.Hannibal ( 247 - 183 BC ) Carthaginian General
3.Julius Caesar ( 100 BC - 44 AD ) Roman General
4.Attilia the Hun ( 404 BC - 453 BC ) King of Spain
5.Genghis Khan ( 1167 - 1227 ) Mongol Leader, China
6.William the Conqueror ( 1027 - 1087 ) King of England
7.Saladin ( 1138 - 1193 ) Sultan of Egypt and Syria
8.St. Joan of Arc ( 1412 - 1431 ) France
9.Gustavus Adolphus ( 1594 - 1632 ) King of Gustav II of Sweden
10.Horatio Nelson ( 1758 - 1805 ) Britain
11.Napoleon Bonaparte ( 1769 - 1821 ) Emperor of France
12.Duke of Willington ( 1769 - 1852 ) Britain's Military Commander
13.Douglas MacArthur ( 1880 - 1964 ) One of US Army's most decorate Soldiers
14.William Slim ( 1891 - 1970 ) One of Britain's finest Generals
15.Dwight D. Eisenhower ( 1890 - 1969 ) US President
16.Erwin Rommel ( 1891 - 1944 ) German Commander.
Reformers
1.William Wilberforce ( 1759 - 1833 ) England
2.Frederick Douglass ( 1818 - 1895 ) USA
3.Emmeline Pankhurst ( 1858 - 1928 ) England
4.Martin Luther King Jr. ( 1929 - 1968 ) USA
National Liberators
1.Thomas Jefferson ( 1743 - 1826 ) US President
2.Toussiant L'Ouverture ( 1743 - 1803 ) France
3.Jose De San Martin ( 1778 - 1850 ) Spain
4.Simon Boliver ( 1783 - 1830 ) Venezuela
5.Chief Joseph ( 1840 - 1904 ) Oregon Territory
6.Theodor Herzl ( 1860 - 1904 ) Vienna, Founder of Zionism
7.Kemal Ataturk ( 1881 - 1938 ) Turkey
8.Mahatma Gandhi ( 1869 - 1948 ) Nationalist Leader, India
9.Ho Chi Minh ( 1890 - 1969 ) Vietnamese Communist Leader
10.Mao Zedong ( 1893 - 1976 ) Chinese Querrilla Leader, China
11.Fidel Castro ( 1926 - ) Cuba
12.Nelson Mandela ( 1918 - ) South Africa
13.Shaka Zulu ( 1787 - 1828 ) Southern Africa's Zulu Empire
14.Chiang Kai-Shek ( 1887 - 1975 ) China
15.Aung San Suu Kyi ( 1945 - ) Myanmar
Revolutionaries
1.Spartacus ( c 120 - 71 BC ) Roman Slave and Gladiator
2.Maximilien Robespierre ( 1758 - 1794 ) France
3.Giuseppe Garibaldi ( 1807 - 1882 ) Italy
4.Vladmir Lenin ( 1870 - 1924 ) One of the World's greatest revolutionary leader, Soviet Union
5.Che Guevara ( 1928 - 1967 ) South American Revolutionary Leader, Argentina
6.Lech Walesa ( 1943 - ) Poland
Explorers
1.Marco Polo ( 1254 - 1324 ) Venice
2.Christopher Columbus ( 1451 - 1506 ) Portugal
3.Ferdinand Magellan ( 1480 - 1521 ) Portugal
4.Hernan Cortes ( 1485 - 1547 ) Spain
5.James Cook ( 1728 - 1779 ) Marton
6.Robert Peary ( 1856 - 1920 ) USA
7.Rolad Amundsen ( 1872 - 1928 ) Norway
8.Ernest Shackleton ( 1874 - 1922 ) Irish polar explorer
9.Andrew Carnegie ( 1836 - 1919 ) Scotland
10.John D. Rockefeller ( 1839 - 1937 ) USA
11.Henry Ford ( 1863 - 1947 ) Michigan
12.Akio Morita ( 1921 - 1999 ) Japan
13.Bill Gates ( 1955 - ) USA, One of the World's Richest Man
Friday, April 24, 2009
Number of adherents of world religions:
According to David Barrett et al, editors of the "World Christian Encyclopedia: A comparative survey of churches and religions - AD 30 to 2200," there are 19 major world religions which are subdivided into a total of 270 large religious groups, and many smaller ones. 34,000 separate Christian groups have been identified in the world. "Over half of them are independent churches that are not interested in linking with the big denominations." 13 Most people in the world follow one of the religions listed in the table below. Included is the name of the religion, the approximate date of its origin, its main sacred or ethical texts (if any) and its estimated numerical strength (both in absolute numbers and as a percentage of the world's population.)
These data are based on census or public opinion data.1Thus, a person is considered to be of a particular religion if they say that they are of that faith. Thus, about 75% of the adults in both the U.S. and Canada are Christians. Many individuals and religious groups have much more strict definitions for membership. Many conservative Christians believe that one has to be "born again" in order to be counted as a Christian. Using this definition, only about 35% of Americans would be counted as Christians. This difference in definitions between conservative Christians and the rest of the population causes much confusion. Some of the approximately 1,000 Christian faith groups in the U.S. and Canada believe themselves to be the only true Christian denomination. Thus, depending on the definition used, the percentage of Christians in the U.S. are between 0.1 and 75% of the total population.
Pie-chart
Image from the U.S. Center for World Mission
Basic information on various religions:
Religion
Date Founded
Sacred Texts
Membership 5
% of World 6
Christianity
30 CE
The Bible
2,039 million
32% (dropping)
Islam
622 CE
Qur'an & Hadith
1,226 million
19% (growing)
Hinduism
1500 BCE with truly ancient roots
Bhagavad-Gita, Upanishads, & Rig Veda
828 million
13% (stable)
No religion(Note 1)
-
None
775 million
12% (dropping)
Chinese folk rel.
270 BCE
None
390 million
6%
Buddhism
523 BCE
The Tripitaka & Sutras
364 million
6% (stable)
Tribal Religions, Shamanism, Animism
Prehistory
Oral tradition
232 million
4%
Atheists
No date
None
150 million
2%
New religions.
Various
Various
103 million
2%
Sikhism
1500 CE
Guru Granth Sahib
23.8 million
<1%
Judaism
Note 3
Torah, Tanach, & Talmud
14.5 million
<1%
Spiritism
12.6 million
<1%
Baha'i Faith
1863 CE
Alkitab Alaqdas
7.4 million
<1%
Confucianism
520 BCE
Lun Yu
6.3 million
<1%
Jainism
570 BCE
Siddhanta, Pakrit
4.3 million
<1%
Zoroastrianism
600 to 6000 BCE
Avesta
2.7 million
<1%
Shinto
500 CE
Kojiki, Nohon Shoki
2.7 million
<1%
Taoism
550 BCE
Tao-te-Ching
2.7 million
<1%
Other
Various
Various
1.1 million
<1%
Wicca
800 BCE, 1940 CE
None
0.5 million?
<1%
Notes:
Note 1: Persons with no formal, organized religion include agnostics, freethinkers, humanists, secularists, etc.
Note 2: We have included Wicca even though their numbers are small because such a large percentage of our site's visitors are of that faith. There is no reliable measure of their numbers. Some Wiccans believe that their faith can be traced back to the origins of the Celtic people; other suggest it is a recently created religion.
Note 3: There is no consensus on the data of founding of Judaism. Some claim that Adam and Eve were the first Jews, and lived circa 4000 BCE; others suggest that they never existed. Some would place the date at the time of Abraham, circa 1900 BCE; others consider Abraham to be a mythical character. Some date it to the Exodus from Egypt circa 1490 BCE; others say that no Exodus happened, and the ancient Hebrews were originally a group that gradually separated from the main body of Canaanites and developed a different culture.
Names of the places of worship and English titles by which local leaders are called:
Religion
Place of worship
Title of local leader
Christianity
Church, Cathedral, Temple, Mission
Pastor, priest, minister
Islam
Mosque
Imam
No religion *
None
None
Hinduism
Mandir, Mandira, Temple, and other names
Priest
Buddhism
Pagoda, Stupa, Temple
Monk
Atheists
None
None
New Asian religion
Various
Various
Tribal Religions, Animism
In nature
Shaman
Judaism
Synagogue
Rabbi
Sikhism
Gurdwaras
Granthi (professional reader)
Shamanists
In nature
Shaman
Confucianism
Temple, Shrine, Seowon
Unknown
Baha'i Faith
House of worship
Usually a lay leader
Jainism
Temple
Priest, Pandit
Shinto
Temple
Priest
Wicca
Circle, Grove
Priestess, Priest, Wiccan
Zoroastrianism
Atash Behram, Agiyari, Prayer rooms
Mobed, Dastur
Sponsored link:
document.write('');
Accuracy of the data:
We receive many Emails from visitors to this web site about the above data; some are quite irate.
Many Emails come from Christians who have the impression that Christianity is rapidly growing around the world and that the number of Christian adherents is steadily growing as a percentage of the world's total population. Christianity certainly is growing. Noted Christian author George Weigel notes that: "There were only 558 million Christians in the world in 1900 and there will be approximately 2 billion Christians by the middle of this year [2002], a huge increase." However, Christianity has been in a very slow decline for years as a percentage of world population. Weigel states: "...Christians were 34.5 percent of world population in 1900, and will be 33.1 percent in 2002." 6
We receive many Emails from Muslims and Hindus who honestly believe that their religion is the largest in the world. The available data seems to indicate that they are wrong. However, at current rates of change, Islam will overtake Christianity as the world's dominant religion later in the 21st century.
Various information sources are in general agreement that the three largest religions in the world are currently, in order, Christianity, Islam and Hinduism.
Numbers of adherent, in billions, are listed as:
Data Source
Christianity
Islam
Hinduism
Adherents.com 10
2.1
1.3
0.9
British Broadcasting Corp. 9
2.0
1.2
0.75
Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Year (1966) 12
1.9
1.1
0.78
Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Year (2003) 5
2.0
1.2
0.8
International Bulletin of Missionary Research 11
2.0
1.2
-
Wikipedia Encyclopedia 13
2.1
1.3
0.9
There is reasonable agreement among information sources about the total number of adherents of the world's largest religions. However, the data should not be considered precise.
Rate of change of Christians and Muslims:
Of the two largest religions, the "market share" of Christianity appears to be fairly constant:
U.S. Center for World Mission estimated in 1997 that the percentage of humans who regard themselves as Christians rose from 33.7% in 1970 to 33.9% in 1996. 2 Its total number of adherents is growing at about 2.3% annually. This is approximately equal to the growth rate of the world's population. Islam is growing faster: about 2.9% and is thus increasing its market share.
"World Christian Encyclopedia: A comparative survey of churches and religions - AD 30 to 2200," estimates that as of 2000, Christians make up 33% of the world's population, with close to two billion followers.
Author Samuel Huntington disagrees: "The percentage of Christians in the world peaked at about 30 % in the 1980s, leveled off, is now declining, and will probably approximate to about 25% of the world's population by 2025. As a result of their extremely high rates of population growth, the proportion of Muslims in the world will continue to increase dramatically, amounting to 20 percent of the world's population about the turn of the century, surpassing the number of Christians some years later, and probably accounting for about 30 percent of the world's population by 2025." 3
The UK Christian Handbook has lower figures. They estimate that 28.3% of the world's population identified themselves as Christians in 1990. They expect this to drop to 27.7% by the year 2000, and to 27.1 in 2010. 4 They attribute the drop to the lower birth rate among Christians compared to followers of other religions.
Within Christianity, not all denominations have the same growth rate. Some annual growth rates are:
Pentecostals: 8.1%
Evangelicals: 5.4%;
All Protestants: 3.3%
Roman Catholics and Others: 1.3%
Since the growth rate of humanity is above 1.4%, the "market share" of Roman Catholicism and others appears to be slowly dropping.
Missiologist Ralph Winter estimated in early 2001 that there are 680 million "born again" Christians in the world, and that they are growing at about 7% a year. This represents about 11% of the world's population and 33% of the total number of Christians. 6
Reference books on world religion:
The ultimate reference book is the two volume monumental set, World Christian Encyclopedia, released in mid-2001, by Oxford University Press. It contains 1699 pages with information about religion in the 238 countries of the world:
David Barrett et al, "World Christian Encyclopedia: A comparative survey of churches and religions - AD 30 to 2200," Oxford University Press, (2001). Read reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book store
Related essay and menu on this web site:
Descriptions of dozens of religions and ethical systems
The religious makeup of each country in the world
References used in the above essay:
J.W. Wright, Editor, "The Universal Almanac, 1996", Andrews & McMeel, Kansas City.
Greg H. Parsons, Executive Director, "U.S. Center for World Mission," Pasadena, CA; quoted in Zondervan News Service, 1997-FEB-21.
Samuel Huntington, "The Clash of Civilizations and the remaking of world order," Touchstone Books, (1998), Pages 65 to 66. Read reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book store. This is a controversial book which argues that world divisions and conflicts in the future will be based on culture, ethnicity and religion.
Quoted in Religion Today's Current News Summary for 1999-OCT-19.
Data from the World Almanac and Book of Facts, 2004, Page 612. Derived from the "Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Year, 2003.
Based on the UN projected world population of 6.301 billion for mid-2003.
"Jesus Christ known to 11% of world's population," Religion Today, 2001-JAN-25, at: http://news.crosswalk.com/religion/item/
George Weigel, "World religions by the numbers," Catholic Educator's Resource Center, 2002-MAR-08, at: http://www.catholiceducation.org/
"Your guide to the religions of the world," BBC World Service, at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/
"Major Religions of the World Ranked by Number of Adherents," Adherents.com, at: http://www.adherents.com/
"Statistical Table on Global Mission," International Bulletin of Missionary Research, discussed at: http://www.the-tidings.com/2002/0308/difference.htm
"Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Year, 1966," cited in many Internet web sites, including http://religion-cults.com/ and http://tangents.home.att.net/
David B. Barrett, et al., "World Christian Encyclopedia : A Comparative Survey of Churches and Religions in the Modern World," Oxford University Press, (2001). Read reviews or order this book
These data are based on census or public opinion data.1Thus, a person is considered to be of a particular religion if they say that they are of that faith. Thus, about 75% of the adults in both the U.S. and Canada are Christians. Many individuals and religious groups have much more strict definitions for membership. Many conservative Christians believe that one has to be "born again" in order to be counted as a Christian. Using this definition, only about 35% of Americans would be counted as Christians. This difference in definitions between conservative Christians and the rest of the population causes much confusion. Some of the approximately 1,000 Christian faith groups in the U.S. and Canada believe themselves to be the only true Christian denomination. Thus, depending on the definition used, the percentage of Christians in the U.S. are between 0.1 and 75% of the total population.
Pie-chart
Image from the U.S. Center for World Mission
Basic information on various religions:
Religion
Date Founded
Sacred Texts
Membership 5
% of World 6
Christianity
30 CE
The Bible
2,039 million
32% (dropping)
Islam
622 CE
Qur'an & Hadith
1,226 million
19% (growing)
Hinduism
1500 BCE with truly ancient roots
Bhagavad-Gita, Upanishads, & Rig Veda
828 million
13% (stable)
No religion(Note 1)
-
None
775 million
12% (dropping)
Chinese folk rel.
270 BCE
None
390 million
6%
Buddhism
523 BCE
The Tripitaka & Sutras
364 million
6% (stable)
Tribal Religions, Shamanism, Animism
Prehistory
Oral tradition
232 million
4%
Atheists
No date
None
150 million
2%
New religions.
Various
Various
103 million
2%
Sikhism
1500 CE
Guru Granth Sahib
23.8 million
<1%
Judaism
Note 3
Torah, Tanach, & Talmud
14.5 million
<1%
Spiritism
12.6 million
<1%
Baha'i Faith
1863 CE
Alkitab Alaqdas
7.4 million
<1%
Confucianism
520 BCE
Lun Yu
6.3 million
<1%
Jainism
570 BCE
Siddhanta, Pakrit
4.3 million
<1%
Zoroastrianism
600 to 6000 BCE
Avesta
2.7 million
<1%
Shinto
500 CE
Kojiki, Nohon Shoki
2.7 million
<1%
Taoism
550 BCE
Tao-te-Ching
2.7 million
<1%
Other
Various
Various
1.1 million
<1%
Wicca
800 BCE, 1940 CE
None
0.5 million?
<1%
Notes:
Note 1: Persons with no formal, organized religion include agnostics, freethinkers, humanists, secularists, etc.
Note 2: We have included Wicca even though their numbers are small because such a large percentage of our site's visitors are of that faith. There is no reliable measure of their numbers. Some Wiccans believe that their faith can be traced back to the origins of the Celtic people; other suggest it is a recently created religion.
Note 3: There is no consensus on the data of founding of Judaism. Some claim that Adam and Eve were the first Jews, and lived circa 4000 BCE; others suggest that they never existed. Some would place the date at the time of Abraham, circa 1900 BCE; others consider Abraham to be a mythical character. Some date it to the Exodus from Egypt circa 1490 BCE; others say that no Exodus happened, and the ancient Hebrews were originally a group that gradually separated from the main body of Canaanites and developed a different culture.
Names of the places of worship and English titles by which local leaders are called:
Religion
Place of worship
Title of local leader
Christianity
Church, Cathedral, Temple, Mission
Pastor, priest, minister
Islam
Mosque
Imam
No religion *
None
None
Hinduism
Mandir, Mandira, Temple, and other names
Priest
Buddhism
Pagoda, Stupa, Temple
Monk
Atheists
None
None
New Asian religion
Various
Various
Tribal Religions, Animism
In nature
Shaman
Judaism
Synagogue
Rabbi
Sikhism
Gurdwaras
Granthi (professional reader)
Shamanists
In nature
Shaman
Confucianism
Temple, Shrine, Seowon
Unknown
Baha'i Faith
House of worship
Usually a lay leader
Jainism
Temple
Priest, Pandit
Shinto
Temple
Priest
Wicca
Circle, Grove
Priestess, Priest, Wiccan
Zoroastrianism
Atash Behram, Agiyari, Prayer rooms
Mobed, Dastur
Sponsored link:
document.write('');
Accuracy of the data:
We receive many Emails from visitors to this web site about the above data; some are quite irate.
Many Emails come from Christians who have the impression that Christianity is rapidly growing around the world and that the number of Christian adherents is steadily growing as a percentage of the world's total population. Christianity certainly is growing. Noted Christian author George Weigel notes that: "There were only 558 million Christians in the world in 1900 and there will be approximately 2 billion Christians by the middle of this year [2002], a huge increase." However, Christianity has been in a very slow decline for years as a percentage of world population. Weigel states: "...Christians were 34.5 percent of world population in 1900, and will be 33.1 percent in 2002." 6
We receive many Emails from Muslims and Hindus who honestly believe that their religion is the largest in the world. The available data seems to indicate that they are wrong. However, at current rates of change, Islam will overtake Christianity as the world's dominant religion later in the 21st century.
Various information sources are in general agreement that the three largest religions in the world are currently, in order, Christianity, Islam and Hinduism.
Numbers of adherent, in billions, are listed as:
Data Source
Christianity
Islam
Hinduism
Adherents.com 10
2.1
1.3
0.9
British Broadcasting Corp. 9
2.0
1.2
0.75
Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Year (1966) 12
1.9
1.1
0.78
Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Year (2003) 5
2.0
1.2
0.8
International Bulletin of Missionary Research 11
2.0
1.2
-
Wikipedia Encyclopedia 13
2.1
1.3
0.9
There is reasonable agreement among information sources about the total number of adherents of the world's largest religions. However, the data should not be considered precise.
Rate of change of Christians and Muslims:
Of the two largest religions, the "market share" of Christianity appears to be fairly constant:
U.S. Center for World Mission estimated in 1997 that the percentage of humans who regard themselves as Christians rose from 33.7% in 1970 to 33.9% in 1996. 2 Its total number of adherents is growing at about 2.3% annually. This is approximately equal to the growth rate of the world's population. Islam is growing faster: about 2.9% and is thus increasing its market share.
