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Jan - April 2013

PRESBYTERIAN REVIEW 1

www.mizoramsynod.org

http://www.mizoramsynod.org

Jan - April 2013



PRESBYTERIANREVIEW

VOl. XXI Jan - April, 2013 No. 66

Contents Page

1. Editorial 1

2. News Around the MPC- Rev. Prof. C. Lalhlira 2

3. Work Spirituality 13- Ms. Rosy Zoramthangi

4. Resolution of SEC Meeting No.244 18Dr. Lalrindiki Ralte

5. Report of Rural Exposure 2013 20 - Loye Kabui, B.D. II

Editor :Rev. Dr. C. Lalhlira

Members of the Editorial Board: Rev. Dr. K.Lallawmzuala Dr. Lalrindiki Ralte

Rev. K. LalchhuanawmaMr. Lalsiamkima

Manager : Rev. Lalthangpuia Fanai

Postal Address of the Editor:Aizawl Theological College,Post Box No. 167,Aizawl - 796 001,MIZORAM, INDIA.Ph. (0389) 2361126Fax (0389) 2361663E-mail: atheol @ sancharnet.in

Subscription RatesAnnual - Rs. 100.00Per Copy - Rs. 25.00

To Subscribe, please contactThe Manager,Presbyterian Review ,Aizawl Theological College,Post Box - 167,Aizawl - 796 001,MIZORAM, INDIA.

Printed at Synod Press O

Mizoram, India.

Presbyterian Review is a quarterly news magazine concerning the Life and Witness of the Churchin Mizoram and other related matters, published by the Mizoram Presbyterian Church Synod.

The views expressed in this magazine do not necessarily represent the official position of theMizoram Presbyterian Church; each contributor is solely responsible for the views expressedin his/her article.


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EditorialTo review the Church’s activities has been a complex

and dounting task! One reason for this being the Church’smanyfold activities in and out. Sometimes one has torecollect what have been already done in the past withouthaving a personal written record. Sometimes one hasdepend on those who personnaly attended the functionsor programmes. But it is not easy to get their write-upswhen they were needed due to their busy schedules, ormay be they have already forgotten to write! In spite ofthis, the Editorial Board is trying tit best to update andpublicise the Church’s activities as regular as possible.

In this issue, we publish the usual features of the Church’s activities suchas resolutions of the latest Synod Executive Committee sessions. Theyreflect the views, opinions, and theological, social and religious faith andbeliefs of the Mizoram Presbyterian Church. In addition to this, it alsocontains the Bible study written by Ms. Rosy Zoramthangi, a Lecturer inOld Testament Department, Aizawl Theological College, from the bookof Jeremiah. The Bible study was initially delivered at the ATC Chapel intheir morning devotion under the theme “Christian work ethics’. It ishoped that the study will add to the better understanding of work ethics.The issue also contains a report of Rural exposure, a practical workprogramme in the Aizawl Theological College. The sudent whose reporthas been published here comes from outside Mizoram. Her observationmay not be the same with those who are inside the state. Though her stayin the particular village is short, she carefully observed the village fromsocial analysis method following the orientation given by their teachers.

Many blessings to all the readers of the Presbyterian Review!


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Congrational singing the theme song at the CollegeAnniversary (College Day)

NEWS AROUND THE MPC C. Lalhlira

Presbyterian Church Women'sConference 2013During March 8 - 10 the 45Presbyterian Women's FellowshipGeneral Conference (biennial) washeld at Republic Veng Playground,with the theme. Get up, call on yourGod," (Jonah 1:6)' Speakersinclude Rev. P.C. Pachhunga,Executive Secretary i/c Women;Rev. Lalzuithanga, ExecutiveSecretary and few leaders at thecentral Committee. Ms. RosyZoramthangi, Lecturer, ATC led theBible study on the book ofHabakuk. The firsts evening i.e.March 8 (Friday) was spent forWelcome and Reports. The nextday i.e. March 9 (Saturday) wasbusiness session at the khânRepublic Veng Presbyterian Churchand election was conducted for theyear 2013-2015 . They had asmany as four agendas from theCentral Committee and 15 frompastorates (districts) units. The totalbudget for 2013 - 2014 Rs.64,00,000/- Indian Rupees=INR)was approved (which was split intotwo: Women Centre 50,00,000/- &Central Budget - Rs. 14,00,000/-)

The summary of the Reports formPastorates :1. Reports Received : 1692. Number of Churches : 7903. No. of Braches : 75 Total : 10344. Presbyterian Family: 95,4145. Mixed Denominations Families :

4,2946. Total No. of Families : 99,7087. No. of Women members :

1582468. Regular donours of handful of

Rice : 96,751 = 97.03%9. Largest no. of members :

Chanmari Pastorate (3385members)

10. Smallest no. of members :Buarpui Pastorate (50 members)

11. No. of families having dailyfamily devotion: 57,002 =57.17%

12. No. Of Churches having regularworship services 140 No.churches that can have occasionalworship services = 29 ; No. ofchurches that cannot have worshipservices = 51.

