CHRISTIANITY IN MYANMAR

By: Lunminthang Haokip

Introduction: Myanmar is known across the globe as Military-ruled third world co
untry that is not favourable to Christianity. It is true that construction of n
ew church building was discouraged in the past. As of now, the dynamics of ensui
ng ‘democratic’ elections somehow calculatingly relaxed the Junta’s strictures o
n that issue. To put it succinctly, Christians in Myanmar, despite the internal
vigils, enjoy more liberty to preach and spread the Gospel Truth than their cou
nterparts do in some of the ‘democratic’, countries. The message that Adoniram a
nd Anne Judson, the pioneer American Baptist Missionary couple to Burma, drove h
ome in Rangoon and its suburbs from 1813 through 1820s and 30s of the last cent
ury, under strict monitoring of the then local authorities, is still gaining mom
entum in the ‘golden land’.
The Percentage Divide: Out of the 46 million people of Myanmar’s major ethnic g
roups, viz, the Burmans, Kayins, Chins (Zomis, Thadou-Kukis, Mizos etc), Kayahs,
Mons, Rakhines and Shans and the 135 minority ethnic entities permanently set
tled in the Divisions and States of the country, about 89% are Budhists, 4% Chr
istians (some claim 6%), 4% Muslims, and 3% Hindus . Out of the 4% Christians, 3
% of the total population of the Union are said to be Baptist. The top language
groups are Burmese, Shan, Kayin (Karen), Rakhine, Mon, Chin and kachin. A total
of 111 languages are recognised by the government. Of the major languages spoken
in the Hermit nation, 68% speak Burman, 9% speak Karen, 4% Rakhine, 3% Chin, 2%
Indian and 5% speak other languages and dialects. The total area of Myanmar, 67
6, 577 square Kms, is divided into 7 Divisions, Irrawady, Magwe, Mandalay, Pagu,
sagaing, Tenasserim and Rangoon; and 7 States, Arakan, Chin, Kachin, Karen, Kay
ah, Mon, and Shan.
The Background: For reasons best known to the majority populace, Budhism, by f
ar is the “favoured” religion in the land of Pagodas. The peaceful Middle Path c
onceived and made popular by Budha from Indian soil had been deeply entrenched
in the Burmese psyche. Budhism is a way of life out there and enjoys official pa
tronage. Christianity still carries the image of the colonial rulers who invaded
Burma three times in 1825, 1852, and 1885. The country came under the direct a
dministration of British India from 1885 to 1937. Of course, God had a master p
lan in the invasions. Adoniram Judson, the American pioneer Evangelist who tran
slated the New Testament Bible in Burmese and published in 1823, and the whole B
ible in Burmese in 1834, was mercilessly jailed by the king of Ava. The raid of
1925 got the imprisoned Judson released from the shackles of judicial custody. T
he freedom of movement granted to him helped the faithful servant of God get li
berated to pursue translation and printing of the complete Bible in Burmese.
The Big Umbrella: Burma Christian Council was the old fold founded in 1949. Chri
stian leaders of the third world country resolved to come under the new name the
y gave themselves in 1989 – Myanmar Council of Churches which is head-quartered
in Yangon. The apex council was the offshoot of National Council of India, Burma
and Ceylon that was founded in 1914 in India. The common belief in the Triune G
od –the Father, the Son and the Holy spirit – as testified by the Holy Scripture
, held the Christian groups in Myanmar together. MCC also has unflinching faith
in the Apostle’s Creed, the Nicene Creed and strongly believes that the Bible gi
ves the way to salvation of all mankind. There are about 30 regional and local c
ouncils of Churches in the country.
The Alien Stigma: For all the painful labours of the western missionaries from t
he 16th century to the present one in Burma, the growth of Christianity wasn’t p
roportionate to the desired effect. It took 6 years of prayer and relentless eff
ort for the Judsons to convert the first Karen brother, Ko Tha Byu, and make him
the pioneer Evangelist in his resistant community. The monarch of the region hi
mself was hostile to conversion, even then. The successive wars waged by the Bri
tish Indian Rulers on Burma was the major setback for advancement of the Gospel
among ethnic Burmans. When the colonial country was freed from the clutches of
the British rulers on 4 January, 1948, Christianity was left behind to strive fo
r progress under the indelible impact of the stigmatised image of imperialism. T
he prejudiced notion sticks in the minds of people who matter politically in Mya
nmar, even today. Nothing lesser than the wetting of the pew and the pulpit with
tears of revealed prayer, and heart-searing testimonies, will be required to pr
ove the living God in the land.