"World Christian Encyclopedia: A comparative survey of churches and religions - AD 30 to 2200," estimates that as of 2000, Christians make up 33% of the world's population, with close to two billion followers.
Author Samuel Huntington disagrees: "The percentage of Christians in the world peaked at about 30 % in the 1980s, leveled off, is now declining, and will probably approximate to about 25% of the world's population by 2025. As a result of their extremely high rates of population growth, the proportion of Muslims in the world will continue to increase dramatically, amounting to 20 percent of the world's population about the turn of the century, surpassing the number of Christians some years later, and probably accounting for about 30 percent of the world's population by 2025." 3
The UK Christian Handbook has lower figures. They estimate that 28.3% of the world's population identified themselves as Christians in 1990. They expect this to drop to 27.7% by the year 2000, and to 27.1 in 2010. 4 They attribute the drop to the lower birth rate among Christians compared to followers of other religions.
Within Christianity, not all denominations have the same growth rate. Some annual growth rates are:
Pentecostals: 8.1%
Evangelicals: 5.4%;
All Protestants: 3.3%
Roman Catholics and Others: 1.3%
Since the growth rate of humanity is above 1.4%, the "market share" of Roman Catholicism and others appears to be slowly dropping.
Missiologist Ralph Winter estimated in early 2001 that there are 680 million "born again" Christians in the world, and that they are growing at about 7% a year. This represents about 11% of the world's population and 33% of the total number of Christians. 6
Reference books on world religion:
The ultimate reference book is the two volume monumental set, World Christian Encyclopedia, released in mid-2001, by Oxford University Press. It contains 1699 pages with information about religion in the 238 countries of the world:
David Barrett et al, "World Christian Encyclopedia: A comparative survey of churches and religions - AD 30 to 2200," Oxford University Press, (2001). Read reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book store
Related essay and menu on this web site:
Descriptions of dozens of religions and ethical systems
The religious makeup of each country in the world
References used in the above essay:
J.W. Wright, Editor, "The Universal Almanac, 1996", Andrews & McMeel, Kansas City.
Greg H. Parsons, Executive Director, "U.S. Center for World Mission," Pasadena, CA; quoted in Zondervan News Service, 1997-FEB-21.
Samuel Huntington, "The Clash of Civilizations and the remaking of world order," Touchstone Books, (1998), Pages 65 to 66. Read reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book store. This is a controversial book which argues that world divisions and conflicts in the future will be based on culture, ethnicity and religion.
Quoted in Religion Today's Current News Summary for 1999-OCT-19.
Data from the World Almanac and Book of Facts, 2004, Page 612. Derived from the "Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Year, 2003.
Based on the UN projected world population of 6.301 billion for mid-2003.
"Jesus Christ known to 11% of world's population," Religion Today, 2001-JAN-25, at: http://news.crosswalk.com/religion/item/
George Weigel, "World religions by the numbers," Catholic Educator's Resource Center, 2002-MAR-08, at: http://www.catholiceducation.org/
"Your guide to the religions of the world," BBC World Service, at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/
"Major Religions of the World Ranked by Number of Adherents," Adherents.com, at: http://www.adherents.com/
"Statistical Table on Global Mission," International Bulletin of Missionary Research, discussed at: http://www.the-tidings.com/2002/0308/difference.htm
"Encyclopedia Britannica Book of the Year, 1966," cited in many Internet web sites, including http://religion-cults.com/ and http://tangents.home.att.net/
David B. Barrett, et al., "World Christian Encyclopedia : A Comparative Survey of Churches and Religions in the Modern World," Oxford University Press, (2001). Read reviews or order this book
diklai hmal kah biak nah bang kah milu
Basic information on various religions:
Religion
Date Founded
Sacred Texts
Membership 5
% of World 6
Christianity
30 CE
The Bible
2,039 million
32% (dropping)
Islam
622 CE
Qur'an & Hadith
1,226 million
19% (growing)
Hinduism
1500 BCE with truly ancient roots
Bhagavad-Gita, Upanishads, & Rig Veda
828 million
13% (stable)
No religion(Note 1)
-
None
775 million
12% (dropping)
Chinese folk rel.
270 BCE
None
390 million
6%
Buddhism
523 BCE
The Tripitaka & Sutras
364 million
6% (stable)
Tribal Religions, Shamanism, Animism
Prehistory
Oral tradition
232 million
4%
Atheists
No date
None
150 million
2%
New religions.
Various
Various
103 million
2%
Sikhism
1500 CE
Guru Granth Sahib
23.8 million
<1%
Judaism
Note 3
Torah, Tanach, & Talmud
14.5 million
<1%
Spiritism
12.6 million
<1%
Baha'i Faith
1863 CE
Alkitab Alaqdas
7.4 million
<1%
Confucianism
520 BCE
Lun Yu
6.3 million
<1%
Jainism
570 BCE
Siddhanta, Pakrit
4.3 million
<1%
Zoroastrianism
600 to 6000 BCE
Avesta
2.7 million
<1%
Shinto
500 CE
Kojiki, Nohon Shoki
2.7 million
<1%
Taoism
550 BCE
Tao-te-Ching
2.7 million
<1%
Other
Various
Various
1.1 million
<1%
Wicca
800 BCE, 1940 CE
None
0.5 million?
<1%
Notes:
Note 1: Persons with no formal, organized religion include agnostics, freethinkers, humanists, secularists, etc.
Note 2: We have included Wicca even though their numbers are small because such a large percentage of our site's visitors are of that faith. There is no reliable measure of their numbers. Some Wiccans believe that their faith can be traced back to the origins of the Celtic people; other suggest it is a recently created religion.
Note 3: There is no consensus on the data of founding of Judaism. Some claim that Adam and Eve were the first Jews, and lived circa 4000 BCE; others suggest that they never existed. Some would place the date at the time of Abraham, circa 1900 BCE; others consider Abraham to be a mythical character. Some date it to the Exodus from Egypt circa 1490 BCE; others say that no Exodus happened, and the ancient Hebrews were originally a group that gradually separated from the main body of Canaanites and developed a different culture.
Names of the places of worship and English titles by which local leaders are called:
Religion
Place of worship
Title of local leader
Christianity
Church, Cathedral, Temple, Mission
Pastor, priest, minister
Islam
Mosque
Imam
No religion *
None
None
Hinduism
Mandir, Mandira, Temple, and other names
Priest
Buddhism
Pagoda, Stupa, Temple
Monk
Atheists
None
None
New Asian religion
Various
Various
Tribal Religions, Animism
In nature
Shaman
Judaism
Synagogue
Rabbi
Sikhism
Gurdwaras
Granthi (professional reader)
Shamanists
In nature
Shaman
Confucianism
Temple, Shrine, Seowon
Unknown
Baha'i Faith
House of worship
Usually a lay leader
Jainism
Temple
Priest, Pandit
Shinto
Temple
Priest
Wicca
Circle, Grove
Priestess, Priest, Wiccan
Zoroastrianism
Religion
Date Founded
Sacred Texts
Membership 5
% of World 6
Christianity
30 CE
The Bible
2,039 million
32% (dropping)
Islam
622 CE
Qur'an & Hadith
1,226 million
19% (growing)
Hinduism
1500 BCE with truly ancient roots
Bhagavad-Gita, Upanishads, & Rig Veda
828 million
13% (stable)
No religion(Note 1)
-
None
775 million
12% (dropping)
Chinese folk rel.
270 BCE
None
390 million
6%
Buddhism
523 BCE
The Tripitaka & Sutras
364 million
6% (stable)
Tribal Religions, Shamanism, Animism
Prehistory
Oral tradition
232 million
4%
Atheists
No date
None
150 million
2%
New religions.
Various
Various
103 million
2%
Sikhism
1500 CE
Guru Granth Sahib
23.8 million
<1%
Judaism
Note 3
Torah, Tanach, & Talmud
14.5 million
<1%
Spiritism
12.6 million
<1%
Baha'i Faith
1863 CE
Alkitab Alaqdas
7.4 million
<1%
Confucianism
520 BCE
Lun Yu
6.3 million
<1%
Jainism
570 BCE
Siddhanta, Pakrit
4.3 million
<1%
Zoroastrianism
600 to 6000 BCE
Avesta
2.7 million
<1%
Shinto
500 CE
Kojiki, Nohon Shoki
2.7 million
<1%
Taoism
550 BCE
Tao-te-Ching
2.7 million
<1%
Other
Various
Various
1.1 million
<1%
Wicca
800 BCE, 1940 CE
None
0.5 million?
<1%
Notes:
Note 1: Persons with no formal, organized religion include agnostics, freethinkers, humanists, secularists, etc.
Note 2: We have included Wicca even though their numbers are small because such a large percentage of our site's visitors are of that faith. There is no reliable measure of their numbers. Some Wiccans believe that their faith can be traced back to the origins of the Celtic people; other suggest it is a recently created religion.
Note 3: There is no consensus on the data of founding of Judaism. Some claim that Adam and Eve were the first Jews, and lived circa 4000 BCE; others suggest that they never existed. Some would place the date at the time of Abraham, circa 1900 BCE; others consider Abraham to be a mythical character. Some date it to the Exodus from Egypt circa 1490 BCE; others say that no Exodus happened, and the ancient Hebrews were originally a group that gradually separated from the main body of Canaanites and developed a different culture.
Names of the places of worship and English titles by which local leaders are called:
Religion
Place of worship
Title of local leader
Christianity
Church, Cathedral, Temple, Mission
Pastor, priest, minister
Islam
Mosque
Imam
No religion *
None
None
Hinduism
Mandir, Mandira, Temple, and other names
Priest
Buddhism
Pagoda, Stupa, Temple
Monk
Atheists
None
None
New Asian religion
Various
Various
Tribal Religions, Animism
In nature
Shaman
Judaism
Synagogue
Rabbi
Sikhism
Gurdwaras
Granthi (professional reader)
Shamanists
In nature
Shaman
Confucianism
Temple, Shrine, Seowon
Unknown
Baha'i Faith
House of worship
Usually a lay leader
Jainism
Temple
Priest, Pandit
Shinto
Temple
Priest
Wicca
Circle, Grove
Priestess, Priest, Wiccan
Zoroastrianism
Thursday, April 23, 2009
How many generations from Jesus to Abraham?
41
42
Matthew 1:17
So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations. (14 x 3 = 42)
Matthew 1:2-16
(Leaving out the begats.)
Jesus 1
Joseph 2
Jacob 3
Matthan 4
Eleazar 5
Eliud 6
Achim 7
Zadok 8
Azor 9
Eliakim 10
Abiud 11
Zarubbabel 12
Shealtiel 13
Jachoniah 14
Josiah 15
Amos 16
Manasseh 17
Hezekiah 18
Ahaz 19
Jotham 20
Uzziah 21
Joram 22
Jehoshaphat 23
Asaph 24
Abijah 25
Rehoboam 26
Solomon 27
David 28
Jesse 29
Obed 30
Boaz 31
Salmon 32
Nohshon 33
Amminadab 34
Aram 35
Hezron 36
Perez 37
Judah 38
Jacob 39
Isaac 40
Abraham 41
42
Matthew 1:17
So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations. (14 x 3 = 42)
Matthew 1:2-16
(Leaving out the begats.)
Jesus 1
Joseph 2
Jacob 3
Matthan 4
Eleazar 5
Eliud 6
Achim 7
Zadok 8
Azor 9
Eliakim 10
Abiud 11
Zarubbabel 12
Shealtiel 13
Jachoniah 14
Josiah 15
Amos 16
Manasseh 17
Hezekiah 18
Ahaz 19
Jotham 20
Uzziah 21
Joram 22
Jehoshaphat 23
Asaph 24
Abijah 25
Rehoboam 26
Solomon 27
David 28
Jesse 29
Obed 30
Boaz 31
Salmon 32
Nohshon 33
Amminadab 34
Aram 35
Hezron 36
Perez 37
Judah 38
Jacob 39
Isaac 40
Abraham 41
What Did Jesus Do
Of Abraham's Children and Stones
And do not presume to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father,' for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. - Mat 3:9 ESVWhat amazing words these must have been to the Jews hearing them. They were the descendants of Abraham, didn't that mean anything anymore? Why shouldn't we say to ourselves “We have Abraham as our Father”? Why would God raise up Children of Abraham from stones?All these questions and more must have been going through the minds of those who first heard them, whether the Pharisees in Matthew, or the entire crowd in Luke (3:8). These words made no sense, and they certainly do not make sense to most who read them today. The problem is that the Jews didn't (and still don't) understand what it means to be a child of Abraham. Most Christians today are equally unaware of what makes a person Abraham's descendant. It is obviously not your bloodline, if it were so the Jews would certainly have been able to say to themselves “We have Abraham as our father.” They would have been correct.Yet this sentence spoken by John the Baptist so many years ago implies that it is not bloodline that makes one a son of Abraham. In John 8, Jesus confirms this as well. When the Jews assert there that Abraham is their father, he tells them that if that were so “you would be doing what he did.” But what was it that Abraham did, how was Abraham made righteous? By faith, trusting in God was Abraham made righteous. By faith Abraham became God's son (Gen 15:6, Gal 3:6).The Jews, especially the Pharisees and their followers, were not able to say Abraham is their father because they had no Faith. They looked to themselves, their physical ancestors and their works as their salvation and the way to please God. They trusted the law, not the promise.If the Jews are no longer the children of Abraham, who in fact does that title belong to? It belongs to all those who have faith in Jesus Christ. Through faith, we have become the heirs of Abraham. (Rom 4). All who have faith are children of Abraham, and all of us were raised up to this status from stones, so to speak.Twice in speaking to the faithless descendants of Abraham, Ezekiel tells them that God will remove their Heart of stone and replace it with a Heart of Flesh. (11:19, 36:26) Even now, anyone without faith has a hardened heart, a Heart of stone. (Rom 2:5, Eph 4:18) Even now, the only solution is for God to create in us a clean heart, a Heart of Flesh, not stone. Only through this new Heart, which is completely the gift of God, is there life, salvation, and peace.God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. - Mat 3:9 ESVGod is not only able to raise up Children for Abraham from stones, but he does. Every conversion is a miraculous event in which a child of Abraham is raised from a spiritually dead stone. Every conversion is a heart transplant in which we receive a new heart of flesh, and our dead heart of stone with all of its sins and filth is given to Jesus Christ to bear. Jesus took it all on himself, and suffered the punishment we deserve. My old dead heart was crucified and buried with Him, a new man united with Christ arose.
And do not presume to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father,' for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. - Mat 3:9 ESVWhat amazing words these must have been to the Jews hearing them. They were the descendants of Abraham, didn't that mean anything anymore? Why shouldn't we say to ourselves “We have Abraham as our Father”? Why would God raise up Children of Abraham from stones?All these questions and more must have been going through the minds of those who first heard them, whether the Pharisees in Matthew, or the entire crowd in Luke (3:8). These words made no sense, and they certainly do not make sense to most who read them today. The problem is that the Jews didn't (and still don't) understand what it means to be a child of Abraham. Most Christians today are equally unaware of what makes a person Abraham's descendant. It is obviously not your bloodline, if it were so the Jews would certainly have been able to say to themselves “We have Abraham as our father.” They would have been correct.Yet this sentence spoken by John the Baptist so many years ago implies that it is not bloodline that makes one a son of Abraham. In John 8, Jesus confirms this as well. When the Jews assert there that Abraham is their father, he tells them that if that were so “you would be doing what he did.” But what was it that Abraham did, how was Abraham made righteous? By faith, trusting in God was Abraham made righteous. By faith Abraham became God's son (Gen 15:6, Gal 3:6).The Jews, especially the Pharisees and their followers, were not able to say Abraham is their father because they had no Faith. They looked to themselves, their physical ancestors and their works as their salvation and the way to please God. They trusted the law, not the promise.If the Jews are no longer the children of Abraham, who in fact does that title belong to? It belongs to all those who have faith in Jesus Christ. Through faith, we have become the heirs of Abraham. (Rom 4). All who have faith are children of Abraham, and all of us were raised up to this status from stones, so to speak.Twice in speaking to the faithless descendants of Abraham, Ezekiel tells them that God will remove their Heart of stone and replace it with a Heart of Flesh. (11:19, 36:26) Even now, anyone without faith has a hardened heart, a Heart of stone. (Rom 2:5, Eph 4:18) Even now, the only solution is for God to create in us a clean heart, a Heart of Flesh, not stone. Only through this new Heart, which is completely the gift of God, is there life, salvation, and peace.God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. - Mat 3:9 ESVGod is not only able to raise up Children for Abraham from stones, but he does. Every conversion is a miraculous event in which a child of Abraham is raised from a spiritually dead stone. Every conversion is a heart transplant in which we receive a new heart of flesh, and our dead heart of stone with all of its sins and filth is given to Jesus Christ to bear. Jesus took it all on himself, and suffered the punishment we deserve. My old dead heart was crucified and buried with Him, a new man united with Christ arose.
Before Abraham - John 8:56-59
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Home > Devotionals > What Jesus Did! > June 27
Before Abraham - John 8:56-59
Your father Abraham was very happy that he would see the day when I came. He saw that day and was happy." The Jews said to Jesus, "What? You have never seen Abraham ! You are not even 50 years old!" Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth. Before Abraham was born, I AM. " When Jesus said this, the people picked up rocks to throw at him. But Jesus hid, and then he left the temple area. (ERV) Full Text
Key Thought
Like so many other things Jesus says in this chapter, this claim is audacious and bold. It is also true. Jesus didn't just happen on the scene when he came to earth; he existed before any created thing. That's why it is so important that we pay attention to him. He not only sacrificed himself for us, but he left heaven's glory to come and live with us and show us God's love.
Today's Prayer
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Today's Verses in Context
The Jews answered, "We say you are a Samaritan. We say a demon is making you crazy! Are we not right when we say these things?" Jesus answered, "I have no demon in me. I give honor to my Father. But you give no honor to me. I am not trying to get honor for myself. There is One who wants this honor for me. He is the judge. I tell you the truth. If a person continues to obey my teaching, then that person will never die." The Jews said to Jesus, "Now we know that you have a demon in you! Even Abraham and the prophets died. But you say, 'The person that obeys my teaching will never die.' Do you think you are greater than our father Abraham? Abraham died. And the prophets died too. Who do you think you are?" Jesus answered, "If I give honor to myself, then that honor is worth nothing. The One that gives me honor is my Father. And you say that he is your God. But you don't really know him. I know him. If I said I did not know him, then I would be a liar like you are liars. But I do know him. And I obey what he says. Your father Abraham was very happy that he would see the day when I came. He saw that day and was happy." The Jews said to Jesus, "What? You have never seen Abraham ! You are not even 50 years old!" Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth. Before Abraham was born, I AM. " When Jesus said this, the people picked up rocks to throw at him. But Jesus hid, and then he left the temple area.
— John 8:48-59 (ERV)
Easy-to-Read Version copyright © 2001 by World Bible Translation Center. All rights reserved.
Before the world began, the Word was there. The Word was there with God. The Word was God. He was there with God in the beginning. All things were made through him (the Word). Nothing was made without him. In him there was life. That life was light (understanding, goodness) for the people of the world.John 1:1-4 (ERV)
No person can see God. But Jesus is exactly like God. Jesus is ruler over all the things that have been made. Through his power all things were made--things in heaven and on earth, things seen and not seen, all {spiritual} powers, authorities, lords, and rulers. All things were made through Christ and for Christ. Christ was there before anything was made. And all things continue because of him.Colossians 1:15-17 (ERV)
In your lives you must think and act like Christ Jesus. Christ himself was like God in everything. Christ was equal with God. But Christ did not think that being equal with God was something that he must keep. He gave up his place with God and agreed to be like a servant. He was born to be a man and became like a servant. And when he was living as a man, he humbled himself by being fully obedient to God. He obeyed even when that caused him to die. And he died on a cross. Christ obeyed God, so God raised Christ to the most important place. God made the name of Christ greater than every other name. God did this because he wants every person to bow for the name of Jesus. Every person in heaven, on the earth, and under the earth will bow. Every person will confess (say), "Jesus Christ is Lord (Master)." When they say this, it will bring glory to God the Father.Philippians 2:5-11 (ERV)
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King David: Man or Myth?
by Mario Seiglie
Suddenly, as David and his men finished climbing the last hill, there it was, the mighty fortress of Jebus, later called Jerusalem. It was not then under Israelite control, but, as in the days of Joshua, the city was a stronghold of the Jebusites.