New Office Bearers for 2013-2015 Central Women Committeefor were elected as follows:1. Chairman - Pi C. Lahmangaihi,


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Venghlui Bial (Appointed by theSynod)2. Vice Chairman- PiRochuangkimi, from ChaltlangPastorate3. General Secretary - Pi H.Lalpianthangi, Asst. Coordinator(Appointed by the Synod)4. Assistant Secretary - Dr.Vanlalhruaii , from MissionVengthlang Pastorate5. Treasurer - Pi C. Lalneihthangi,from Dawrpui pastorate6. Finance Secretary - PiVanlaltluangi, from Republic VengPastorate

Resolutions passed by theConference:A. Central CommitteeAgenda :i) Programmes detail (Ref. CC

438 : 9 (1) of 22.5.2012) Fridayevening Service - Reports;Saturday Day time - Businesshours; Evening Service:Preaching; Sunday, 3 timesServices - Delivery of DifferentTopics from the Theme

ii) Resolved to continue the prayeron every first Tuesday of themonths

iii) That the resolutions made in the

Sessions should be brought fordiscussion only after three years.

iv) To increase the amount ofassistance for the hosting church/pastorate : for hosting GeneralConference Rs. 700,000/- andfor hosting Business Sessions Rs.100,000/-.

B. Pastorate Agenda :i) Awareness Campaign should be

conducted to have more child;and the who are having morechildren should be given supports.The Central Committee wasentrusted to do the needful.

ii) Awareness should be made tomake decent wedding dressesand costumes for both themarriage couples and theirwitnesses.

iii) That if the applicants for hostingthe General Conferences are inline, they should be given chancesto host as per seniority list.

iv) That fasting prayer be organisedfor the free and fair election ofState Assembly to be conductedduring 2013,

v) To continue the awarenesscampaigns for ill effects oftobacco

vi) To educate people for the


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ethical principle on respects ofelders

vii)To educate the general publicabout the values of children, soalso the security of femalechildren in the society.

viii) To donate the collectionson one Tuesday evening serviceof the Church Women for theSynod Hospital Charity Fund

ix) For the faster work onconstruction of the WomenCentre the Central WomenCommittee was entrusted toorganise awareness among churchmembers.

REVIVAL SPEAKERS'RESIDENTIAL RETREATSynod Revival Departmentorganised a retreat during March21-22, 2013 at the SynodConference Centre. The Rev. P.C.Pachhunga, Executive Secretary i/c Revival conducted the inauguralprogramme at 10:30 am on March21, where the Synod ModeratorRev. Lalramliana Pachuau delivereda Keynote Address. Differentscholars and experts presentedpapers on various topics relating toChristian life and ministries. The firstsession was commenced 01:00pm

- 2:00pm conducted by Rev. R.Lalengzauva, Com. Member. Rev.R. Lalchangliana, Directorgave alecture on "Retrospective on theMinistry of the Synod RevivalCommittee". The second sessionwas held at 03:30pm - 4:30pm, ledby Upa R. Thangchhunga, Com.Member the topic "The Life styleof a Christian minister" waspresented by Upa D.P.Biakkhuma, Com. Member. Rev.K. Lalthangmawia, Com. Memberchaired the Third Session at06:00pm - 7:30pm. Upa C.Lalmuankima gave an informativedspeech on the "The Receipts andexpenses of the Synod's Funds"After this session between HIV/AIDS related issues was presentedby MSAC (a local NGO)

THE CHRISTIAN YOUTHFELLOWSHIPThe Central Kristian Thalai Pawl(Christian Your Fellowship) had abusiness Session at the PresbyterianChurch, Lunglei Chandmary duringMarch 1-5, 2013, during whichvarious numbers of resolutionswere passed, and in the eveningsworship services were conductedin the church. After each service,


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fellowship programmes were heldwhere varieties of items werepresented such as short play anddramas, solos, and messages ofencouragement and admonitions.The Business sessions were held onSaturday, March 2, and the wholeSunday March 3, was used forworship services and Fellowshipprogrammes. The theme for theyear was "To be a blessing forothers." The inaugural and Keynoteaddress was delivered by Rev.Lalzuithanga, the ExecutiveSecretary, i/c KTP (or PYF), anda booklet of guidelines for thetheme was dedicated and releasedby him.