The Chin Hills Factor: Flanked by Mizoram in the west and Sagaing and Magwe Divi
sions in the east; bordering Rakhine state in the south, Manipur in the north an
d Bangladesh in the south-west, and measuring 36,019 square Kms in geographical
expanse, Chin Hills in Myanmar, which was granted the status of statehood on 4
January, 1974, has two districts: North and South. The majority of the inhabita
nts are Chin Zomis numbering about 5 lakhs in population. Thanks to the Baptist
missionary work rendered with a consummate finish by Arthur Carson from 1899, a
nd continued with renewed vigour after his death in 1908 by his even more jealou
s help meet, Ann Carson, Church-spires sprout chock-a-block in the towns of Chin
state today. Most of the native residents like Laimis, Falams, Hakhas, Thentla
ngs, Thadou-Kukis, Zous, Maras, Metus, Senthangs, Dais etc. affiliate their chu
rches to either Zomi Baptist convention or Chin Baptist Church, Myanmar. The Miz
os of Myanmar are under the fold of Methodist Church of Upper Myanmar, Presbyter
ian Church of Myanmar and Salvation Army, Myanmar Command.
ZBC: In Chin Hills and Upper Myanmar Zomi/Thadou-kuki-Hakha-Falam-inhabited sett
lements, Zomi Baptist Convention rules the roost like CBCNEI in NE India. The no
menclature was given by Rev. ST Haugo, a Suhte Missionary in 1953. ZBC has 53 re
cognised Christian tribes anchored firmly to it’s organisation. The convention
has its Head Quarter at Falam and trains future workers in the Lord’s vineyard
in Zomi Theological College, Yangon. Although Chin State exists as a recognised
province, the Hill people of NE India’s immediate neighbour country felt that th
e word “Chin” was a name given by other ethnic groups, and that it does not addr
ess the origin of their common ancestry. The more widely acceptable nomenclature
was Zo or Zomi. ZBC has been lapped up as a convention by the Chin Zomi Chris
tians of western and upper Myanmar. Nevertheless, there is a debatable controver
sy over unanimity on the credibility of “Zo” as the progenitor of the over 2 m
illion Chin-Kuki-Zomi sub-nation whose cultural affinity had been damaged extens
ively by the accidents of history.

The Yangon Scenario. Nay Pyi Daw is the declared official capital of the Union o
f Myanmar. But Rangoon, rechristened Yangon, still continues to hold sway as t
he practical capital of the Burman-dominated country. The Korean Missionaries ha
d attempted great things for the Lord in Myanmar. They formed business teams i
n disguise, got themselves registered officially, and paid the pre-requisite tax
es of the land with the sole view to witness the Lord Jesus in the land of Pagod
as with Yangon as the axis point. After a certain degree of initial success in m
aking inroads into the ethnic communities in the land as Gospel-businessmen, as
their motives become more visible and audible to the powers-that-be, the Gosp
el do-gooders were subjected to serious scrutiny. Sooner or later, their trade l
icences were cancelled and they were ordered to pack up and march out of the cou
ntry for their homes. It’s a challenge of a trend set by the adventurous South K
oreans. Nearer home, in NW Myanmar and NE India, we must pray much and seek divi
ne guidance to impart the Gospel of love to our brothers in the international ne
ighbourhood.