What chance did David have of conquering the city? Perhaps the reply of the Jebusites can give the best indication. They taunted him: "'You shall not come in here; but the blind and the lame will repel you,' thinking, 'David cannot come in here'" (2 Samuel 5:6). They were so confident of their impenetrable stronghold, they shouted to David they would not even put their best men on the walls to defend the city, but would man them with the weakest and most sickly among them.
Yet, as often happens in life and warfare, in their confidence, they overlooked a weak spot that would prove fatal. At the bottom of the hill of the city was a cave that had a natural spring inside. Since water was so vital, the Jebusites had dug a shaft downward to tap this water. David realized that, if someone could go up the shaft, he could secretly enter the city and open the doors. David said: "Whoever climbs up by way of the water shaft and defeats the Jebusites ... shall be chief and captain ... Then David dwelt in the stronghold, and called it the City of David ..." (2 Samuel 5:8, 9). The parallel account in 1 Chronicles 11:6 adds: "And Joab the son of Zeruiah went up first, and became chief."
David's soldiers conquered Jerusalem. Soon David brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, setting the stage for the construction of the temple under Solomon. In so doing, David gave his people a rallying point they have looked to for centuries.
Thus, around the year 1000 B.C., Jerusalem became Israel's capital and David its first king. This water shaft, which enabled David to capture the city, can still be seen by modern-day visitors.
In spite of the account of David's life and exploits recorded in the Bible, some critics doubt that King David actually existed. As one of them candidly admits, "I am not the only scholar who suspects that the figure of King David is about as historical as King Arthur" (Philip R. Davies, Biblical Archaeology Review, July-August, 1994, p. 55). Recently, however, archaeological discoveries have verified that David, king of Israel, was indeed a real historical figure.
In 1993 a fragment of a monument was found at the site of the ancient Israelite city of Dan that mentioned David and his dynasty dating to about 100 years after David's death. As Biblical Archaeology Review reports: "Avraham Biran and his team of archaeologists found a remarkable inscription from the 9th century [B.C.] that refers both to the 'House of David' and to the 'King of Israel.' This is the first time that the name David has been found in any ancient inscription outside the Bible. That the inscription refers not simply to a 'David' but to the House of David, the dynasty of the great Israelite king, is even more remarkable" (March-April, 1994, p. 26).
Then another mention of King David was found in a monument of about the same time. It is called the Moabite Stone or the Mesha Stela. Discovered in 1868, unfortunately it was broken into pieces and it has taken much time and effort to piece together the original words. In 1995 scholar Andre Lemaire finally put it all together and discovered the words "House of David." In line 31 of the Moabite Stone are the words "... the sheep of the land. And the house [of Da]vid dwelt in Horonen" (Biblical Archaeology Review, May-June, 1994, p. 33).
The article continues: "The recent discovery at Tel Dan of a fragment of a stela containing a reference to the 'House of David' (that is, the dynasty of David) is indeed sensational and deserves all the publicity it has received. The Aramaic inscription, dated to the ninth century [B.C.], was originally part of a victory monument erected at Dan, apparently by an enemy of both the 'King of Israel' (also referred to in the fragment) and the '[King of the] House of David.' The inscription easily establishes the importance of Israel and Judah on the international scene at this time-no doubt to the chagrin of those modern scholars who maintain that nothing in the Bible before the Babylonian exile can lay claim to any historical accuracy ... Nearly two years before the discovery of the Tel Dan fragment, I [Lemaire] concluded that the Mesha stela contains a reference to the 'House of David.' Now the Tel Dan fragment tends to support this conclusion" (ibid., pp. 31, 32). Slowly, as more excavations bring to light new material, the biblical record continues to gain solid historical backing. So far, archaeology has confirmed the existence of the following kings of Israel and Judah: Omri, Ahab, Jeroboam II, Jehu, Pekah, Hoshea, Ahaz, Hezekiah and Manasseh. Now David is also placed in this growing list of historically confirmed kings and no longer viewed as a myth. How Do we know that we love GodThe Bible states over and over again exactly how we are to demonstrate our love to God. The simple answer may surprise you!
by Lyle Welty
How do we know we genuinely love God? That probably seems like an odd question to most of us. Of course, we love God, and we just know that we love Him.
But is that good enough? Is it enough to just know and feel that we love God? Is anything else involved?
Actually, the Bible-God's inspired Word-is clear about how we show love to God. It is specific about what we are to do to demonstrate that love.
God created people to have a loving relationship with Him. God reveals Himself to us as our heavenly Father and calls us His sons and daughters, His very children. God desires a family relationship with us, with His showing love to us and our showing love to Him.
God is in the process of "bringing many sons to glory" so that He and mankind can ultimately be "of the same family" (Hebrews 2:10, 11, New International Version).
Mutually exclusive testaments?
Most people view this close, loving God-mankind relationship as an exclusively New Testament concept and think of the Old Testament as strictly a relationship of law and enforced obedience. But is this view accurate? Are love and obedience really two mutually exclusive concepts, as many seem to think?
To answer these questions we need to ask ourselves what kind of relationship has God always wanted with mankind.
A lawyer asked Jesus Christ a vital question: "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
Christ said to him, "What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?"
The lawyer quoted from the Ten Commandments: "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.'"
Jesus replied to him, "You have answered rightly; do this and you will live" (Luke 10:25-28).
As we just read, the man asked Jesus Christ, "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?" Eternal life was the issue. The man quoted two Old Testament scriptures, found in Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18. Christ's response may be surprising to some: He assured the man that he had given the correct answer and added, "Do this and you will live."
So, to gain eternal life, it is clear that we must love God. But what does that mean? Is love just a warm, nice feeling toward God, or is there more to it?
Love loves
Love can be a noun or a verb. I like to think of love as a verb, because love as an action word implies that something is happening, something is being done.
Love (the noun) requires that someone love (the verb). For example, if we love someone, we demonstrate our love by spending time with our loved one. We do things with and for that person. We visit him or her, go places together, talk to each other. We may make or buy gifts to demonstrate that we love and value that person. We show our love by our actions.
Since love requires action, by what action does God want us to demonstrate our love for Him? What does the Bible say about this? Some believe that in the Old Testament God focused only on obedience and law, but in the New Testament we are "under grace" and have only to "love God" in some vague way, supposing that obedience and love are mutually exclusive concepts. But can this be true?
In both Exodus 20:2 and Deuteronomy 5:6, God prefaces the Ten Commandments with a statement that demonstrates grace: "I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage," He said.
God focuses us on His loving act of undeserved mercy, deliverance, favor and pardon in His freeing the Israelites from slavery and establishing them as a new nation. He extended grace to them, doing something wonderful for them that they did not deserve.
In verses 9 and 10 of Deuteronomy 5, God says, "I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God . . . showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments" (emphasis added throughout). Here we see another example of grace, with God promising "mercy to thousands." We see that grace is built into the Ten Commandments.
Biblical theme of obedience
These passages begin a thread that is woven throughout the Bible. The Scriptures show repeatedly that loving God and keeping His commandments are inextricably connected; one describes the other. God says that we show love for Him by obedience, by keeping His commandments.
Let's notice some of the many examples that show the connection between love and commandment-keeping. In Deuteronomy 6:5, 6, God says, "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today [referring to the Ten Commandments, given in the previous chapter] shall be in your heart."
This is the verse the lawyer quoted to Christ that we referred to earlier. It says we love God with all our heart, soul and might by keeping "these words, which I command you." Those specific words were God's Ten Commandments. These words from the Bible clearly define loving God as obeying His commandments.
Deuteronomy 10:12, 13 summarizes the response God expects from Israel and all mankind. ". . . What does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for your good?"
This tells us clearly that we love God and serve Him by keeping His commandments, which He gave us for our benefit.
Deuteronomy 11:1 says, "Therefore you shall love the LORD your God, and keep His charge, His statutes, His judgments, and His commandments always." We love God by keeping His charge, His statutes, His judgments and His commandments.
The theme of loving God by keeping His commandments continues in verses 13 and 22. God says we are to "earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love the LORD your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul." We love Him when we "carefully keep all these commandments which I command you to do-to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, and to hold fast to Him . . ."
Deuteronomy 13:1-4 warns us about false prophets. Even if they can predict something that comes to pass, if they say we can disobey God and ignore His law, then God's people are to pay no attention to them. God says He proves and tests us "to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul" (verse 3).
How do we prove to God that we love Him? Continuing in the very next verse: "You shall walk after the LORD your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice, and you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him" (verse 4).
Love is expressed by doing what God says
Deuteronomy 30:6, 8 continues this theme of showing love by obedience to the commandments: "And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart [a prophecy of the coming of the Holy Spirit] and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul . . . And you will again obey the voice of the LORD and do all His commandments which I command you today."
Circumcising the heart (conversion of the mind as described in Romans 2:29), loving God and returning to God are evinced by keeping His commandments.
God says He will "rejoice over you . . . if you obey the voice of the LORD your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which are written in this Book of the Law, and if you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul . . ." (Deuteronomy 30:9, 10). "Turn[ing] to the LORD" is shown by keeping His commandments.
". . . I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, that you may live and multiply; and the LORD your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess" (verse 16). God tells us we are to love Him by keeping His commandments, and God promises blessings for our obedience.
The theme continues in the book of Joshua, where God tells His people to "take careful heed to do the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul" (Joshua 22:5).
Love flows both ways
Any healthy relationship of love is a two-way street, with love flowing both ways. In 1 John 4:19 we find why we should love God: "We love Him because He first loved us." John had earlier explained what he meant by God's earlier love for us: "In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another" (1 John 4:9-11).
Romans 5:8 gives other examples of ways God has proved His deep love for us: "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Jesus Christ made the ultimate sacrifice to prove God's love for us, long before we were capable of returning that love in any way.
The familiar passage in John 3:16 tells us: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."
But belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God means much more than just academic agreement. Belief (Greek pisteuo) means acting on knowledge: living one's life by faith, unswerving devotion and total obedience in the light of that knowledge.
Our God, His people
Jeremiah 31:3 talks of God's deep love for mankind: "The LORD has appeared of old to me, saying: 'Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.'" God has always had as His plan for human beings a loving relationship within His family. He describes it in eternal terms as "an everlasting love."
Verse 33 says that, in this loving family relationship, "I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people." His law is permanently planted in our hearts and minds to show us how to love Him as well as how to love each other.
We see this same theme of loving God and keeping His words continuing in the New Testament. John 14:21, 23 makes this clear: "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me . . . If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word . . ."
The New Testament defines love for God the same way as does the Old: "For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome" (1 John 5:3). God's law is not heavy, oppressive and burdensome. As we read earlier, it was given for the benefit of humankind.
God tells us repeatedly and clearly that we demonstrate our love for Him by keeping His commandments, and that has been His intent from the beginning. The commandments John discussed were not "new," but were "the word which you heard from the beginning" (1 John 2:7). God's law has been a law of love from the very beginning-from the creation (1 John 3:11).
Many other scriptures make it clear that keeping God's commandments is not something we can do by ourselves. As we repent and yield to Jesus Christ, God's Spirit enables us to allow Jesus Christ to live in us (Galatians 2:20), giving us the desire and capacity to love God and our neighbor.
In Luke 10:25-30, quoted earlier, a man asked Christ what he should do to gain eternal life. Jesus told him the correct answer is "love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind."
Love requires action, not just feelings. How do we know we love God? The consistent, clear, biblical answer is that we love God by keeping His commandments. GN
Suddenly, as David and his men finished climbing the last hill, there it was, the mighty fortress of Jebus, later called Jerusalem. It was not then under Israelite control, but, as in the days of Joshua, the city was a stronghold of the Jebusites.
What chance did David have of conquering the city? Perhaps the reply of the Jebusites can give the best indication. They taunted him: "'You shall not come in here; but the blind and the lame will repel you,' thinking, 'David cannot come in here'" (2 Samuel 5:6). They were so confident of their impenetrable stronghold, they shouted to David they would not even put their best men on the walls to defend the city, but would man them with the weakest and most sickly among them.
Yet, as often happens in life and warfare, in their confidence, they overlooked a weak spot that would prove fatal. At the bottom of the hill of the city was a cave that had a natural spring inside. Since water was so vital, the Jebusites had dug a shaft downward to tap this water. David realized that, if someone could go up the shaft, he could secretly enter the city and open the doors. David said: "Whoever climbs up by way of the water shaft and defeats the Jebusites ... shall be chief and captain ... Then David dwelt in the stronghold, and called it the City of David ..." (2 Samuel 5:8, 9). The parallel account in 1 Chronicles 11:6 adds: "And Joab the son of Zeruiah went up first, and became chief."
David's soldiers conquered Jerusalem. Soon David brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, setting the stage for the construction of the temple under Solomon. In so doing, David gave his people a rallying point they have looked to for centuries.
Thus, around the year 1000 B.C., Jerusalem became Israel's capital and David its first king. This water shaft, which enabled David to capture the city, can still be seen by modern-day visitors.
In spite of the account of David's life and exploits recorded in the Bible, some critics doubt that King David actually existed. As one of them candidly admits, "I am not the only scholar who suspects that the figure of King David is about as historical as King Arthur" (Philip R. Davies, Biblical Archaeology Review, July-August, 1994, p. 55). Recently, however, archaeological discoveries have verified that David, king of Israel, was indeed a real historical figure.
In 1993 a fragment of a monument was found at the site of the ancient Israelite city of Dan that mentioned David and his dynasty dating to about 100 years after David's death. As Biblical Archaeology Review reports: "Avraham Biran and his team of archaeologists found a remarkable inscription from the 9th century [B.C.] that refers both to the 'House of David' and to the 'King of Israel.' This is the first time that the name David has been found in any ancient inscription outside the Bible. That the inscription refers not simply to a 'David' but to the House of David, the dynasty of the great Israelite king, is even more remarkable" (March-April, 1994, p. 26).
Then another mention of King David was found in a monument of about the same time. It is called the Moabite Stone or the Mesha Stela. Discovered in 1868, unfortunately it was broken into pieces and it has taken much time and effort to piece together the original words. In 1995 scholar Andre Lemaire finally put it all together and discovered the words "House of David." In line 31 of the Moabite Stone are the words "... the sheep of the land. And the house [of Da]vid dwelt in Horonen" (Biblical Archaeology Review, May-June, 1994, p. 33).
The article continues: "The recent discovery at Tel Dan of a fragment of a stela containing a reference to the 'House of David' (that is, the dynasty of David) is indeed sensational and deserves all the publicity it has received. The Aramaic inscription, dated to the ninth century [B.C.], was originally part of a victory monument erected at Dan, apparently by an enemy of both the 'King of Israel' (also referred to in the fragment) and the '[King of the] House of David.' The inscription easily establishes the importance of Israel and Judah on the international scene at this time-no doubt to the chagrin of those modern scholars who maintain that nothing in the Bible before the Babylonian exile can lay claim to any historical accuracy ... Nearly two years before the discovery of the Tel Dan fragment, I [Lemaire] concluded that the Mesha stela contains a reference to the 'House of David.' Now the Tel Dan fragment tends to support this conclusion" (ibid., pp. 31, 32). Slowly, as more excavations bring to light new material, the biblical record continues to gain solid historical backing. So far, archaeology has confirmed the existence of the following kings of Israel and Judah: Omri, Ahab, Jeroboam II, Jehu, Pekah, Hoshea, Ahaz, Hezekiah and Manasseh. Now David is also placed in this growing list of historically confirmed kings and no longer viewed as a myth. How Do we know that we love GodThe Bible states over and over again exactly how we are to demonstrate our love to God. The simple answer may surprise you!
by Lyle Welty
How do we know we genuinely love God? That probably seems like an odd question to most of us. Of course, we love God, and we just know that we love Him.
But is that good enough? Is it enough to just know and feel that we love God? Is anything else involved?
Actually, the Bible-God's inspired Word-is clear about how we show love to God. It is specific about what we are to do to demonstrate that love.
God created people to have a loving relationship with Him. God reveals Himself to us as our heavenly Father and calls us His sons and daughters, His very children. God desires a family relationship with us, with His showing love to us and our showing love to Him.
God is in the process of "bringing many sons to glory" so that He and mankind can ultimately be "of the same family" (Hebrews 2:10, 11, New International Version).
Mutually exclusive testaments?
Most people view this close, loving God-mankind relationship as an exclusively New Testament concept and think of the Old Testament as strictly a relationship of law and enforced obedience. But is this view accurate? Are love and obedience really two mutually exclusive concepts, as many seem to think?
To answer these questions we need to ask ourselves what kind of relationship has God always wanted with mankind.
A lawyer asked Jesus Christ a vital question: "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
Christ said to him, "What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?"
The lawyer quoted from the Ten Commandments: "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.'"
Jesus replied to him, "You have answered rightly; do this and you will live" (Luke 10:25-28).
As we just read, the man asked Jesus Christ, "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?" Eternal life was the issue. The man quoted two Old Testament scriptures, found in Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18. Christ's response may be surprising to some: He assured the man that he had given the correct answer and added, "Do this and you will live."
So, to gain eternal life, it is clear that we must love God. But what does that mean? Is love just a warm, nice feeling toward God, or is there more to it?
Love loves
Love can be a noun or a verb. I like to think of love as a verb, because love as an action word implies that something is happening, something is being done.
Love (the noun) requires that someone love (the verb). For example, if we love someone, we demonstrate our love by spending time with our loved one. We do things with and for that person. We visit him or her, go places together, talk to each other. We may make or buy gifts to demonstrate that we love and value that person. We show our love by our actions.
Since love requires action, by what action does God want us to demonstrate our love for Him? What does the Bible say about this? Some believe that in the Old Testament God focused only on obedience and law, but in the New Testament we are "under grace" and have only to "love God" in some vague way, supposing that obedience and love are mutually exclusive concepts. But can this be true?
In both Exodus 20:2 and Deuteronomy 5:6, God prefaces the Ten Commandments with a statement that demonstrates grace: "I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage," He said.
God focuses us on His loving act of undeserved mercy, deliverance, favor and pardon in His freeing the Israelites from slavery and establishing them as a new nation. He extended grace to them, doing something wonderful for them that they did not deserve.
In verses 9 and 10 of Deuteronomy 5, God says, "I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God . . . showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments" (emphasis added throughout). Here we see another example of grace, with God promising "mercy to thousands." We see that grace is built into the Ten Commandments.
Biblical theme of obedience
These passages begin a thread that is woven throughout the Bible. The Scriptures show repeatedly that loving God and keeping His commandments are inextricably connected; one describes the other. God says that we show love for Him by obedience, by keeping His commandments.
Let's notice some of the many examples that show the connection between love and commandment-keeping. In Deuteronomy 6:5, 6, God says, "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today [referring to the Ten Commandments, given in the previous chapter] shall be in your heart."
This is the verse the lawyer quoted to Christ that we referred to earlier. It says we love God with all our heart, soul and might by keeping "these words, which I command you." Those specific words were God's Ten Commandments. These words from the Bible clearly define loving God as obeying His commandments.
Deuteronomy 10:12, 13 summarizes the response God expects from Israel and all mankind. ". . . What does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for your good?"
This tells us clearly that we love God and serve Him by keeping His commandments, which He gave us for our benefit.
Deuteronomy 11:1 says, "Therefore you shall love the LORD your God, and keep His charge, His statutes, His judgments, and His commandments always." We love God by keeping His charge, His statutes, His judgments and His commandments.
The theme of loving God by keeping His commandments continues in verses 13 and 22. God says we are to "earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love the LORD your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul." We love Him when we "carefully keep all these commandments which I command you to do-to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, and to hold fast to Him . . ."