The Business Session wasconducted by the Leader Rev. H.Lalrinmawia, whose leadershipexpertise was seen to discuss the 9Agenda 9 of various concerns fromdifferent pastorates and the budgetfrom the Central committee. Thereare some issues clarified at thebusiness floor, without discussion.Fellowship service was organizedon Saturday afternoon at the largestHall at Lunglei Township calledSaikuti Hall. Film awards weredistributed. On March 2 (Saturday)

evening onwards till March 3(Sunday) Eevening worshipservices were held. Rev.Lalramliana Pachuau, SynodModerator; Rev. Lalrinmawia,CKTP Leader and other Leadersof CKTP delivered messages.Fellowship programmes after andin between the services on Saturdayand Sunday were held at theBasketball Court.

Some resolutions:Prayer for the Election during theState Assembly election will beorganized according to theconveniences of the respectiveBranches.

A song book for the GeneralConference 2014 should beprepared.

Counselling training for themembers should be conductedduring 2013.

The Central Office was entrustedto prepare a commentary for theten confession of Faith of thePresbyterian Church of India andbe studied by the membersaccording to their conveniences.


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The proposed theme byThingsulthliah pastorate 'Prepare tomeet your God' for 2014-2015 wasaccepted.

The BUDGET for 2013-141. KTP Synod Budget -

Rs. 1,293,000/-2. Fellowship Budget -

Rs. 1,300,000/-3. Youth Recreation Centre Budget

Rs. 700,000/- Total: Rs. 3,293,000/-

2014 General Conference will beheld at Khawzawl

2015 Business Session will beheld at Mission Veng

2016 General Conference willbe held at Champhai

KTP Total No. of delegates = 759(as on 1st March 9:00 p.m.Friday)

23 branches submitted short filmsbased on the theme 'A blessing forothers'' and the best film award wasreceived by Bawngkawn ChhimVeng film on the title 'GuardianAngel'.

Following this business Session, theCentral KTP (PYF) which met onMarch 20, 2013 made the followingdecisions:

The Central Committee selectedIsaiah 60: 1 "Arise, shine," for thetheme of Diamond JubileeCelebration that will be held nextyear 2014 during its GeneralConference the conference. A sub-committee was formed to preparea song book for use during theConference.

The same meeting decided to senddelegates from the YouthFellowship to attend the "I LoveTaiwan" mission camp 2013, ayouth exchange programme withthe Youth Fellowship of thePresbyterian Church of Taiwan".This programme will be held duringJune 26-July 23, 2013 in Taiwan.About five delegates will be sentfrom Mizoram this time.

Three sub-committees wereformed to take responsibilitytowards the fulfillment of theresolutions of 2013 GeneralMeeting, they are - a sub -committee for Counselling Training,


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a sub - committee to prepare aprogramme of learning church'screed; and a sub-committee to seta guideline for the theme during2014 -15 ,: "Prepare to meet yourGod". It resolved to revise the rulesand regulations of the PYF, whichwill be forwarded to the SynodExecutive Committee for approval.

SYNOD SOCIAL FRONTAn awareness campaign wasconducted on March 23 (Saturday)at Nisapui Presbyterian Church onthe topic "Self-Reliance on Foodproducts," by Mr. LalrosangaColney, Synod Office; Dr.Saithantluanga, Ramhlun South(Campaigner) and Ms. Lalduhsaki(Soloist) were sent from the office.

Training on Masonry: The SynodSocial Front in partnership with theMission Foundation Movementinaugurated Training on cementconstruction works (or Masonry)from March 11 (Monday) atBawngkawn, 16 attended thetraining. The same trainingprogrammes were conductedduring March in various locality ofAizawl such as Chhinga Veng,Mission Veng and Durtlang. During

the whole year of 2013, it willconduct the same training at tendifferent places within Aizawl andso also in all the district capitals.