Leveraging the Average Bible Student: We know that many revered non-resident Bi
ble scholars of Myanmar-origin are either ministering or undergoing courses in
several Christian countries across the continents. Agreed that the dollar or oth
er foreign currencies they earn abroad come handy as the means to live a lifesty
le they could not have bargained for in the place of native domicile. The big-he
arted altruism of the first-world nations in extending support to the struggling
aspirants of the third, of course, deserves a standing applause. That most of
the NRMs (non-resident Myanmarese} had invested back in their home towns or in t
he bigger cities of their country also boost up the overall economy of the local
s. The exposure to the West has its own side-effects, though. In the mad rush to
catch up with the teasing ways of the world, the mind of Christ, the Saviour
( Phil 2:5) who hailed from the Middle-East, seems to be buried under the zeal
to learn English and become a green-card holder.
Time to Witness: The question is, how far had the servants of God served the Lo
rd they professed to follow in their own region? Has the lure of comfort soft-pe
dalled the Gospel-zeal to “preach and teach” the nations? Will the souls of the
Judsons and Carsons be happy over the state of Christian affairs in the ethnic
concentrations where they sowed the seed of the Gospel Truth, in tears? I, as
a concerned social observer from close quarters, feel that the present Rulers in
Authority in Nay Pyi Daw are not so much averse to the believers among their su
bject as they had been made out to be. Their priority is more of Internal Secur
ity of the country and holding on to their systematic comfort zone . Providing
relief in times of calamity by Christian NGOs is fine and well-appreciated . But
more than that, all professors of the Faith should call, with passionate penite
nce, on the “Most High who rules over the affairs of men” (Daniel 5:21) to inter
vene and move hearts that matter to give weighty credence to Civil Liberties.
Anyway, compared to the first century persecution, what believers face in India
and Myanmar are chicken feed. Let us feed the spiritual chicken , now when we ca
n.
Appeal for Verdict: As a thinking pen-pusher, I feel sad that I have to think ma
ny times before telling others as to who I am or what my ethnic identity is. I w
as moulded to be a trifle too sensitive a man to ignore the sensibilities and m
ental inclinations of my brothers and sisters who speak almost similar dialects
in India, Bangladesh and Myanmar. Many sub-national names had been floated arou
nd with each proponent sticking to his guns, come what may. However, earthly app
roaches to unite our scattered and fragmented folks, with an ace up one’s sleeve
, will boomerang at the end of the day, doing further disservice to the goal of
unification. The partition of minds, widened further by international vested int
erests in our plural societies, cannot be bridged with regional and sectarian pr
opositions. We need to forget the past and forgive the wrong-doers, real or imag
ined, confer and confabulate objectively to bring out a viable nomenclature, i
rrespective of past proposals, like they do in zero-based budgeting.
The Only Remedy: A hundred ideas may be bouncing about. Debates may go on eterna
lly. But the solution to the vexed issue of giving ourselves a common sub-nation
al name lies in the hands of the God who not only created Chin Hills, Lushei Hil
ls, Manipur, Assam, Sagaing Division etc but also sustained the people, caused a
nd controlled calamities and gave His Word to sensitize His children. More than
political clamours, the old writing in 2 Chronicles 7:14 will bring blessing to
our trans-national fold, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humbl
e themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then
will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land”.
Let us take note of the pre-conditions we must fulfil to be worthy of being hea
rd and healed by the Almighty. Reproduced below is this author’s poetic appeal t
o reverse our priorities in tune with the will of God:
C4Z: CHRIST FOR ZOUGAM
.
Where there’s no vision, people perish,
Where there’s no will-of-God, widows increase;
My own folks, you love one another,
Says our good Lord and God the father;
Love of land, tribe and self is greater,
Among the nations, we are smaller.
In a bid to build church of own choice,
Coz each wants to lead own fold’s sad voice;
Church-folks who once sang in one accord,
Are now split followers of one Lord;
That we may regain spiritual strength,
The binding ZCFI, let’s all make ours.
2. We may be parted by land borders,
Maybe we’re bound by rules and orders;
But, like the trees, our roots of origin
And branches, in Christ are enjoined;
That the poor and deprived may get well,
Let’s put to use might of the Gospel.
3. To be stewards, on earth we were kept,
To be honoured in God, we were left;
But we swap His will with vain passions,
We’re below our due among nations,
Wake up, let’s cease to for Christ seize land,
Let Christ for Zougam be the peace-chant.