Deuteronomy 13:1-4 warns us about false prophets. Even if they can predict something that comes to pass, if they say we can disobey God and ignore His law, then God's people are to pay no attention to them. God says He proves and tests us "to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul" (verse 3).
How do we prove to God that we love Him? Continuing in the very next verse: "You shall walk after the LORD your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice, and you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him" (verse 4).
Love is expressed by doing what God says
Deuteronomy 30:6, 8 continues this theme of showing love by obedience to the commandments: "And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart [a prophecy of the coming of the Holy Spirit] and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul . . . And you will again obey the voice of the LORD and do all His commandments which I command you today."
Circumcising the heart (conversion of the mind as described in Romans 2:29), loving God and returning to God are evinced by keeping His commandments.
God says He will "rejoice over you . . . if you obey the voice of the LORD your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which are written in this Book of the Law, and if you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul . . ." (Deuteronomy 30:9, 10). "Turn[ing] to the LORD" is shown by keeping His commandments.
". . . I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, that you may live and multiply; and the LORD your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess" (verse 16). God tells us we are to love Him by keeping His commandments, and God promises blessings for our obedience.
The theme continues in the book of Joshua, where God tells His people to "take careful heed to do the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul" (Joshua 22:5).
Love flows both ways
Any healthy relationship of love is a two-way street, with love flowing both ways. In 1 John 4:19 we find why we should love God: "We love Him because He first loved us." John had earlier explained what he meant by God's earlier love for us: "In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another" (1 John 4:9-11).
Romans 5:8 gives other examples of ways God has proved His deep love for us: "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Jesus Christ made the ultimate sacrifice to prove God's love for us, long before we were capable of returning that love in any way.
The familiar passage in John 3:16 tells us: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."
But belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God means much more than just academic agreement. Belief (Greek pisteuo) means acting on knowledge: living one's life by faith, unswerving devotion and total obedience in the light of that knowledge.
Our God, His people
Jeremiah 31:3 talks of God's deep love for mankind: "The LORD has appeared of old to me, saying: 'Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.'" God has always had as His plan for human beings a loving relationship within His family. He describes it in eternal terms as "an everlasting love."
Verse 33 says that, in this loving family relationship, "I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people." His law is permanently planted in our hearts and minds to show us how to love Him as well as how to love each other.
We see this same theme of loving God and keeping His words continuing in the New Testament. John 14:21, 23 makes this clear: "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me . . . If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word . . ."
The New Testament defines love for God the same way as does the Old: "For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome" (1 John 5:3). God's law is not heavy, oppressive and burdensome. As we read earlier, it was given for the benefit of humankind.
God tells us repeatedly and clearly that we demonstrate our love for Him by keeping His commandments, and that has been His intent from the beginning. The commandments John discussed were not "new," but were "the word which you heard from the beginning" (1 John 2:7). God's law has been a law of love from the very beginning-from the creation (1 John 3:11).
Many other scriptures make it clear that keeping God's commandments is not something we can do by ourselves. As we repent and yield to Jesus Christ, God's Spirit enables us to allow Jesus Christ to live in us (Galatians 2:20), giving us the desire and capacity to love God and our neighbor.
In Luke 10:25-30, quoted earlier, a man asked Christ what he should do to gain eternal life. Jesus told him the correct answer is "love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind."
Love requires action, not just feelings. How do we know we love God? The consistent, clear, biblical answer is that we love God by keeping His commandments. GN
Bible Study King David
King David
by Wayne Blank David, from the Hebrew word pronounced daw-veed, meaning beloved, is one of the best known people of all of the Scriptures (see Old Testament Fact File and New Testament Fact File). David was of the tribe of Judah (see Children of Jacob and The Chosen People), and is a direct physical ancestor of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:1-17)
David was born about 1040 B.C., the eighth and youngest son of Jesse of Bethlehem (see also Ruth). Little is recorded of David's parents - Jesse was apparently of modest means, and there is no record of David's mother's name.
David's appearance is not known in great detail, however we do know that he was described as handsome, had red hair (i.e. "ruddy"), and was relatively short in stature (1 Samuel 16:12, 17:42).
David was a Shepherd, which out of necessity at the time also taught him fighting skills when defending the flocks from predatory wild animals, including lions and bears (1 Samuel 17:34-35). In quieter times, he also developed his musical skills with the flute and harp.
After God rejected the foolish and corrupt Saul, Israel's first king, He sent Samuel to Bethlehem to anoint David as the successor (1 Samuel 16:1-13). The transition would be gradual however. David returned to caring for the sheep, but "The Spirit of The Lord came upon David from that day forward," (1 Samuel 16:13) and "The Spirit of The Lord departed from Saul" (1 Samuel 16:14).
David served King Saul from time to time as a musician and armor bearer (1 Samuel 16:21-23). It is quite certain that Saul did not yet know that his young harp player would soon take his place as king. If he had, he would have killed him - just as he actually tried to do over and over again later.
Then followed one of the most famous incidents of The Bible - David And Goliath (1 Samuel 17:1-58) in the valley of Elah, about 15 miles / 24 kilometers southwest of Bethlehem. David's defeat of Goliath put the Philistines to flight and resulted in a great victory for Israel. The heroic act made David a favorite of the people, much to the disfavor and jealousy of Saul (1 Samuel 18:6-16). From then on, Saul wanted David killed, and personally made a number of attempts (1 Samuel chapters 18-30).
When Saul made his first attempt to kill David, the young shepherd fled to Samuel in Ramah where he was given refuge for a time among the prophets (1 Samuel 19:12-18). Some are of the opinion that David composed the 6th, 7th and 11th Psalms while he was there.
When Saul discovered David's whereabouts, David fled again, this time to Nob (1 Samuel 21:1-9), and then to Gath among the Philistines. The Philistine king refused him, so David continued over to Adullam (1 Samuel 22:1-4, 1 Chronicles 12:8-18) where 400 men joined him and accepted him as their leader.
In the mean time, upon the orders of Saul, Doeg the Edomite murdered 85 priests and their families who had innocently given refuge to David at Nob. The news of the massacre reached David by the sole survivor, Abiathar, a son of the high priest Ahimelech (1 Samuel 22:11-23)
For a while, David found himself in the rather bizarre situation of fighting Saul's enemies and fleeing Saul at the same time. David and his men drove the Philistines from Keilah (1 Samuel 23:1-14) and then moved to the hill country of Judah to escape Saul. While there, David met with Jonathan, Saul's son, who had been, and always remained, a loyal friend with David (1 Samuel 23:16-18). Jonathan was killed in battle with the Philistines not long after.
Although Saul would readily have killed David, David refused to lift his sword against Saul. David actually saved Saul's life on occasion during all the time that Saul was hunting him (1 Samuel 24:10, 26:9). David remained a fugitive until Saul was killed in battle against the Philistines near Mount Gilboa (1 Samuel 31:1-6)
Upon Saul's death, David went to Hebron where he was anointed as king of Judah, according to The Lord's instructions, at about age 30 (2 Samuel 2:1-4). A seven and a half year civil war followed between the forces that supported David, and those that supported Ish-bosheth, Saul's only surviving son, for the kingship of all Israel. The military and political situation grew steadily in favor of David however, and when Ish-bosheth was assassinated, David was anointed king over all Israel (2 Samuel 4:1-12, 5:1-5).
David then moved his capital from Hebron to Jebus, an earlier name for Jerusalem: "The king and his men marched to Jerusalem to attack the Jebusites, who lived there. The Jebusites said to David, "You will not get in here; even the blind and the lame can ward you off." They thought, "David cannot get in here." Nevertheless, David captured the fortress of Zion, the City of David." (2 Samuel 5:6-7 NIV)
David then brought The Ark Of The Covenant to the new capital city of Jerusalem (2 Samuel chapter 6) (in illustration above) from the house of Abinadab (2 Samuel 6:3) at Kirjath-jearim, about 7 miles / 11 kilometers from Jerusalem, where it had been for many years. It was during this movement that The Lord put Uzzah to death for touching The Ark (only the Levites were permitted to touch it). David then became afraid to have The Ark in the City of David, so he left it in the house of Obed-Edom, a Philistine from Gath (2 Samuel 6:9-11). Three months later, David brought The Ark to Jerusalem where it was placed in a new tabernacle that David set up for it. It had been about seventy years since The Ark had been in the original Tabernacle In The Wilderness (see also What Happened To The Tabernacle?).
David's rise to greatness was characterized by great territorial gains for Israel (2 Samuel 8:1-14). Within a relatively short period of time, he ruled from The Nile River in Egypt to the Euphrates River in the The Tigris-Euphrates Valley (2 Samuel 8:3-13) (see also Solomon's Kingdom).
As has happened with so many of the great, David's success was focused too heavily on material gains, and it corrupted him. His committing of adultery with Bathsheba, and the murder of her husband Uriah in an attempt to cover it up was perhaps the darkest event of his life. David truly repented of it, and God did forgive him.
David's troubles were far from over however. His many wives and children were constantly in fierce competition with each other within the family. One of David's sons, Amnon, assaulted his step sister Tamar, for which the girl's brother Absalom killed him. Absalom later attempted to take over the kingdom from his father David which triggered a civil war.
Despite his human faults, David was always a dedicated and repentant man of God who served God's purpose in that stage of Bible History. After a reign of forty years and six months (2 Samuel 5:5, 1 Chronicles 3:4) David died at the age of seventy, "and was buried in the city of David." (1 Kings 2:10-11)
Fact Finder: Which of David's sons succeeded him as king of Israel?1 Kings 2:12See also Solomon
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About king David
King David of Ancient Israel
Long before Christ was born, the ancient kingdom of Israel was ruled by a king called David
King David reigned for many years in Israel from his capital, Jerusalem. The City of David remains to this day and remains of the old buildings can be seen.
The Golden Age of Israel
David, the son of Jesse and descendant of Ruth, became king of Israel after the death of the rebellious Saul, and thus began the golden age of Israel.
This powerful king wisely governed the tribes of Israel, forging them into a united nation. God blessed this man to be a valiant soldier, a great military strategist, an able administrator, a diplomat, a composer, a musician and king.
He extended Israel’s lands in the north (1 Chron. 18:3, 14), triumphing over Israel’s enemies the Canaanites and the Philistines. Prosperity followed, which is confirmed today by archaeology.
“The reign of David marks — politically speaking — Israel’s golden age. A power vacuum in both Egypt and Mesopotamia made it possible for the tribes that had entered Canaan under Joshua a few centuries earlier to become a mighty nation... David was king of an area extending from the Red Sea to the Euphrates” (The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Eerdmans, 1982. Vol. II, p. 915).
David was originally based in Hebron in southern Judah, but when all 13 tribes of Israel accepted his rulership he needed a central location from which to govern. An ideal place was on the northern border of Judah, the city of Jebus, also called Jerusalem (City of Peace), but the Jebusites (Canaanites) held the city (1 Chron. 11:4).
The city was built on a hill and seemed inpenetrable. But David found a way to enter the city, via a water shaft. He said that whoever could enter the city would become the commander of his army, and Joab the son of Zeruiah went up the shaft and thus David conquered the city, and called it the City of David (1 Chron. 11:6-7).
On Mount Moriah, next to the city, he moved the Ark of the Covenant, and there his son Solomon later built the first temple.
Goliath
Earlier in life, before becoming king, David accomplished a great victory over the Philistine enemies during the time of king Saul. At age 17, he was summoned by King Saul to the battlefield to play music for Saul. Meanwhile the giant Philistine Goliath taunted the Israelites and dared them to send out their strongest soldier to do battle, a one-on-one battle to prove which side was the strongest. Of course, Goliath, being about 320 cm tall, had no doubts he would win.
When David, son of Jesse, heard Goliath cursing the God of Israel, he asked: “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?”
Although he had never been a soldier, David was so shocked to hear Goliath’s insults and the lack of action by the Israelites that he was moved to do something. He approached Saul and recounted how he had killed a lion and a bear that had threatened his family’s sheep, “and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God... The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine” (1 Samuel 17:36).
Saul offered David his armour, but it was too big and heavy for David. So he went out to battle with his sling, some pebbles and his staff. When Goliath saw how small young David was, he mocked him, saying “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks? ...Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!” (1 Samuel 17:43-44).
David’s response: “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel” (verses 45-46).
David rushed forward, took a stone out of his bag, and slung it at Goliath. It struck the giant’s forehead and he fell over, and David then took Goliath’s sword and cut off his head. The stunned Philistines then fled as the Israelites routed them.
David Anointed as King
Earlier, the prophet Samuel had anointed David, youngest son of Jesse, to be king after Saul died. Saul was impressed by David and had him work for him as his musician and as a soldier. Eventually though, Saul was jealous of David and tried to kill him. David fled to the Philistines and others who did not like Saul joined him. At one point, David was hiding in a cave at En-Gedi (by the Dead Sea), when Saul entered the cave to relieve himself. David had the opportunity to kill king Saul and take the throne, but David refrained, because his character was so strong. He was a man after God’s heart (Acts 13:22).
David refused to kill Saul on numerous occasions, despite his army chiefs suggesting he take over right away by killing Saul. When Saul finally died in battle, David was sad, but he knew his destiny and returned to Judah where he was made king over Judah. Eventually the other tribes of Israel accepted him and he ruled the whole nation.
David did much more than all this of course, and you can read for yourself about his life in the Bible, especially in 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings and 1 Chronicles. He was also an ancestor of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:1), and today the Royal Family of England are also descended from him. Queen Elizabeth II is of the House of David, of the tribe of Judah. Her throne in London will eventually be taken over by the Son of David, Jesus Christ the Messiah, when He returns to the earth in power and glory (Revelation 11:15; 19:11-16). What a wonderful future we have in store with the Kingdom of God ruling the earth rather than man-made governments and kingdoms which do little to improve the standards of living for all mankind.
Written by David King, 25 October 1998. Photograph by David King, 8 October 1998, taken in the Tower of David Museum in Jerusalem. ©1998 David King.
Click here to see the Lineage of Adam, to King David, the Kings of Israel, through Irish, Scottish and English Royalty, to H.M. Queen Elizabeth II
Travelog of Israel and Jordan, 1998
Travelog of Israel, 2001
Long before Christ was born, the ancient kingdom of Israel was ruled by a king called David
King David reigned for many years in Israel from his capital, Jerusalem. The City of David remains to this day and remains of the old buildings can be seen.
The Golden Age of Israel
David, the son of Jesse and descendant of Ruth, became king of Israel after the death of the rebellious Saul, and thus began the golden age of Israel.
This powerful king wisely governed the tribes of Israel, forging them into a united nation. God blessed this man to be a valiant soldier, a great military strategist, an able administrator, a diplomat, a composer, a musician and king.
He extended Israel’s lands in the north (1 Chron. 18:3, 14), triumphing over Israel’s enemies the Canaanites and the Philistines. Prosperity followed, which is confirmed today by archaeology.
“The reign of David marks — politically speaking — Israel’s golden age. A power vacuum in both Egypt and Mesopotamia made it possible for the tribes that had entered Canaan under Joshua a few centuries earlier to become a mighty nation... David was king of an area extending from the Red Sea to the Euphrates” (The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Eerdmans, 1982. Vol. II, p. 915).
David was originally based in Hebron in southern Judah, but when all 13 tribes of Israel accepted his rulership he needed a central location from which to govern. An ideal place was on the northern border of Judah, the city of Jebus, also called Jerusalem (City of Peace), but the Jebusites (Canaanites) held the city (1 Chron. 11:4).
The city was built on a hill and seemed inpenetrable. But David found a way to enter the city, via a water shaft. He said that whoever could enter the city would become the commander of his army, and Joab the son of Zeruiah went up the shaft and thus David conquered the city, and called it the City of David (1 Chron. 11:6-7).
On Mount Moriah, next to the city, he moved the Ark of the Covenant, and there his son Solomon later built the first temple.
Goliath
Earlier in life, before becoming king, David accomplished a great victory over the Philistine enemies during the time of king Saul. At age 17, he was summoned by King Saul to the battlefield to play music for Saul. Meanwhile the giant Philistine Goliath taunted the Israelites and dared them to send out their strongest soldier to do battle, a one-on-one battle to prove which side was the strongest. Of course, Goliath, being about 320 cm tall, had no doubts he would win.
When David, son of Jesse, heard Goliath cursing the God of Israel, he asked: “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?”
Although he had never been a soldier, David was so shocked to hear Goliath’s insults and the lack of action by the Israelites that he was moved to do something. He approached Saul and recounted how he had killed a lion and a bear that had threatened his family’s sheep, “and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God... The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine” (1 Samuel 17:36).
Saul offered David his armour, but it was too big and heavy for David. So he went out to battle with his sling, some pebbles and his staff. When Goliath saw how small young David was, he mocked him, saying “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks? ...Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!” (1 Samuel 17:43-44).
David’s response: “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel” (verses 45-46).
David rushed forward, took a stone out of his bag, and slung it at Goliath. It struck the giant’s forehead and he fell over, and David then took Goliath’s sword and cut off his head. The stunned Philistines then fled as the Israelites routed them.
David Anointed as King
Earlier, the prophet Samuel had anointed David, youngest son of Jesse, to be king after Saul died. Saul was impressed by David and had him work for him as his musician and as a soldier. Eventually though, Saul was jealous of David and tried to kill him. David fled to the Philistines and others who did not like Saul joined him. At one point, David was hiding in a cave at En-Gedi (by the Dead Sea), when Saul entered the cave to relieve himself. David had the opportunity to kill king Saul and take the throne, but David refrained, because his character was so strong. He was a man after God’s heart (Acts 13:22).
David refused to kill Saul on numerous occasions, despite his army chiefs suggesting he take over right away by killing Saul. When Saul finally died in battle, David was sad, but he knew his destiny and returned to Judah where he was made king over Judah. Eventually the other tribes of Israel accepted him and he ruled the whole nation.
David did much more than all this of course, and you can read for yourself about his life in the Bible, especially in 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings and 1 Chronicles. He was also an ancestor of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:1), and today the Royal Family of England are also descended from him. Queen Elizabeth II is of the House of David, of the tribe of Judah. Her throne in London will eventually be taken over by the Son of David, Jesus Christ the Messiah, when He returns to the earth in power and glory (Revelation 11:15; 19:11-16). What a wonderful future we have in store with the Kingdom of God ruling the earth rather than man-made governments and kingdoms which do little to improve the standards of living for all mankind.
Written by David King, 25 October 1998. Photograph by David King, 8 October 1998, taken in the Tower of David Museum in Jerusalem. ©1998 David King.
Click here to see the Lineage of Adam, to King David, the Kings of Israel, through Irish, Scottish and English Royalty, to H.M. Queen Elizabeth II
Travelog of Israel and Jordan, 1998
Travelog of Israel, 2001
The Story of Abraham and Sarah
Children's Version) Once there was a man named Abram. One day the Lord came to talk to Abram, and Abram asked, "Who will have all my things when I die".
God promised Abram and his wife Sarai that one day they would be parents, even though they were old and had no children.
God wasn't sure that Abram understood. So that night He took him outside, and said, "Do you see all the stars that are in the sky"? When Abram looked up, the whole night sky was full of stars, so many in fact that he would never be able to count them. Then God said, "That is how many children you will have".
Quite a few years later when Abram was ninety-nine years old (older than even your grandparents) the Lord decided to change Abram's name to Abraham, which means "father of many." He also changed Sarai's name to Sarah.
God told them again that they would be parents and that they would have a boy. This time Abraham laughed so hard he fell on his face! It was hard to believe that he and Sarah would have a child in their old age.
One day three visitors came to Abraham's house. He hurried to meet them. "May I get you something to eat and drink?" Abraham asked. "Please come in and join us, and have a rest on the couch."
The visitors agreed, so Abraham brought them some fresh bread, milk, and hamburgers.
While the visitors were eating, they asked Abraham, "Where is your wife Sarah?" Abraham thought this was a little strange, but he replied, "She's in the other room".
Then one of the men spoke and said, "I will come back to see you at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son."
Now Sarah was listening behind the living room door. She started to laugh, but covered her mouth and laughed to herself because she didn't want to be heard. Then she said to herself, "How can I have a child, I'm almost one hundred years old?"