During March 25 & 26 the SynodSocial Front organisedCounselling Training onEvangelism, at the SynodConference Centre, inviting oneparticipant each form localchurches within Aizawl. The SynodSecretary Rev. H. Lalrinmawianinaugurated the programme withshort devotion. Various persons ofexperts were invited as Resourcepersons such as Rev. R.Ramdinmawia, Director, SynodRescue Home, Elder H.Lalhmingmawia, Social FrontCoordinator, Mr. M.S. DawnglianaTochhawng, Counsellor, Pu K.Lalchhanhima, Social Worker, PuV. Lalnunmawia, Counsellor, NlLallawmzuali, Counsellor leh Mr.K. Siamchhunga, Counsellor.

THE MIZO SUNDAYSCHOOL UNION (MSSU)

On March 23 (Saturday) SundaySchool Teachers' Training wasConducted at Serchhip Hmar


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Veng, Serchhip Bethel leh SerchhipVengchung churches in which Rev.Dr. R. Lalbiakmawia (Author ofAdult Sunday School Lesson for2013); Local elder LalthahlunaRalte, MSSU Asst. Coordinator;Elder K. Zoremsanga, Kulikawnand elder Hrilthansanga, MissionVengthlang (MSSU Trainers) gavelectures.

THE SYNOD HOSPITAL

On March 18 (Monday) the SynodHospital organised Surgical EyeCamp at Kawnpui; during the sametime a Mobile [Health] Clinic wasconducted at Sangau, Saiha andTuipang Pastorates by a MedicalTeam.

During March 19-April 2 theSynod Hospital held a series ofretreat sessions with a theme "Butby my Spirit" in which PastorLalsangbera, Vaivakawn, was theSpeaker. The workers, who arebusy with their daily duties weredivided into three batches; eachbatch has two days each of retreat.

Dr. Lalrinliana Varte has returnedfrom Seoul, S. Korea after he

finished the degree of Master ofSurgery M.S. (Ortho) and hasjoined at the Synod Hospital.

SYNOD BOOKROOM'SMOBILE BOOKSHOPIn the context of "information age"with its sophisticated electronicdevices, where in some places'bookless library' and 'paperlessfiles' have been introduced, theMizoram Synod with its SynodBookroom is still conducting asuccessful Mobile Bookshopservice, which means selling booksin different villages. This time theytook their books to the northeastand eastern areas of Mizoramduring March 18 - 23, 2013.School good number of schoolexercise books, stationary, andother religious books were sold.

THE SYNOD MISSIONBOARD: One hundred andeleven New MissionariesCommissioned

The Synod Mission Board onceagain sent out more than onehundred missionaries to differentparts of India. These newmissionaries comprised of ordained


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ministers who will be taking chargesof field secretaries, and newlyrecruited ones, altogether 111 innumber. The missionaries werededicated and valedicted onJanuary 6, 2013 at BungkawnChurch, Aizawl. The Service wasattended by families and relativesof the missionaries, with many wellwishers of church members,numbering about 3,000. Rev.Lalchhuanmawia, the Secretary ofthe Synod Mission Board chairedthe service; Mr. Lalbiakênga,Assistant Coordinator of SynodMission Office introduced themissionaries. Rev. LalramlianaPachuau, the Synod Moderatordelivered a message of exhortationand had commissioned them. Twomissionaries gave responses.Bungkawn Church choir andBungkawn Pastorates' choirspresented songs. An intercessoryprayer was offered by the Rev. P.C. Pachhunga, Synod ExecutiveSecretary i/c. Mission. Rev. T.C.Laltlanzova, the pastor i/c. ofBungkawn Pastorate pronouncedbenediction.

The missionaries may becategorised as follows: 8 pastors

(ordained ministers); 39 evangelistteachers; 52 Evangelist; 8 StaffNurse/Health Workers and 4 craftteachers. Excepting ordainedministers as missionaries, all thenewly commissioned missionarieswere taken for a year, as the SynodMission Board since recent yearhas made its recruitment for missionon a one year contract basis, whichis renewable both on the part of theChurch (Mission Board and theindividual persons (missionary).The educational qualifications ofmissionaries range from belowHSLC (class ten) passed toMasters/Doctorate degree holders.