Later when the visitors had left, Abraham and Sarah realized that the man who had told them this was indeed God.
A year later Sarah did have a son. She and Abraham named him Isaac, which means "he laughs."
They were very excited, and remembered to thank God for Isaac
God promised Abram and his wife Sarai that one day they would be parents, even though they were old and had no children.
God wasn't sure that Abram understood. So that night He took him outside, and said, "Do you see all the stars that are in the sky"? When Abram looked up, the whole night sky was full of stars, so many in fact that he would never be able to count them. Then God said, "That is how many children you will have".
Quite a few years later when Abram was ninety-nine years old (older than even your grandparents) the Lord decided to change Abram's name to Abraham, which means "father of many." He also changed Sarai's name to Sarah.
God told them again that they would be parents and that they would have a boy. This time Abraham laughed so hard he fell on his face! It was hard to believe that he and Sarah would have a child in their old age.
One day three visitors came to Abraham's house. He hurried to meet them. "May I get you something to eat and drink?" Abraham asked. "Please come in and join us, and have a rest on the couch."
The visitors agreed, so Abraham brought them some fresh bread, milk, and hamburgers.
While the visitors were eating, they asked Abraham, "Where is your wife Sarah?" Abraham thought this was a little strange, but he replied, "She's in the other room".
Then one of the men spoke and said, "I will come back to see you at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son."
Now Sarah was listening behind the living room door. She started to laugh, but covered her mouth and laughed to herself because she didn't want to be heard. Then she said to herself, "How can I have a child, I'm almost one hundred years old?"
Later when the visitors had left, Abraham and Sarah realized that the man who had told them this was indeed God.
A year later Sarah did have a son. She and Abraham named him Isaac, which means "he laughs."
They were very excited, and remembered to thank God for Isaac
The Story of Abraham and Sarah
Genesis Chapter 15 to 21)
The Story of Abraham and Sarah
Children's Version
King James Version
Memory Verse
Teach
Angel Crafts � Paper Angel Crafts � Other Angel Crafts
Animals in the Bible Crafts
General Bible Crafts
New Testament Crafts
Old Testament Crafts
Veggie Tales Craftser's Guide
The Story of Abraham and Sarah
Children's Version
King James Version
Memory Verse
Teach
Angel Crafts � Paper Angel Crafts � Other Angel Crafts
Animals in the Bible Crafts
General Bible Crafts
New Testament Crafts
Old Testament Crafts
Veggie Tales Craftser's Guide
Matupi Brief History
Introduction: I will try to focus on the cross-cultural Matu Christian history and social transformation due to progress in missionary work. Without understanding the history and culture of their people, our missionary work can be failed. At the same time, the Matu concept of God and the cross-cultural process in Matu Christian history can not be ignored.
I also mentioned pros and cons of Revivalism “Hlimsang” and its effects on Matu Christianity. The missionary moment is a major factor in bringing bout that cultural and demographic transformation of Christianity which was its leading characteristic in the 21st century.1. The Birth of Matu tribes The Matu Chin tribe is one of the biggest tribes among the Kuki-Chin. From the very beginning all the chins including Mizo, Zomi, Naga, Laimi, and Asho had lived an hill sides or riverbanks, constituting villages on groups. Among the villages, Matupi (Formerly Known as Ngala village) was the biggest and most populous. The British Gazette mentioned that there were over one thousand and houses including paddy barns in the village Matupi. Hakha book records that during those days “Matupi” was the biggest and most populous village in the Chin Hills.[1]Madupi or MatupiMatupi town was formerly known as Batupui and it was a combination of Batu, which is a tribal name, and “Pui” means “Great”. Thus later, Batupui meaning “Batu the great,” was called “Matupi” though its surrounding villages are still called Batupi. Among the Matu tribes the LUN HANG Ethnic groups, which includes Batu, Thaiphum, and Lungngo. Lungngo was the most populous. Thus, the history of the Matu tribes is based upon there three groups.
A man, called Lung Hang, came from the northern Chin Hills and arrived at Maihal mountain and settled there. His sons were Batu the eldest, Lungngo the second and Thaiphum the youngest. After they had settled down for some years, his sons became grown up and all got married. On the day of dividing the inheritance he tested his sons’ abilities making them trend a bow and send an arrows at the Cang Bung Kung (Banyan tree). Only after that they would receive theirs inheritance and be allowed to found village and go in search green pastures.
The youngest son, Thaiphum shot at the lower part of the tree and was provided his inheritance, and he chose to settle in Lunghang village where fertile land was. The eldest son, Batu shot at the middle part of the tree, and the second son, Lungngo Shot at the upper part. They were then provided their inheritance and there they were founding a village for 500 years ago. This village was named Hakha from a northern Chin Lunghang village. The Maihel Mountain is situated between Hung lei village in the present Zothung land and Maiphum villages in the Matu Land. The evidence of the original Lunghang village was found in the ownership of land by the tree planted.Three sons were born to him namely, Batu, Lungngo and Theiphum. They made the choice to settle wherever they wanted to live.
Batu, the first son, went to the southern part and settle at a place called Padaep in Nga leng village. After sometime they moved to the present Matupi or Batupui, Batu ( Ngla) village which gradually grew in numbers and become a big village. That is a why Batu village is called Batupui or Matupi. The second son, Lungngo went to the eastward and settled there founding a village, which he named after himself. This village is located in the present Zotung land. Henceforth the clan came to be known as Lung Ngo Ting Paw. In 1922 the British arrived at the southern Chin; the called Batupui, and according to geographical maps they mentioned Batupui or Matupi. When Matupui became the biggest village in Matu Land, the British Navy arrived at Matupi in 1922, and settled there for some seasons, after the independence of Burma (1948) Matupi became a big township in the southern Chin Hills (now Chin State).[2]2. Social Systems of Matu PeopleThe southern Chins, Matus differ from the northern Chins in that of various linguistic, geographic, and named tribal entities are linked together in far more widely ramifying, ever expanding, and networks of formal alliance institutions with specialized political offices. In the Matu land (southern Chin Hills) hostile relationships tend to extend far more widely then affined net works, although this hostility has certain positive economic aspects. There seems to be elements of an over-all system in which each tribal groups takes its place. The system appears to be founded mainly upon the dependency of the southern Chin Hills on trade with its civilized neighbors in Burma and Arakan. More over, the relatively closed character of the southern Chin (Matu people) systems of segmental lineages and affined alliances, which will be examined below, is connected which the hostile relations between different tribal units and is consequent upon the system of trade.
To show how such a system of inter tribal and inter group relationship works we can take a sample cross section, starting in the east with a group bordering directly upon Burma proper and proceeding into the interior along one or more lines of trades. Such presentation can not pretend to deal with the entire southern Chin (Matu), nor even with all such systems of trade, for there are several systems, which differ as they start from several different points of contact between civilization and the southern Chin Hills. This analysis of the over-all southern chins tribal system it is necessary to state that the lists of the southern chin peoples found in the early administration reports, in the linguistic survey of India, and in the several decennial issues of the census of India. Culture of Matu PeopleThere are so many interesting in view of the great cultural, social, and linguistic differences between the Matu people, as southern Chin, and as northern Chin. The people of Matu, comprising Matupi (formerly the largest Chin Hills village) and a number of villages in the north, west, and south, do not all claim a single origin, but there is a fair degree of linguistic unity among them. Matu is characterized by remoteness and systemic marginality and for these reasons is poorer than any other chin group mentioned here. Trade filters in uncertainly from several directions, and one striking consequence of this in the social organization is the absence of any traditional bride-wealth payments.
Matu culture bears the marks of a society that has been literally pushed from all sides into culture. The term Matu is at present used by the people of Matupi themselves, in the form of Badu, not they insist that it is only a word of their own. There are reasons for supposing that it is actually a term originating outside the area.[4]3.1. Language of Matu TribeThe people of Matupi village call themselves Ngala and they speak of their language as Nga-La-ol and of their territory Nga-La-baen. This state of affairs should be contrasted with that of among the northern Chin. The undeveloped state of southern political organization traditionally made travel between areas hazardous and difficult, consequently it was rare for any group of people not bordering upon Myanmar to have any direct access to Burmese markets. They had to depend upon what was handed over from one village and from one region, to the next.[5]4. The Beginning of missionary Work in Matu landThe people of Matu, as we have already known from our general introduction, entered the Matu region sometime around the middle 13th century. Each Matu village has been maintaining its own village chieftainship for local administrative purpose. In those days Matu were considered as ’savages” due to their valiant head hunting practices. They fought among themselves and often made raids on the non-Matu regions. Their endlessattacks on those people at last brought an end to their own respective cheftainships and led Matu region to be under the British rule. At the same time this British rule was themeans of changing the traditional religion of the Matus into Christianity. However, traditional religion was not totally eliminated even after the people became Christians.These practices are still having some impact on their Christian life in one way or the other. However, let us see how the Matu accepted the new religion even though they had their own religious beliefs and practices.[6]
4.1. That Dun’s arrival to Matu landRev. That Dun already heard about fore evangelists Dr. Cope and Col-Burne that there would be many difficulties for him to be and evangelists in Matu land. But That Dun decided to go as an evangelist for Matu people and he started his journey to Matu land in April 1944. He reached Ngaleng village on May 12th 1944, which was 12 miles away from Matupi. When that Dun arrived at Ngaleng village, he was suspected as to be spy of Japan army and a chief U Ta Khawt caught him and handed him over to the army of Lotaw, who later tortured him.
That Dun was starred to the point of death without water and food. at the mountain Awtaraw high 8000 feet’s, the leader of Ngaleng village, Levi army, wanted to shoot him. But That Dun pleaded to be spared to read the Bible. He opened the Bible saying let the Bible was to be covered of my death, which made the heart of Ta Khawt was frightened to shoot him as the Holy spirit was guiding That Dun.[7] When they reached to Lotaw village the army got angry for bringing That Dun to the village as a captive. The army opened the way of “That Dun” to preach the gospel After he returned from Lotaw to Ngaleng village when where he preached the villages . The village chief lost his authority.
That Dun was warned to stop preaching because people feared that epidemic disease was affecting the village because of him. However That Dun continued to preach the gospel among the village even if he had evidence one or two. The Christian converts were stepped from worshipping God. That Dun continued to preach the gospel through to Batu village, which was as big village in Chin Hills. He bore the persecution very patiently and secedes. Though he had many problems, he stood for the sake of Christ throughout his life. Saya Pa Hrek, who came together with That Dun was turned back to his native because of his health. But That Dun did not turn back with a job unfinished. Through his preaching day by day the number of Christian increased. After this he decided to settle down to Matupi to evangelize then in 1950. He lived in Longvan Baptist Church.
He lived among Matu peoples and he was called by heavenly Father with the name of missionary for the Matu on December 25, 1967. He scarified whole life for Matu peoples and his buried in Matu land. In (1944-1994), his golden jubilee was celebrated in Matupi. He established a church committee in 1955-1966, for Matu Baptist Association he organized women fellowship, Youth fellowship and men fellowship. Due to hard labor and commitment of That Dun, the gospel was brought to the Matu and enlightened the Matu people to believe the creator. He is remembered by Matus, as he was the founder of the Matu Christianity.[8]
In spite pf great difficulties, these efforts were blessed by God, and numbers of believers were increasing in Matu land. Hence, the birth of Christianity in Matu land depended upon the introduction of good news by Rev. That Dun. Rev. That Dun Golden Jubilee was celebrated in 1994. This lovely story initiated the beginning of Christianity among the Matu tribal groups and also prepared the seat for the lovable union Theological School, Which was opened in June 1, 1984 at Sanbong Quarter, Matupi Township. She will produce many evangelists, missionaries, pastors, and others ministers for the Lord from the Matu people, The lights of the righteous way will be shown to the next generation through these people. Nowadays, every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows ( James 1: 17).[9]
5. The Present Situation of Matu Baptist Movement Before the coming of missionaries the Matu people adhered to their indigenous religion, but in during the second world war Christianity was introduced to the Matu people from Americans via the northern Chin Hills. Today the majority of population is Christian. As we have already mentioned in chapter Two, the advent and influence of British rulers and Christian missionaries has taken over the Matu religion and culture. What the missionary gave to the Matu people is western Christianity. There fore we will try to understand God in Matu traditional religion as a means of constructing a theology based on a radically monotheistic understanding of God which will reaffirm, reinterpret, and redirect church traditions and help solve the problems caused by theological confusion and conflicts in that particular cortex. We will conclude with the challenge to the western theological context and its application in the development of genuine Matu Christianity.[10]
5.1. The Role of the Diviner in Matu LandIn the Matu animism, the diviner played an import role in the community in the spiritual affair. The evil spirit in Matu animism seems to have manifested itself in a self-conflicting manner in the life of the diviner. For the evil spirit caused misfortunes, diseases, pain and death on the one hand, and on the other, the same spirit manifested itself through a diviner as liberator. At this point, the Jesus also believed that only Beelzebul, the ruler of the evil spirit, could cast out the evil spirit, and so they accused Jesus as Beelzebul. But Jesus explained, “It Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself, how then will his kingdom stand. But if it is by the spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you. “Matt 12:24-30)”. So what is explained here is the reality that the true freedom comes only from the spirit of God.
Traditionally, the Matus believed not only in the existence of the evil spirit such as “Rai” but also in the existence of God, the creator “Kho”. To discuss the role of the diviner in the Matu community, it was seen that the diviner was the sole spiritual communicator between the evil spirit and the men who were inflicted by those spirits. In a way, the role of a diviner in the Matu animism was synonymous in form to the role of Christ in Christianity who was and is the sole mediator between God and men, although their roles served for different purposes. Christ is the anti—spirit who never interned to sacristy the desires of the spirit nor is the one when ever committed in their will.
The diviners were in the opposite direction. They were considered to have the ear of the spirits and to foretell events either bad or good. They were summoned in illness to prophesy whiter the patient would live or die. They could also other what propitiation would be favorable to the spirit, what animals should be killed and even offences that have been committed. Through the aids of the diviner sometimes, Patients got televised, at least for temporary, from their infliction. The question here is, did the evil spirits practice self-exorcism? It not, how could the diviner exorcise the spirits by the power of the same spirit?
Is the kingdom of the evil spirits divided? This complexity explains rather the mysterious nature not only of the functions of the evil spirtis but also of the power of nature that is impinged upon the human life. The animistic Matu people believed in many spirits embodying in the trees, the forest, the rocks, the fountains, the winds, the fields, the erupts, the rains, the clouds, the winds, the fire and so forth. In other words, the Matu peoples, before they accepted the Christianity, did not merely believe in the existence of these there are many) spirit, but feared of their destructive and possessive powers. So when the missionaries saw how the Matu peoples suffered from such fears of being inflicted by the spirits, and how they store for clear from such infliction, they made it a starting point where the Gospel of Christ was to be carried out aggressively.[11]
Hence, the cultural exorcism practiced among the spirit—inflicted seem by the missionaries, clearly as the glorious works of God, while such a work was considered by the indigenous Christians to day as gloom and doom to their cultural existence.[12]The Impact of Christianity was not only confined within the spiritual and cultural contexts of the Chin people. It manifested itself as a unity force for different Chin communities who had been deeply divided and antagonistic to one another due to differences in traditional clan systems and isolated from one another by geographical barriers. With their conversion to Christianity, the notion of acceptance replaced their traditional mindset of exclusionism, and Christian Chins embraced one another as members of a community of faith in Christ.[13]
5.2. Missionary Works in the Matupi AreaUntil 1948 Matupi area had been put under the jurisdiction of the Hakha subdivision. Although under one sub-division there was too much difficulties in communication and therefore intercourse between these two areas was few in deed. They were far apart in their thinking. During this time a Surkhua, Hakha sub-division, Lian Kar and his grandson an Aibur villager of Thangtlang area, Sa Khawng went to Matupi and worked as school teachers. In 1953 Missionary Strait called Za Ling who had hitherto worked as evangelist to Senthang and Zotung area, and sent him to preach the gospel to the Matupi area. During this time Saya Sa Khawng and Saya Lian Kar saw the necessity of having full-time workers in Matupi area.
Whenever a convention was held in the northern Chin Hills a constant theme was who will go to Matupi and work there? At the convention meeting at Vanzang, Thantlang Township in 1944, That Dun heard the call for worker in Matupi area and he consecrated his life to this task.[14] The following were the persons who worked in the Matupi area.
5.3. The Rev. Paham That DunRev. Paham That Dun ws the second eldest son among the 5children of Pu Du Tun and Pi Do Par of Thantlang area Tluangram ‘A’ village. He was born 7th September 1906 at Tluangram. He started attending school in 1966 at Mizo Lang, Bualpi village. He passed the fourth grade in 1920. As soon as he become Christian he went to Serkawr where the missionary Lorrain had founded a Bible School and from the month of January to April 1925 he attended the seminary. Rev. Leng Kham, pastor of Thau baptized him in 1933. As soon as he became a Christian “How can I become a gospel teacher” was his obsession and his constant prayer.[15]
In 1944 a convention of the whole Chin churches was held at Vanzang but this was during the Second World War, people from other places could not turn up. Only people from their own Thantlang area did attend the said meeting. When he heard, at this meeting, the requirement of an evangelist for the Matupi area, he was deeply interested in his task and he applied for the post. Although the public was in favour of his appointment, the delegates votes was not carried, besides, lack of finance posed a big problem, and it looked like he could not be sent. At that time some one whose faith increased and his dedication to God’s works was increasing, the chief of Farrawn Pu Hrang Mang said he would disburse That Dun with Rs. 240 as his salary for one year, and thus he was sent to Matupi.[16]Starting from April 1944 he was sent alone to Matu area and commenced his works. He reached Ngaleng village in the Matu area on the 12th May 1944.
After his arrival of this village he stayed on for one week and the headman of the village asked him what his purpose was for this visit. He told him that the government had sent him there had not lied, he would not be able to preach because prohibition was made not to preach the gospel. After that he shifted to Matupi village. Despite much hardship he could preach the gospel continuously, Of all the hardships the most troublesome was his inability of comprehending the Matu dialect. The man who translated his speeches was Pu Ra Zaw. When he traveled to the Dai area U Tlung Lai always followed him, he was a soldier believer and a baptized person.[17]An Toi, a villager of Cangtak village, was the first to be baptized. He was baptized at the Satawm convention meeting in 1948. That Dun himself was ordained at this convention meeting in 1948, 12th March.Thus he went on spreading the gospel massage in the Matupi area and by 1950 there were already 44 villages who accepted Christianity. In 1951 all Christians in the Matu area gathered Matupi and celebrated Christmas together. Rev. That Dun attended the Bible School instituted by the Rev. Johnson and by October 1952 he was given a certificate of proficiency. Rev. That Dun and other believers were used by God in proclaiming the gospel in Matu and Zotung area continuously and in 1954 Zotung and Matu could form a regional association.
By the year 1963 Zotung Association became a separate entity. Then about 1984 there had been some trouble among them and the Matu Baptist Association of Baptist Churches (MABC) and the original (MBA), two association existed in the Matu area. Then at the celebration of the Christian Centenary at Khuasak 2003, Cin Tlang Baptist Association (CTBA) was formed up and thus there are now three Baptist associations in the Matu Area, or Matupi Township. But these work together harmoniously in spite of the splits. Rev. That Dun while carrying on the works of God, passed away on the 25th December 1967 leaving behind his beloved wife Tial Fam, and 7 children and the Matu Christians and his on-going works, and he was buried at Matupi.[18]
5.4. Rev. Pa Hrek Another worker at the Matu area was the Rev. Pa Hrek. He was from Thlualam of Thantlang area. He accepted Christianity as his faith in 1932 and Rev. Van Lo baptized him in 1933. He was selected to work in Matu area at the convention meeting of Chin Christian at Tlangpi village, Thantlang Township during March 1945. He started works in July 1945. During 1947-48 he attended Bible School in Hakha. He was ordained at Hmawngtlang Convention meeting in 1951. He worked at Cangtak, Valangte and Valangpi villages with much difficulty for 12 years and in 1957he returned to his own village.[19]
6. Cultural Change and theology for Matu PeoplesThe purpose of theology is to make or clarify Christian decisions. Theology is about choices; it is the attempt to think in a Christian way. And the need for choice and decision arises from specific settings in life. In this sense, the theological agenda is culturally induced; and the cross-cultural diffusion of Christian faith invariably makes creative theological activity a necessity. The materials for theology are equally culturally conditioned. They are inevitably the materials at hand in the situation where the occasion for decision has arisen, in interaction with the biblical material. The materials at hand have to be “converted,” turned towards Christ, in the process.
The classical doctrines of the Trinity and the incarnation are largely constructed out of the materials of middle-period Platonism, converted in this way. (Conversion, we must constantly remind ourselves, is about turning what is already there , it is more about direction than about content.) These same classical doctrines of Trinity and incarnation sprang from the need to think in a Christian way about issues that had arisen out of the cross-cultural diffusion of the faith.[20] Cultural change among Matu people, came in two ways, one was in political power that is the British rule, and other was in the spiritual power that is the coming of the missionaries with the power full Gospel of Christ. The form we began in so the British rules and the Christian missionaries, though they belong to different nationalities, British and America, cooperated in their mission to the Chin tribes, The British not only allowed the missionaries to enter the Chin Hill where there was no civilization , no literacy and no spiritual hope but they also used them, in some instances, as the superintendent of the British school education for the chin Hills Matu area, at that time.
The British outlawed slavery, head hunting, revenge and th3e power of chiefs (Boei) was greatly eroded in over them chin people, but for southern area, cultural structure of the Matu chin society has no class system from the beginning. In other way, one can say that animism also prepared the Matu peoples for Christianity, for the Matus had no class system, like other chin tribes do, and no written dogmas to hinder them from becoming Christians. Blood sacrifice to spirits enabled the Matu peoples to comprehend Christ’s supreme sacrifice and atoning power of his blood. The belief in entrance to heaven in the equivalent Christian term is now possible through faith in Christ. For Christ has given the Matus people Christian power and wisdom to overcome all the destructive works of the evil spirits, they no longer need to fear the spirits nor need to approach the diviner for help. The Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of the devil ( 1 John 3:8 ) and to serve as the highest permanent priest for all who approach God through Him ( Hebrew 7: 24-25) . The Matus peoples today firmly believe that the Holy Spirit in them is much stronger than the evil spirits when they feared before, and consequently this knowledge leads to them to a new step of life.[21]
7. Matu Term for SalvationWhen Matu people adopted Christianity as their religion, they experienced the idea of salvation as a liberation from social evil, superstitious beliefs and practices and from the fear of evil spirit. To explain the concept salvation, they adopted pour important concepts such as Tlan (redemption) , Hluan ( save), Loeih ( Liberation), A Kang ( Protection).[22] 7.1. Tla(Redemption) The terns “Tlan” means release or deliverance of a person from judicial custody by paying penalty. Matu had quarrels with their neighboring villages over the boundaries of their land. Such disputes led to constant conflicts and bitter enmity.
It a person was captured by other villages during the conflict one had to pay for the release of that person a large amount of money or a thing equals to the money at least one “Mythum”. The hostage would be put in stocks till the demanded thing was received. This payment of money was called “Tlan” redemption with the coming of Christianity the enmity between the different villages vanished. They felt the need of accepting each other and respecting human life. The people realized themselves as prisoners of sin and they found Jesus Christ as the redeemer. The freedom that the gospel brought to Matu people has transformed the bitterness and hatred among them into mutual acceptance.[23]7.2. Hlawn (Save)The release experienced by a person. When some one takes away a heavy load from his/ her back, which a person has been carrying a long time. In Matus agricultural economy, women have a major role. Women are not spared form the hardest jobs. Along with all usual domestic works they were to clear jungles for cultivation and carry a basket full of newly harvested paddy on their back to home they are not allowed to dried water on the way and are not expected to take bath till the harvest is finished.
This custom is known as ” Tuisi tuem”. Usually the farmland is far away form their villages, so their sufferings are beyond description. This custom is practiced in the name of their religion. Men have to bear a separate burden. They fell trees to clear a new land for cultivation. They carry the eldest woman in their village to the new land to sprinkle the animal blood there. After that ceremony the woman is snot supported to touch the ground till she reached her home. All Matus really longed for a deliverance from there kinds of religious practices. Due to the fear of curse and catastrophe from the angry gods they endured the sufferings. When the gospel of Jesus Christ was preached to them, there were freed from all kinds of superstitions. They accepted this freedom joyfully. This freedom is known as “Hluan”. They confessed that Jesus Christ in their savior.
7.3. Loeih (Liberation)The word “Loeih” means the freedom from bondage. It is not only an external freedom, but also more meaningfully the freedom of mind from anxiety and fear of death. The usage of this term has a specific background. Originally each Matu village is largely inhabited buy a single clan. There was no local government to keep the life peaceful. So struggles between the neighboring villages are common. People are afraid to go from one village to another. It there is an acute necessity for a person to go from one village to another, ever though it is only one day journey, he had to take three or four days to escape from the attack of other villagers.
So the fear of death was always in their life. It that person safely reached his destination he would say ” I am saved”.[24]There is another fear, which suppresses the minds of the people. That is the fear of evil spirit (Rhai) like spirit of rivers, spirit of rocks, spirit of trees and spirit of streams, In order to avoid death by these spirits the people had to keep away from these places. After arrival of Christianity these superstitious beliefs vanished from the minds of the people. They started to love each other. They realized inner peace and freedom when they accepted the fact that there is a God who is almighty, controlling the power of nature, and also loving and concerning about the well being of all human beings.[25]
7.4. Zoe Then (Grace or Blessing)As Augustine says “The grace of God is present everywhere and at every moment, and that God’s grace changes human life.[26] In Matu language there is no direct word for “grace”. Infant, they understood grace as blessing of God “Zoethen”. But it is different from the term lucks. Duck, in Matu is ” A Kam” which is adopted from the word “Kaan” in Burmese. The major difference is that the word luck or good fortune comes to a person through his labor when he/ she gets more then what is expected. On the other hand, but blessing “Zoethen” is received not by human effort.
Therefore the Matus also understand it as the gift of God. In order to know the favor of God, they followed a practice. At the tip of a long erected bamboo pole they hung a symbol of a cross and applied animal blood. People used to shoot at that symbol of cross (Sa tlock). It any one could shoot at the symbol of cross, they believed that God’s mercy is upon him. This act and its result are called “Zoethen”. It starts also for earth, health and delight. They are considered to be a gift of God known as ” Kho” or ” Khohni”. Matu people used the above mentored concepts to illustrate the salvation through the grace of God, and more precisely salvation is the gift of God. God shows no favoritism. All human beings can be the recipients of God’s blessing or salvation.[27]
8. Matu traditional concept of life and its future.Matu tradition considers long life in this world as blessing and views it as reward for keeping social order of the traceable community, death , particularly, sudden death is considered as a terrible misfortune, and is often interpreted as divine punish meant for the breach of social code. They believed that in the future world a person would have to reap the consequence pf past misdeeds and to suffer from the circle of rebirths in this world. The dead is traced like as it he were really living. In this earthly world a person has to perform religious festival at least three times by killing mithurn for his spiritual survival. At his funeral, a person is offered everything that he might reed in his next life. Matus believe that a dead person goes to the dead village to ” sel khui kho” through agate which is situated between the earth and the dead village.
This celestial gate is guarded by a mythical being the evil one like the rock with the open mouth. The dead has to appease the evil one like the open mouth, because of this traditional reason the killing of not animal is required for one’s funeral ceremony. The animal sacrificed is offered to the dead to accompany him to his abode. This animal sacrificed alone is sufficient for entering into the avode of the dead villages. Traditional belief implies that the dead could bring all the thing to spiritual word, that are given to a person at his funeral ceremony and all the riches and social prestige that he accumulated in his life time. They prefer to die natural death anther then accidental death ” Sai cet”. The Matu idea of eschatology is concerned with the need to pursue worldly things. A person is believed to be transmuted to another form of life at the moment of his death,. She/ he puts on in the next life the clothes, which he/ she wears at the moment of her/ his death. This belief involves that if a person is captured by evil spirit e.g. rocks or rivers he becomes under the power of the evil spirit. An animal sacrifice at his funeral will deliver his spirit.
9. “God” in Matu Chin TodayBefore the coming of missionaries the Matus people adhered to their indigenous religion, but in during the second world war Christianity was introduced to the Matu people from Americans Via the northern chin hills. Today the majority of population is Christian. As we have already mentioned in chapter two, the advent and influence of British rulers and Christian missionaries has Staten over the Matu religion and culture.
What the missionary gave to Matus people is western Christianity, There fore we will try to understand God our Kho in Matu traditional religion as a means of constructing fa theology based on a radically monotheistic understanding of God which will reaffirm, reinterpret, and redirect, church traditions and help solve the problems caused b y theological confusion and conflicts in that particular content. We will conclude with the challenge to the western theological content and its application in the development of genuine Matu Christianity.[28]
10. Separation of Christian Brethrens due to Revivalism “Hlimsang” MovementAround 1939 there appeared a spiritual revival among Mizo people of India through the works of Welsh Presbyterian Mission. This movement employed beating of tom-toms, dancing, and speaking in unknown tongue. The Pentecostal movement and charismatic movement of present day were similar to this revival movement. In some places when this movements were in excess, dancing, shouting, falling down to the floor, jabbering in tongues etc. there were occasions when Christian leaders could not cope with the situation.
The emphasis on the Second Coming theme engendered fatalism in people’s idea so much that many refused to work in fields or at home. Some refused to go to schools. They developed unteacheable spirit because they claimed that the Holy Spirit touched them and hence there was not need for any one else to teach them. Dancing and socializing every night eventually caused sexual debauchery and many other unwanted things were manifested. About their dances, Dr. Johnson wrote: “Holy Rollerism”.[29] In 19th of January, 1951, Rev. Robart G. Johnson and party arrived at Ngaleng village and they were met by Rev. That Dun and Saya Pa Hrek. They both were graduated from Northern Chin Haka Bible School. In 20th January, 1951, Rev. Johnson and party arrived at Ngaleng Village, and they were met by U Sang Ning, a member of Parliament, a group of Christians, Policemen, and students. At the time, Matupi was the quarter of the government in Matu area. During the arrival of Rev. Johnson and his group at Matupi, some of believers misinterpreted the Scripture passage, especially, Acts 2.1-4, ‘The Holy Spirit comes at Pentecost’, because of that “hlim sang” meaning, “high emotion” (charismatic) was so popular among the believers t every village. Rev. Johnson preached and explained what is the true meaning of that passages, the true nature of worship that is acceptable to God, what did really happened on the day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts.[30]
11. ApplicationI noticed that there are some benefits of Revivalism and weak points of Revivalism as I mention in the following:(a)The Benefit of Revivalism01. Increase in believers and churches02. Desire for God’s words and hymns increased (many song composers came into existence.)03. Increase in numbers of evangelists and preachers.04. Increase in giving.05. Learning, teaching etc. increased.06. It enhanced the desire to go to new mission fields.(b)Draw-backs of RevivalismWeak points and draw-back of Revivalism:01. Criticism and back-biting are rife.02. Disdaining of other people’s opinion became common.03. Impediment in domestic development. (Especially those of lower echelons in society were prone to disregard their domestic affairs gave preference to gatherings, training, than homes, fields, children etc.)04. Negligence of morality (sex) happened.Schisms among established churches or community resulted often. We, Matu people, should be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom of God because He promises to those who love Him. Therefore, in Christ Jesus, let us build up our self-identity and cultural integrity in terms of faithfulness as a mature spirituality. For if we are not faithful to sow the seeds we will be blown out by the waves, the strong winds, and be persuaded by the deceitful men who lead others astray.
Every evangelist has to show the way of eternal life by carrying seeds to so within our Matu land and those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy ( Ps. 126: 5 ) . In the same way, let your lights be shine before men that they may see your good works and glorifying your Father in heaven ( Matt. 5. 16 ) Now Matu people become a new Christian changed from old animistic believers and we should have to try to follow our righteous way of life and imitate in our faith for Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today , and forever ( Hebrews 13: 7 ).
Matu believers who had received the gospel light of salvation, were no longer satisfied with evangelizing their own vicinity but they have convictions and burden’s to share the gospel messages to different dialect specking people, who has dissimilar customs and traditions, should all be evangelized near and far. Christianity was also responsible for the extermination of evil cultures, such as head hunting, witch craft revenge between tribes and families, etc, of the ethnic minorities. By the grace of God when the gospel come to Matu people, it reformed many things in Matu Culture for the better. The most obvious among the development programme is education. It is the best way to help develop Matu and their environment.
The main driving force of the chin society that has transformed it from its long bondage of alcoholic drinking life to the better and educated level of life would be none other than the power of the gospel. The christen gospel preached by Rev. That Dun transformed that Matu from being the evil spirits fearers to the evil spirits over-comers. The Christian gospel helps them to speak out clearly and loudly against all evil systems and structure in their cultures, for instance, the power of chiefs, the division of social classes, oppression of women, superstitious practices, etc.. Among the most important life change as stated earlier was the change from the belief in and propitiation of the many spirits to the worship of the one God.
To be specific, after the gospel came to the Matu people, fear of spirits has ended as 1John 3:8 describes, “The Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of devil.” Today, the Matu Christians firmly believe that the Holy Spirit given by Christ is much stronger than the power of the evil spirits, whom they feared before. And consequently, this knowledge leads them to a new step of life. The Matus now believe that God has given them wisdom and knowledge to discern the good from the bad, the holy from unholy, and the light from the darkness. They now come to understand the God of their ancestors and the God about whom the missionaries told them as the one God who rules the universe and became the reformer and promoter of their cultural and social life. They believe Christ not only as the reformer but also as the fulfiller of values inherent in the Matu culture. It is no longer possible for the Chin people to change their lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, with any other God in this world. It is through the power of the gospel of Christ that the Chin people changed their lives from the worshippers of evil spirits to worshippers of the living and eternal God.
The coming of the Gospel of Christ to the Matu’s land is therefore a significant step for the animistic Matus both to the loss and rediscovery of their own history, culture, languages, and religion. This step is also the beginning of their Cultural Revolution and new anodes to the promise land that flows with mile and honey that is of the greater civilization, growth, and maturity. In their long journey to a century, the Matus have come across with many. Political, social, cultural and economical changes and even the unprecedented challenges. Speaking from a cultural perspective, there were a lot of changes in the Matu culture and social life, and these changes had many to do with the way they have believed in their missionaries God. For God whom their missionaries taught them has been God who powerfully destroyed all works of evil spirits embodied in the human culture and moral attitudes.
Since 50 years the Gospel of Jesus Christ is being preached in Matu land. It has removed several social evils. In the beginning the main missionary concern was the establishment of the churches. However, at the end of the 20th century, same changes happened because Matu Christians began to analyse their context situation. Matus want to understand Christian message in their own cultural context. Thus gospel become real and relevant. It is very important to deepen the interaction between the Christian faith and Matu culture. It is possible to cognize similarities among different culture. It helps to develop mutual understanding and respect for each other. It is important that Jesus’ liberation can be relied in Matu situation. The Gospel of Jesus Christ helps to improve the Matu community as a whole.
In fact, Christianity is not indigenous to the Matu people because it was not born in this region, it was borrowed from missionaries with a western from of culture. Actually, the traditional religious belief helped people it understand Christianity better. Hence, in summary, God of the Holy and God of light have made them the Matus, find themselves in the unholy and wretched condition to their own existence and have made them feel estrange to their own culture. And yet God has given them, his wisdom and knowledge to discern the good from the bad, the Holy from the unholy and the light from the darkness. We know that Christ has exorcised demons out of the man, but at the same time we also know that Christ has restored him to the normal life and asked him to continue to live and work for God’s kingdom.
In fact, God whom our missionaries taught us shall not only the creator but he shall significantly be the reformer and educator of our animistic culture and social life. We proclaim that Christ has saved us from the binding power of darkness to the liberating power of light and so we now have a new principle of life and a new form of culture- a culture that is no longer demonic and oppressive in form and structure. Christ has become hence not only the reformer but also the fulfiller of all our self—hood values inherent in our own culture (Matt. 5: 17). In the Gospel of Christ, we are purposefully given a new direction to a new life, to new desisting, and to a new set of cultural values.
For the 21st century, the Matu Christians need the right motives and aims for our mission. Training and theological education may be every important for missionaries, but our motives and aims are more important then training and theological education. Financial resources may be another problem, but money will not solve all our problems. The right motive may be the one, which can solve our financial denominational, situational, and contextual problems most effectively in the mission of the Matus-tribes in the 21st century.
Now, Matus people become a new Christian, changed from old animistic believers and we should have to try to follow our righteous way of life and imitate our “Faith” for Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13: 7).
Bibliography1. Poe, Hla, Matupi Township’s Golden Jubilee Mgazine-1949- 1999. Matupi:1999.2. Lehman, F.K., the Structure of Chin Society, .Illinois: The University Of Illinois Press19633. Kone, Bung, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State. Unpublished Thesis, Mandalay: Myanmar Theological College,20054. ____________ ____”The Light of Matu Land” in Yangon Matupi Bible Students Fellowship Magzine,vol. 5 . Yangon:20055. Darzing ,Lydia, Impact of Christianity on Matu Women,.Unpublished B.D.Thesis, Gurukul Lutheran Theological College and research Institute,19966. Hup , Prof.Dr.Cung Lian, Thinking About Christianity and Chins in Myanmar. Yangon,MIT:19997. Ling, Salai Thawng, Rev.That Dun’s Golden Jubilee. Matupi: Matupi Baptist Association, 19948. Toi , Laithang Cang, That Dun’s Golden Jubilee Magazine Matupi:19949. Son , Laithang Biak, Thawng Hnin Zam and T.Joshua, Brief History Of Union Theological College. Yangon:200410. Ling, Salai Za Uk &Salai Bawi Lian Ling, Religious Persecution: A Campaign of Ethnocide Against Chin Christians In Burma. Canada,Ottaw: Chin Human Rights Orgnization, 200411. Walls, Andrew F., The Cross-Cultural Process in Christian History. New York, Mary knoll: Orbis Books,200212. Erickson, Millard J., Christian Theology. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House,198513. Zomi Baptist Convention, CCOC Mission History,vol. 1. Falam:ZBC,199914. Zomi Theological College, Chin Church History. Falam, Chin State: Zomi Theological College, 200715. Johnson, Robert G., History of the American Baptist Chin Mission vol. I,Valley Forge, PA: 1988
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[1] Hla Poe, Matupi Township’s Golden Jubilee Mgazine-1949- 1999(Matupi:1999) ,158.[2] Hla Poe, Matupi Township’s Golden Jubilee Mgazine-1949- 1999,159.[3] F.K. Lehman, the Structure of Chin Society, (Illinois: The University Of Illinois Press1963), 82.[4] Bung Kone, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State(Unpublished Thesis, Mandalay: Myanmar Theological College,2005) ,6.[5] Ibid.,86.[6] Bung Kone, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State,18.[7] Lydia Darzing, Impact of Christianity on Matu Women,(Unpublished B.D.Thesis, Gurukul Lutheran Theological College and research Institute,1996) ,43.[8] Bung Kone, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State,25.[9] Bung Kone, “The Light of Matu Land” in Yangon Matupi Bible Students Fellowship Magzine,vol. 5 (Yangon:2005) ,87.[10] Ibid., 32.[11] Ibid., 34.[12] Prof.Dr.Cung Lian Hup, Thinking About Christianity and Chins in Myanmar (Yangon, MIT: 1999), 101-103.[13] Salai Za Uk Ling&Salai Bawi Lian Ling, Religious Persecution: A Campaign of Ethnocide Against Chin Christians In Burma(Canada,Ottaw: Chin Human Rights Orgnization, 2004),28- 29.[14] Salai Thawng Ling, Rev.That Dun’s Golden Jubilee(Matupi: Matupi Baptist Association, 1994),45- 46.[15] Zomi Baptist Convention, CCOC Mission History,vol. 1(Falam:ZBC,1999) 66.[16] Thawng Ling, Rev.That Dun Golden Jubilee, 46-47.[17] Ibid.,48.[18]Zomi Theological College, Chin Church History( Falam, Chin State: Zomi Theological College, 2007), 208.[19] ZBC, CCOC Mission History,vol. 1,72-73.[20] Andrew F. Walls, The Cross-Cultural Process in Christian History(New York, Mary knoll: Orbis Books,2002), 79.[21] Laithang Cang Toi, That Dun’s Golden Jubilee Magazine(Matupi:1994) ,92.[22] Bung Kone, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State,41.[23] Ibid., 42.[24] Laithang Biak Son, Thawng Hnin Zam and T.Joshua, Brief History Of Union Theological College(Yangon:2004) ,35-36.[25] Bung Kone, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State,43.[26] Millard J.Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House,1985), 633.[27] Ibid.,45.[28] Laithang Biak Son, Thawng Hnin Zam and T.Joshua, Brief History Of Union Theological College,50-54.[29] Robert G. Johnson, History of the American Baptist Chin Mission vol. I ( Valley Forge, PA:1988), 1194[30] Bung Kone, “The Light of Matu Land” in Yangon Matupi Bible Students Fellowship Magzine,vol. 5,86.
I also mentioned pros and cons of Revivalism “Hlimsang” and its effects on Matu Christianity. The missionary moment is a major factor in bringing bout that cultural and demographic transformation of Christianity which was its leading characteristic in the 21st century.1. The Birth of Matu tribes The Matu Chin tribe is one of the biggest tribes among the Kuki-Chin. From the very beginning all the chins including Mizo, Zomi, Naga, Laimi, and Asho had lived an hill sides or riverbanks, constituting villages on groups. Among the villages, Matupi (Formerly Known as Ngala village) was the biggest and most populous. The British Gazette mentioned that there were over one thousand and houses including paddy barns in the village Matupi. Hakha book records that during those days “Matupi” was the biggest and most populous village in the Chin Hills.[1]Madupi or MatupiMatupi town was formerly known as Batupui and it was a combination of Batu, which is a tribal name, and “Pui” means “Great”. Thus later, Batupui meaning “Batu the great,” was called “Matupi” though its surrounding villages are still called Batupi. Among the Matu tribes the LUN HANG Ethnic groups, which includes Batu, Thaiphum, and Lungngo. Lungngo was the most populous. Thus, the history of the Matu tribes is based upon there three groups.
A man, called Lung Hang, came from the northern Chin Hills and arrived at Maihal mountain and settled there. His sons were Batu the eldest, Lungngo the second and Thaiphum the youngest. After they had settled down for some years, his sons became grown up and all got married. On the day of dividing the inheritance he tested his sons’ abilities making them trend a bow and send an arrows at the Cang Bung Kung (Banyan tree). Only after that they would receive theirs inheritance and be allowed to found village and go in search green pastures.
The youngest son, Thaiphum shot at the lower part of the tree and was provided his inheritance, and he chose to settle in Lunghang village where fertile land was. The eldest son, Batu shot at the middle part of the tree, and the second son, Lungngo Shot at the upper part. They were then provided their inheritance and there they were founding a village for 500 years ago. This village was named Hakha from a northern Chin Lunghang village. The Maihel Mountain is situated between Hung lei village in the present Zothung land and Maiphum villages in the Matu Land. The evidence of the original Lunghang village was found in the ownership of land by the tree planted.Three sons were born to him namely, Batu, Lungngo and Theiphum. They made the choice to settle wherever they wanted to live.
Batu, the first son, went to the southern part and settle at a place called Padaep in Nga leng village. After sometime they moved to the present Matupi or Batupui, Batu ( Ngla) village which gradually grew in numbers and become a big village. That is a why Batu village is called Batupui or Matupi. The second son, Lungngo went to the eastward and settled there founding a village, which he named after himself. This village is located in the present Zotung land. Henceforth the clan came to be known as Lung Ngo Ting Paw. In 1922 the British arrived at the southern Chin; the called Batupui, and according to geographical maps they mentioned Batupui or Matupi. When Matupui became the biggest village in Matu Land, the British Navy arrived at Matupi in 1922, and settled there for some seasons, after the independence of Burma (1948) Matupi became a big township in the southern Chin Hills (now Chin State).[2]2. Social Systems of Matu PeopleThe southern Chins, Matus differ from the northern Chins in that of various linguistic, geographic, and named tribal entities are linked together in far more widely ramifying, ever expanding, and networks of formal alliance institutions with specialized political offices. In the Matu land (southern Chin Hills) hostile relationships tend to extend far more widely then affined net works, although this hostility has certain positive economic aspects. There seems to be elements of an over-all system in which each tribal groups takes its place. The system appears to be founded mainly upon the dependency of the southern Chin Hills on trade with its civilized neighbors in Burma and Arakan. More over, the relatively closed character of the southern Chin (Matu people) systems of segmental lineages and affined alliances, which will be examined below, is connected which the hostile relations between different tribal units and is consequent upon the system of trade.
To show how such a system of inter tribal and inter group relationship works we can take a sample cross section, starting in the east with a group bordering directly upon Burma proper and proceeding into the interior along one or more lines of trades. Such presentation can not pretend to deal with the entire southern Chin (Matu), nor even with all such systems of trade, for there are several systems, which differ as they start from several different points of contact between civilization and the southern Chin Hills. This analysis of the over-all southern chins tribal system it is necessary to state that the lists of the southern chin peoples found in the early administration reports, in the linguistic survey of India, and in the several decennial issues of the census of India. Culture of Matu PeopleThere are so many interesting in view of the great cultural, social, and linguistic differences between the Matu people, as southern Chin, and as northern Chin. The people of Matu, comprising Matupi (formerly the largest Chin Hills village) and a number of villages in the north, west, and south, do not all claim a single origin, but there is a fair degree of linguistic unity among them. Matu is characterized by remoteness and systemic marginality and for these reasons is poorer than any other chin group mentioned here. Trade filters in uncertainly from several directions, and one striking consequence of this in the social organization is the absence of any traditional bride-wealth payments.
Matu culture bears the marks of a society that has been literally pushed from all sides into culture. The term Matu is at present used by the people of Matupi themselves, in the form of Badu, not they insist that it is only a word of their own. There are reasons for supposing that it is actually a term originating outside the area.[4]3.1. Language of Matu TribeThe people of Matupi village call themselves Ngala and they speak of their language as Nga-La-ol and of their territory Nga-La-baen. This state of affairs should be contrasted with that of among the northern Chin. The undeveloped state of southern political organization traditionally made travel between areas hazardous and difficult, consequently it was rare for any group of people not bordering upon Myanmar to have any direct access to Burmese markets. They had to depend upon what was handed over from one village and from one region, to the next.[5]4. The Beginning of missionary Work in Matu landThe people of Matu, as we have already known from our general introduction, entered the Matu region sometime around the middle 13th century. Each Matu village has been maintaining its own village chieftainship for local administrative purpose. In those days Matu were considered as ’savages” due to their valiant head hunting practices. They fought among themselves and often made raids on the non-Matu regions. Their endlessattacks on those people at last brought an end to their own respective cheftainships and led Matu region to be under the British rule. At the same time this British rule was themeans of changing the traditional religion of the Matus into Christianity. However, traditional religion was not totally eliminated even after the people became Christians.These practices are still having some impact on their Christian life in one way or the other. However, let us see how the Matu accepted the new religion even though they had their own religious beliefs and practices.[6]
4.1. That Dun’s arrival to Matu landRev. That Dun already heard about fore evangelists Dr. Cope and Col-Burne that there would be many difficulties for him to be and evangelists in Matu land. But That Dun decided to go as an evangelist for Matu people and he started his journey to Matu land in April 1944. He reached Ngaleng village on May 12th 1944, which was 12 miles away from Matupi. When that Dun arrived at Ngaleng village, he was suspected as to be spy of Japan army and a chief U Ta Khawt caught him and handed him over to the army of Lotaw, who later tortured him.
That Dun was starred to the point of death without water and food. at the mountain Awtaraw high 8000 feet’s, the leader of Ngaleng village, Levi army, wanted to shoot him. But That Dun pleaded to be spared to read the Bible. He opened the Bible saying let the Bible was to be covered of my death, which made the heart of Ta Khawt was frightened to shoot him as the Holy spirit was guiding That Dun.[7] When they reached to Lotaw village the army got angry for bringing That Dun to the village as a captive. The army opened the way of “That Dun” to preach the gospel After he returned from Lotaw to Ngaleng village when where he preached the villages . The village chief lost his authority.
That Dun was warned to stop preaching because people feared that epidemic disease was affecting the village because of him. However That Dun continued to preach the gospel among the village even if he had evidence one or two. The Christian converts were stepped from worshipping God. That Dun continued to preach the gospel through to Batu village, which was as big village in Chin Hills. He bore the persecution very patiently and secedes. Though he had many problems, he stood for the sake of Christ throughout his life. Saya Pa Hrek, who came together with That Dun was turned back to his native because of his health. But That Dun did not turn back with a job unfinished. Through his preaching day by day the number of Christian increased. After this he decided to settle down to Matupi to evangelize then in 1950. He lived in Longvan Baptist Church.
He lived among Matu peoples and he was called by heavenly Father with the name of missionary for the Matu on December 25, 1967. He scarified whole life for Matu peoples and his buried in Matu land. In (1944-1994), his golden jubilee was celebrated in Matupi. He established a church committee in 1955-1966, for Matu Baptist Association he organized women fellowship, Youth fellowship and men fellowship. Due to hard labor and commitment of That Dun, the gospel was brought to the Matu and enlightened the Matu people to believe the creator. He is remembered by Matus, as he was the founder of the Matu Christianity.[8]
In spite pf great difficulties, these efforts were blessed by God, and numbers of believers were increasing in Matu land. Hence, the birth of Christianity in Matu land depended upon the introduction of good news by Rev. That Dun. Rev. That Dun Golden Jubilee was celebrated in 1994. This lovely story initiated the beginning of Christianity among the Matu tribal groups and also prepared the seat for the lovable union Theological School, Which was opened in June 1, 1984 at Sanbong Quarter, Matupi Township. She will produce many evangelists, missionaries, pastors, and others ministers for the Lord from the Matu people, The lights of the righteous way will be shown to the next generation through these people. Nowadays, every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows ( James 1: 17).[9]
5. The Present Situation of Matu Baptist Movement Before the coming of missionaries the Matu people adhered to their indigenous religion, but in during the second world war Christianity was introduced to the Matu people from Americans via the northern Chin Hills. Today the majority of population is Christian. As we have already mentioned in chapter Two, the advent and influence of British rulers and Christian missionaries has taken over the Matu religion and culture. What the missionary gave to the Matu people is western Christianity. There fore we will try to understand God in Matu traditional religion as a means of constructing a theology based on a radically monotheistic understanding of God which will reaffirm, reinterpret, and redirect church traditions and help solve the problems caused by theological confusion and conflicts in that particular cortex. We will conclude with the challenge to the western theological context and its application in the development of genuine Matu Christianity.[10]
5.1. The Role of the Diviner in Matu LandIn the Matu animism, the diviner played an import role in the community in the spiritual affair. The evil spirit in Matu animism seems to have manifested itself in a self-conflicting manner in the life of the diviner. For the evil spirit caused misfortunes, diseases, pain and death on the one hand, and on the other, the same spirit manifested itself through a diviner as liberator. At this point, the Jesus also believed that only Beelzebul, the ruler of the evil spirit, could cast out the evil spirit, and so they accused Jesus as Beelzebul. But Jesus explained, “It Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself, how then will his kingdom stand. But if it is by the spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come to you. “Matt 12:24-30)”. So what is explained here is the reality that the true freedom comes only from the spirit of God.
Traditionally, the Matus believed not only in the existence of the evil spirit such as “Rai” but also in the existence of God, the creator “Kho”. To discuss the role of the diviner in the Matu community, it was seen that the diviner was the sole spiritual communicator between the evil spirit and the men who were inflicted by those spirits. In a way, the role of a diviner in the Matu animism was synonymous in form to the role of Christ in Christianity who was and is the sole mediator between God and men, although their roles served for different purposes. Christ is the anti—spirit who never interned to sacristy the desires of the spirit nor is the one when ever committed in their will.
The diviners were in the opposite direction. They were considered to have the ear of the spirits and to foretell events either bad or good. They were summoned in illness to prophesy whiter the patient would live or die. They could also other what propitiation would be favorable to the spirit, what animals should be killed and even offences that have been committed. Through the aids of the diviner sometimes, Patients got televised, at least for temporary, from their infliction. The question here is, did the evil spirits practice self-exorcism? It not, how could the diviner exorcise the spirits by the power of the same spirit?
Is the kingdom of the evil spirits divided? This complexity explains rather the mysterious nature not only of the functions of the evil spirtis but also of the power of nature that is impinged upon the human life. The animistic Matu people believed in many spirits embodying in the trees, the forest, the rocks, the fountains, the winds, the fields, the erupts, the rains, the clouds, the winds, the fire and so forth. In other words, the Matu peoples, before they accepted the Christianity, did not merely believe in the existence of these there are many) spirit, but feared of their destructive and possessive powers. So when the missionaries saw how the Matu peoples suffered from such fears of being inflicted by the spirits, and how they store for clear from such infliction, they made it a starting point where the Gospel of Christ was to be carried out aggressively.[11]
Hence, the cultural exorcism practiced among the spirit—inflicted seem by the missionaries, clearly as the glorious works of God, while such a work was considered by the indigenous Christians to day as gloom and doom to their cultural existence.[12]The Impact of Christianity was not only confined within the spiritual and cultural contexts of the Chin people. It manifested itself as a unity force for different Chin communities who had been deeply divided and antagonistic to one another due to differences in traditional clan systems and isolated from one another by geographical barriers. With their conversion to Christianity, the notion of acceptance replaced their traditional mindset of exclusionism, and Christian Chins embraced one another as members of a community of faith in Christ.[13]
5.2. Missionary Works in the Matupi AreaUntil 1948 Matupi area had been put under the jurisdiction of the Hakha subdivision. Although under one sub-division there was too much difficulties in communication and therefore intercourse between these two areas was few in deed. They were far apart in their thinking. During this time a Surkhua, Hakha sub-division, Lian Kar and his grandson an Aibur villager of Thangtlang area, Sa Khawng went to Matupi and worked as school teachers. In 1953 Missionary Strait called Za Ling who had hitherto worked as evangelist to Senthang and Zotung area, and sent him to preach the gospel to the Matupi area. During this time Saya Sa Khawng and Saya Lian Kar saw the necessity of having full-time workers in Matupi area.
Whenever a convention was held in the northern Chin Hills a constant theme was who will go to Matupi and work there? At the convention meeting at Vanzang, Thantlang Township in 1944, That Dun heard the call for worker in Matupi area and he consecrated his life to this task.[14] The following were the persons who worked in the Matupi area.
5.3. The Rev. Paham That DunRev. Paham That Dun ws the second eldest son among the 5children of Pu Du Tun and Pi Do Par of Thantlang area Tluangram ‘A’ village. He was born 7th September 1906 at Tluangram. He started attending school in 1966 at Mizo Lang, Bualpi village. He passed the fourth grade in 1920. As soon as he become Christian he went to Serkawr where the missionary Lorrain had founded a Bible School and from the month of January to April 1925 he attended the seminary. Rev. Leng Kham, pastor of Thau baptized him in 1933. As soon as he became a Christian “How can I become a gospel teacher” was his obsession and his constant prayer.[15]
In 1944 a convention of the whole Chin churches was held at Vanzang but this was during the Second World War, people from other places could not turn up. Only people from their own Thantlang area did attend the said meeting. When he heard, at this meeting, the requirement of an evangelist for the Matupi area, he was deeply interested in his task and he applied for the post. Although the public was in favour of his appointment, the delegates votes was not carried, besides, lack of finance posed a big problem, and it looked like he could not be sent. At that time some one whose faith increased and his dedication to God’s works was increasing, the chief of Farrawn Pu Hrang Mang said he would disburse That Dun with Rs. 240 as his salary for one year, and thus he was sent to Matupi.[16]Starting from April 1944 he was sent alone to Matu area and commenced his works. He reached Ngaleng village in the Matu area on the 12th May 1944.
After his arrival of this village he stayed on for one week and the headman of the village asked him what his purpose was for this visit. He told him that the government had sent him there had not lied, he would not be able to preach because prohibition was made not to preach the gospel. After that he shifted to Matupi village. Despite much hardship he could preach the gospel continuously, Of all the hardships the most troublesome was his inability of comprehending the Matu dialect. The man who translated his speeches was Pu Ra Zaw. When he traveled to the Dai area U Tlung Lai always followed him, he was a soldier believer and a baptized person.[17]An Toi, a villager of Cangtak village, was the first to be baptized. He was baptized at the Satawm convention meeting in 1948. That Dun himself was ordained at this convention meeting in 1948, 12th March.Thus he went on spreading the gospel massage in the Matupi area and by 1950 there were already 44 villages who accepted Christianity. In 1951 all Christians in the Matu area gathered Matupi and celebrated Christmas together. Rev. That Dun attended the Bible School instituted by the Rev. Johnson and by October 1952 he was given a certificate of proficiency. Rev. That Dun and other believers were used by God in proclaiming the gospel in Matu and Zotung area continuously and in 1954 Zotung and Matu could form a regional association.
By the year 1963 Zotung Association became a separate entity. Then about 1984 there had been some trouble among them and the Matu Baptist Association of Baptist Churches (MABC) and the original (MBA), two association existed in the Matu area. Then at the celebration of the Christian Centenary at Khuasak 2003, Cin Tlang Baptist Association (CTBA) was formed up and thus there are now three Baptist associations in the Matu Area, or Matupi Township. But these work together harmoniously in spite of the splits. Rev. That Dun while carrying on the works of God, passed away on the 25th December 1967 leaving behind his beloved wife Tial Fam, and 7 children and the Matu Christians and his on-going works, and he was buried at Matupi.[18]
5.4. Rev. Pa Hrek Another worker at the Matu area was the Rev. Pa Hrek. He was from Thlualam of Thantlang area. He accepted Christianity as his faith in 1932 and Rev. Van Lo baptized him in 1933. He was selected to work in Matu area at the convention meeting of Chin Christian at Tlangpi village, Thantlang Township during March 1945. He started works in July 1945. During 1947-48 he attended Bible School in Hakha. He was ordained at Hmawngtlang Convention meeting in 1951. He worked at Cangtak, Valangte and Valangpi villages with much difficulty for 12 years and in 1957he returned to his own village.[19]
6. Cultural Change and theology for Matu PeoplesThe purpose of theology is to make or clarify Christian decisions. Theology is about choices; it is the attempt to think in a Christian way. And the need for choice and decision arises from specific settings in life. In this sense, the theological agenda is culturally induced; and the cross-cultural diffusion of Christian faith invariably makes creative theological activity a necessity. The materials for theology are equally culturally conditioned. They are inevitably the materials at hand in the situation where the occasion for decision has arisen, in interaction with the biblical material. The materials at hand have to be “converted,” turned towards Christ, in the process.
The classical doctrines of the Trinity and the incarnation are largely constructed out of the materials of middle-period Platonism, converted in this way. (Conversion, we must constantly remind ourselves, is about turning what is already there , it is more about direction than about content.) These same classical doctrines of Trinity and incarnation sprang from the need to think in a Christian way about issues that had arisen out of the cross-cultural diffusion of the faith.[20] Cultural change among Matu people, came in two ways, one was in political power that is the British rule, and other was in the spiritual power that is the coming of the missionaries with the power full Gospel of Christ. The form we began in so the British rules and the Christian missionaries, though they belong to different nationalities, British and America, cooperated in their mission to the Chin tribes, The British not only allowed the missionaries to enter the Chin Hill where there was no civilization , no literacy and no spiritual hope but they also used them, in some instances, as the superintendent of the British school education for the chin Hills Matu area, at that time.
The British outlawed slavery, head hunting, revenge and th3e power of chiefs (Boei) was greatly eroded in over them chin people, but for southern area, cultural structure of the Matu chin society has no class system from the beginning. In other way, one can say that animism also prepared the Matu peoples for Christianity, for the Matus had no class system, like other chin tribes do, and no written dogmas to hinder them from becoming Christians. Blood sacrifice to spirits enabled the Matu peoples to comprehend Christ’s supreme sacrifice and atoning power of his blood. The belief in entrance to heaven in the equivalent Christian term is now possible through faith in Christ. For Christ has given the Matus people Christian power and wisdom to overcome all the destructive works of the evil spirits, they no longer need to fear the spirits nor need to approach the diviner for help. The Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of the devil ( 1 John 3:8 ) and to serve as the highest permanent priest for all who approach God through Him ( Hebrew 7: 24-25) . The Matus peoples today firmly believe that the Holy Spirit in them is much stronger than the evil spirits when they feared before, and consequently this knowledge leads to them to a new step of life.[21]
7. Matu Term for SalvationWhen Matu people adopted Christianity as their religion, they experienced the idea of salvation as a liberation from social evil, superstitious beliefs and practices and from the fear of evil spirit. To explain the concept salvation, they adopted pour important concepts such as Tlan (redemption) , Hluan ( save), Loeih ( Liberation), A Kang ( Protection).[22] 7.1. Tla(Redemption) The terns “Tlan” means release or deliverance of a person from judicial custody by paying penalty. Matu had quarrels with their neighboring villages over the boundaries of their land. Such disputes led to constant conflicts and bitter enmity.
It a person was captured by other villages during the conflict one had to pay for the release of that person a large amount of money or a thing equals to the money at least one “Mythum”. The hostage would be put in stocks till the demanded thing was received. This payment of money was called “Tlan” redemption with the coming of Christianity the enmity between the different villages vanished. They felt the need of accepting each other and respecting human life. The people realized themselves as prisoners of sin and they found Jesus Christ as the redeemer. The freedom that the gospel brought to Matu people has transformed the bitterness and hatred among them into mutual acceptance.[23]7.2. Hlawn (Save)The release experienced by a person. When some one takes away a heavy load from his/ her back, which a person has been carrying a long time. In Matus agricultural economy, women have a major role. Women are not spared form the hardest jobs. Along with all usual domestic works they were to clear jungles for cultivation and carry a basket full of newly harvested paddy on their back to home they are not allowed to dried water on the way and are not expected to take bath till the harvest is finished.
This custom is known as ” Tuisi tuem”. Usually the farmland is far away form their villages, so their sufferings are beyond description. This custom is practiced in the name of their religion. Men have to bear a separate burden. They fell trees to clear a new land for cultivation. They carry the eldest woman in their village to the new land to sprinkle the animal blood there. After that ceremony the woman is snot supported to touch the ground till she reached her home. All Matus really longed for a deliverance from there kinds of religious practices. Due to the fear of curse and catastrophe from the angry gods they endured the sufferings. When the gospel of Jesus Christ was preached to them, there were freed from all kinds of superstitions. They accepted this freedom joyfully. This freedom is known as “Hluan”. They confessed that Jesus Christ in their savior.
7.3. Loeih (Liberation)The word “Loeih” means the freedom from bondage. It is not only an external freedom, but also more meaningfully the freedom of mind from anxiety and fear of death. The usage of this term has a specific background. Originally each Matu village is largely inhabited buy a single clan. There was no local government to keep the life peaceful. So struggles between the neighboring villages are common. People are afraid to go from one village to another. It there is an acute necessity for a person to go from one village to another, ever though it is only one day journey, he had to take three or four days to escape from the attack of other villagers.
So the fear of death was always in their life. It that person safely reached his destination he would say ” I am saved”.[24]There is another fear, which suppresses the minds of the people. That is the fear of evil spirit (Rhai) like spirit of rivers, spirit of rocks, spirit of trees and spirit of streams, In order to avoid death by these spirits the people had to keep away from these places. After arrival of Christianity these superstitious beliefs vanished from the minds of the people. They started to love each other. They realized inner peace and freedom when they accepted the fact that there is a God who is almighty, controlling the power of nature, and also loving and concerning about the well being of all human beings.[25]
7.4. Zoe Then (Grace or Blessing)As Augustine says “The grace of God is present everywhere and at every moment, and that God’s grace changes human life.[26] In Matu language there is no direct word for “grace”. Infant, they understood grace as blessing of God “Zoethen”. But it is different from the term lucks. Duck, in Matu is ” A Kam” which is adopted from the word “Kaan” in Burmese. The major difference is that the word luck or good fortune comes to a person through his labor when he/ she gets more then what is expected. On the other hand, but blessing “Zoethen” is received not by human effort.
Therefore the Matus also understand it as the gift of God. In order to know the favor of God, they followed a practice. At the tip of a long erected bamboo pole they hung a symbol of a cross and applied animal blood. People used to shoot at that symbol of cross (Sa tlock). It any one could shoot at the symbol of cross, they believed that God’s mercy is upon him. This act and its result are called “Zoethen”. It starts also for earth, health and delight. They are considered to be a gift of God known as ” Kho” or ” Khohni”. Matu people used the above mentored concepts to illustrate the salvation through the grace of God, and more precisely salvation is the gift of God. God shows no favoritism. All human beings can be the recipients of God’s blessing or salvation.[27]
8. Matu traditional concept of life and its future.Matu tradition considers long life in this world as blessing and views it as reward for keeping social order of the traceable community, death , particularly, sudden death is considered as a terrible misfortune, and is often interpreted as divine punish meant for the breach of social code. They believed that in the future world a person would have to reap the consequence pf past misdeeds and to suffer from the circle of rebirths in this world. The dead is traced like as it he were really living. In this earthly world a person has to perform religious festival at least three times by killing mithurn for his spiritual survival. At his funeral, a person is offered everything that he might reed in his next life. Matus believe that a dead person goes to the dead village to ” sel khui kho” through agate which is situated between the earth and the dead village.
This celestial gate is guarded by a mythical being the evil one like the rock with the open mouth. The dead has to appease the evil one like the open mouth, because of this traditional reason the killing of not animal is required for one’s funeral ceremony. The animal sacrificed is offered to the dead to accompany him to his abode. This animal sacrificed alone is sufficient for entering into the avode of the dead villages. Traditional belief implies that the dead could bring all the thing to spiritual word, that are given to a person at his funeral ceremony and all the riches and social prestige that he accumulated in his life time. They prefer to die natural death anther then accidental death ” Sai cet”. The Matu idea of eschatology is concerned with the need to pursue worldly things. A person is believed to be transmuted to another form of life at the moment of his death,. She/ he puts on in the next life the clothes, which he/ she wears at the moment of her/ his death. This belief involves that if a person is captured by evil spirit e.g. rocks or rivers he becomes under the power of the evil spirit. An animal sacrifice at his funeral will deliver his spirit.
9. “God” in Matu Chin TodayBefore the coming of missionaries the Matus people adhered to their indigenous religion, but in during the second world war Christianity was introduced to the Matu people from Americans Via the northern chin hills. Today the majority of population is Christian. As we have already mentioned in chapter two, the advent and influence of British rulers and Christian missionaries has Staten over the Matu religion and culture.
What the missionary gave to Matus people is western Christianity, There fore we will try to understand God our Kho in Matu traditional religion as a means of constructing fa theology based on a radically monotheistic understanding of God which will reaffirm, reinterpret, and redirect, church traditions and help solve the problems caused b y theological confusion and conflicts in that particular content. We will conclude with the challenge to the western theological content and its application in the development of genuine Matu Christianity.[28]
10. Separation of Christian Brethrens due to Revivalism “Hlimsang” MovementAround 1939 there appeared a spiritual revival among Mizo people of India through the works of Welsh Presbyterian Mission. This movement employed beating of tom-toms, dancing, and speaking in unknown tongue. The Pentecostal movement and charismatic movement of present day were similar to this revival movement. In some places when this movements were in excess, dancing, shouting, falling down to the floor, jabbering in tongues etc. there were occasions when Christian leaders could not cope with the situation.
The emphasis on the Second Coming theme engendered fatalism in people’s idea so much that many refused to work in fields or at home. Some refused to go to schools. They developed unteacheable spirit because they claimed that the Holy Spirit touched them and hence there was not need for any one else to teach them. Dancing and socializing every night eventually caused sexual debauchery and many other unwanted things were manifested. About their dances, Dr. Johnson wrote: “Holy Rollerism”.[29] In 19th of January, 1951, Rev. Robart G. Johnson and party arrived at Ngaleng village and they were met by Rev. That Dun and Saya Pa Hrek. They both were graduated from Northern Chin Haka Bible School. In 20th January, 1951, Rev. Johnson and party arrived at Ngaleng Village, and they were met by U Sang Ning, a member of Parliament, a group of Christians, Policemen, and students. At the time, Matupi was the quarter of the government in Matu area. During the arrival of Rev. Johnson and his group at Matupi, some of believers misinterpreted the Scripture passage, especially, Acts 2.1-4, ‘The Holy Spirit comes at Pentecost’, because of that “hlim sang” meaning, “high emotion” (charismatic) was so popular among the believers t every village. Rev. Johnson preached and explained what is the true meaning of that passages, the true nature of worship that is acceptable to God, what did really happened on the day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts.[30]
11. ApplicationI noticed that there are some benefits of Revivalism and weak points of Revivalism as I mention in the following:(a)The Benefit of Revivalism01. Increase in believers and churches02. Desire for God’s words and hymns increased (many song composers came into existence.)03. Increase in numbers of evangelists and preachers.04. Increase in giving.05. Learning, teaching etc. increased.06. It enhanced the desire to go to new mission fields.(b)Draw-backs of RevivalismWeak points and draw-back of Revivalism:01. Criticism and back-biting are rife.02. Disdaining of other people’s opinion became common.03. Impediment in domestic development. (Especially those of lower echelons in society were prone to disregard their domestic affairs gave preference to gatherings, training, than homes, fields, children etc.)04. Negligence of morality (sex) happened.Schisms among established churches or community resulted often. We, Matu people, should be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom of God because He promises to those who love Him. Therefore, in Christ Jesus, let us build up our self-identity and cultural integrity in terms of faithfulness as a mature spirituality. For if we are not faithful to sow the seeds we will be blown out by the waves, the strong winds, and be persuaded by the deceitful men who lead others astray.
Every evangelist has to show the way of eternal life by carrying seeds to so within our Matu land and those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy ( Ps. 126: 5 ) . In the same way, let your lights be shine before men that they may see your good works and glorifying your Father in heaven ( Matt. 5. 16 ) Now Matu people become a new Christian changed from old animistic believers and we should have to try to follow our righteous way of life and imitate in our faith for Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today , and forever ( Hebrews 13: 7 ).
Matu believers who had received the gospel light of salvation, were no longer satisfied with evangelizing their own vicinity but they have convictions and burden’s to share the gospel messages to different dialect specking people, who has dissimilar customs and traditions, should all be evangelized near and far. Christianity was also responsible for the extermination of evil cultures, such as head hunting, witch craft revenge between tribes and families, etc, of the ethnic minorities. By the grace of God when the gospel come to Matu people, it reformed many things in Matu Culture for the better. The most obvious among the development programme is education. It is the best way to help develop Matu and their environment.
The main driving force of the chin society that has transformed it from its long bondage of alcoholic drinking life to the better and educated level of life would be none other than the power of the gospel. The christen gospel preached by Rev. That Dun transformed that Matu from being the evil spirits fearers to the evil spirits over-comers. The Christian gospel helps them to speak out clearly and loudly against all evil systems and structure in their cultures, for instance, the power of chiefs, the division of social classes, oppression of women, superstitious practices, etc.. Among the most important life change as stated earlier was the change from the belief in and propitiation of the many spirits to the worship of the one God.
To be specific, after the gospel came to the Matu people, fear of spirits has ended as 1John 3:8 describes, “The Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of devil.” Today, the Matu Christians firmly believe that the Holy Spirit given by Christ is much stronger than the power of the evil spirits, whom they feared before. And consequently, this knowledge leads them to a new step of life. The Matus now believe that God has given them wisdom and knowledge to discern the good from the bad, the holy from unholy, and the light from the darkness. They now come to understand the God of their ancestors and the God about whom the missionaries told them as the one God who rules the universe and became the reformer and promoter of their cultural and social life. They believe Christ not only as the reformer but also as the fulfiller of values inherent in the Matu culture. It is no longer possible for the Chin people to change their lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, with any other God in this world. It is through the power of the gospel of Christ that the Chin people changed their lives from the worshippers of evil spirits to worshippers of the living and eternal God.
The coming of the Gospel of Christ to the Matu’s land is therefore a significant step for the animistic Matus both to the loss and rediscovery of their own history, culture, languages, and religion. This step is also the beginning of their Cultural Revolution and new anodes to the promise land that flows with mile and honey that is of the greater civilization, growth, and maturity. In their long journey to a century, the Matus have come across with many. Political, social, cultural and economical changes and even the unprecedented challenges. Speaking from a cultural perspective, there were a lot of changes in the Matu culture and social life, and these changes had many to do with the way they have believed in their missionaries God. For God whom their missionaries taught them has been God who powerfully destroyed all works of evil spirits embodied in the human culture and moral attitudes.
Since 50 years the Gospel of Jesus Christ is being preached in Matu land. It has removed several social evils. In the beginning the main missionary concern was the establishment of the churches. However, at the end of the 20th century, same changes happened because Matu Christians began to analyse their context situation. Matus want to understand Christian message in their own cultural context. Thus gospel become real and relevant. It is very important to deepen the interaction between the Christian faith and Matu culture. It is possible to cognize similarities among different culture. It helps to develop mutual understanding and respect for each other. It is important that Jesus’ liberation can be relied in Matu situation. The Gospel of Jesus Christ helps to improve the Matu community as a whole.
In fact, Christianity is not indigenous to the Matu people because it was not born in this region, it was borrowed from missionaries with a western from of culture. Actually, the traditional religious belief helped people it understand Christianity better. Hence, in summary, God of the Holy and God of light have made them the Matus, find themselves in the unholy and wretched condition to their own existence and have made them feel estrange to their own culture. And yet God has given them, his wisdom and knowledge to discern the good from the bad, the Holy from the unholy and the light from the darkness. We know that Christ has exorcised demons out of the man, but at the same time we also know that Christ has restored him to the normal life and asked him to continue to live and work for God’s kingdom.
In fact, God whom our missionaries taught us shall not only the creator but he shall significantly be the reformer and educator of our animistic culture and social life. We proclaim that Christ has saved us from the binding power of darkness to the liberating power of light and so we now have a new principle of life and a new form of culture- a culture that is no longer demonic and oppressive in form and structure. Christ has become hence not only the reformer but also the fulfiller of all our self—hood values inherent in our own culture (Matt. 5: 17). In the Gospel of Christ, we are purposefully given a new direction to a new life, to new desisting, and to a new set of cultural values.
For the 21st century, the Matu Christians need the right motives and aims for our mission. Training and theological education may be every important for missionaries, but our motives and aims are more important then training and theological education. Financial resources may be another problem, but money will not solve all our problems. The right motive may be the one, which can solve our financial denominational, situational, and contextual problems most effectively in the mission of the Matus-tribes in the 21st century.
Now, Matus people become a new Christian, changed from old animistic believers and we should have to try to follow our righteous way of life and imitate our “Faith” for Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13: 7).
Bibliography1. Poe, Hla, Matupi Township’s Golden Jubilee Mgazine-1949- 1999. Matupi:1999.2. Lehman, F.K., the Structure of Chin Society, .Illinois: The University Of Illinois Press19633. Kone, Bung, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State. Unpublished Thesis, Mandalay: Myanmar Theological College,20054. ____________ ____”The Light of Matu Land” in Yangon Matupi Bible Students Fellowship Magzine,vol. 5 . Yangon:20055. Darzing ,Lydia, Impact of Christianity on Matu Women,.Unpublished B.D.Thesis, Gurukul Lutheran Theological College and research Institute,19966. Hup , Prof.Dr.Cung Lian, Thinking About Christianity and Chins in Myanmar. Yangon,MIT:19997. Ling, Salai Thawng, Rev.That Dun’s Golden Jubilee. Matupi: Matupi Baptist Association, 19948. Toi , Laithang Cang, That Dun’s Golden Jubilee Magazine Matupi:19949. Son , Laithang Biak, Thawng Hnin Zam and T.Joshua, Brief History Of Union Theological College. Yangon:200410. Ling, Salai Za Uk &Salai Bawi Lian Ling, Religious Persecution: A Campaign of Ethnocide Against Chin Christians In Burma. Canada,Ottaw: Chin Human Rights Orgnization, 200411. Walls, Andrew F., The Cross-Cultural Process in Christian History. New York, Mary knoll: Orbis Books,200212. Erickson, Millard J., Christian Theology. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House,198513. Zomi Baptist Convention, CCOC Mission History,vol. 1. Falam:ZBC,199914. Zomi Theological College, Chin Church History. Falam, Chin State: Zomi Theological College, 200715. Johnson, Robert G., History of the American Baptist Chin Mission vol. I,Valley Forge, PA: 1988
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[1] Hla Poe, Matupi Township’s Golden Jubilee Mgazine-1949- 1999(Matupi:1999) ,158.[2] Hla Poe, Matupi Township’s Golden Jubilee Mgazine-1949- 1999,159.[3] F.K. Lehman, the Structure of Chin Society, (Illinois: The University Of Illinois Press1963), 82.[4] Bung Kone, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State(Unpublished Thesis, Mandalay: Myanmar Theological College,2005) ,6.[5] Ibid.,86.[6] Bung Kone, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State,18.[7] Lydia Darzing, Impact of Christianity on Matu Women,(Unpublished B.D.Thesis, Gurukul Lutheran Theological College and research Institute,1996) ,43.[8] Bung Kone, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State,25.[9] Bung Kone, “The Light of Matu Land” in Yangon Matupi Bible Students Fellowship Magzine,vol. 5 (Yangon:2005) ,87.[10] Ibid., 32.[11] Ibid., 34.[12] Prof.Dr.Cung Lian Hup, Thinking About Christianity and Chins in Myanmar (Yangon, MIT: 1999), 101-103.[13] Salai Za Uk Ling&Salai Bawi Lian Ling, Religious Persecution: A Campaign of Ethnocide Against Chin Christians In Burma(Canada,Ottaw: Chin Human Rights Orgnization, 2004),28- 29.[14] Salai Thawng Ling, Rev.That Dun’s Golden Jubilee(Matupi: Matupi Baptist Association, 1994),45- 46.[15] Zomi Baptist Convention, CCOC Mission History,vol. 1(Falam:ZBC,1999) 66.[16] Thawng Ling, Rev.That Dun Golden Jubilee, 46-47.[17] Ibid.,48.[18]Zomi Theological College, Chin Church History( Falam, Chin State: Zomi Theological College, 2007), 208.[19] ZBC, CCOC Mission History,vol. 1,72-73.[20] Andrew F. Walls, The Cross-Cultural Process in Christian History(New York, Mary knoll: Orbis Books,2002), 79.[21] Laithang Cang Toi, That Dun’s Golden Jubilee Magazine(Matupi:1994) ,92.[22] Bung Kone, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State,41.[23] Ibid., 42.[24] Laithang Biak Son, Thawng Hnin Zam and T.Joshua, Brief History Of Union Theological College(Yangon:2004) ,35-36.[25] Bung Kone, The History of Baptist Mission Among The Matu Tribes In Southern Chin State,43.[26] Millard J.Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House,1985), 633.[27] Ibid.,45.[28] Laithang Biak Son, Thawng Hnin Zam and T.Joshua, Brief History Of Union Theological College,50-54.[29] Robert G. Johnson, History of the American Baptist Chin Mission vol. I ( Valley Forge, PA:1988), 1194[30] Bung Kone, “The Light of Matu Land” in Yangon Matupi Bible Students Fellowship Magzine,vol. 5,86.
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