SYNOD THEOLOGICALEDUCATION BOARD

The Synod Theological EducationBoard has given admission to 27candidates to study M. Th. O.T -6; N.T. - 5; Hist. - 8; Missiology -8; and to 27 candidates to studyB. D. in English at the AizawlTheological College. In addition tothese 4 candidates were allowed tostudy B.D. in Hindi at the AllahabadBible Seminary, Allahabad.The TEB is setting to start adoctoral centre at the Aizawl


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Theological College from 2013-2014 academic session followingthe resolution made by the 2012Session of the MizoramPresbyterian Church Synod. Theinaugural service will be conductedon June 7, 2013 at the AizawlTheological College.

Since the Librarian Ms. P.C. Laltlanihas retired superannuated, Mr.Thankima, the Assistant Librarianhas been promoted to the post ofLibrarian.

Valedictory Function: The AizawlTheological College held theValedictory service on April 23,2013 in their College Chapel. TheService was conducted by the Rev.Prof. Vanlalchhuanawma, Principal,and Rev. Lalramliana Pachuaudelivered a valedictory message.The meeting was started with theprocession - all the students oflower classes and invitees weresitting inside the Chapel, themembers of the Board, Faculty,and the Graduants came inprocession while the music of theHymn "All the Way, my Saviourleads me" was played. After all themembers in procession reached

their seats, the Chairman askedthem to be seated. The Chairmanmade a short speech of welcome,and a solemn worship servicebegan. The Chairman called theaudience to worship God, whichwas followed by the singing of theHymn, "To God be the Glory, Greatthings he has done." After whicheach of the assigned facultymembers did his/her role as solemnas possible. Each had done his/herpart as the order given in the litanyof the Service. The items includeInvocation, done by Rev.Lalchungnunga; the litany of thanksled by Dr. Lalrindiki; Prayer forforgiveness led by Rev. Dr. H.Lalrinthanga. These were followedby the presentation (in other wordsintroduction) of the graduatingstudents which was done by theDean of Post Graduate studies.Usually, the B.D. Graduants havebeen presented by the Registrar,the academic in-charge while thepost Graduants candidates havebeen presented by the Dean. Dueto the ill health of The Registrar, theVice Principal and Dean had to doboth classes. After the presentationof the Graduants, the Moderatordelivered a message, which was


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particularly challenging for the newtheologically trained candidates.After the preaching was over thehymn "Just as I am" was sung; thiswas followed by the act ofdedication - the Chairman askedthe graduating students to dedicatethemselves to the service of theLord. The intercessory prayerfollowed, led by Ms. RosyZoramthangi. This valedictoryservice was also a farewell service,and thus farewell messages weredelivered by Dr. Lalnghakthuami(faculty) and Mr. Lalduhsakacontinuing student) and speeches ofresponses were delivered by Mr.V. Khairodinga (M. Th Final) andMr. C. Lalngaihawma (B. D. final).Few prizes were distributed byRev. H. Lalrinmawia, SynodSecretary, such as1. Upa R. Zobela memorial prize

for best student in co-curricularactivities (winner Thangromawia)

2. Rev. Liandova memorial prize forhomiletics (winner IsaacLallawmkima)

3. J. M. Lloyd's memorial prize forPreliminary Greek (winnerLalthanliana)

4. Rev. & Mrs. C. Vanlalhruaiaprize for Preliminary Hebrew

(winner S.T. Lala)5. Upa Prof. C. Lalkima prize for

Library Knowledge (MalakiaLalnunfela)

The Mizoram Synod Choirpresented two songs, as beautifullyas usual. Distributions of prizeswere followed by the presentationof diploma certificates, which wasgiven away by Rev. Lalzuithanga,Executive Secretary i/c SynodTheological Education. The lasthymn of dedication was "Take mylife and let it be." Rev.Lalchhanhima, member of theBoard, pronounced benediction.The Graduants and the members ofthe Boards and the Faculty were inrecession, the music of "For Christour land we give" was played. Thefarewell dinners followed.

THE SYNOD FINANCIALYEAR ENDS WITHSURPLUS OF THE BUDGET

At the end of the Financial Year, theMizoram Presbyterian Church hassurplus growth in its contribution.This is commendable because theChurch usually makes its budgetwithout knowing the rate of growth


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in its contribution. The leaders ofthe Church use to say that theyprepare a budget for a financialyear with "having faith in God"because they have no idea on howthe church members will give thatyear. However, God inspirespeople and they give to him, whichis received by the Church. The lastfinancial year of 2012-2013 endedwith 14.89%. surplus amount i/eRs. 1,15,47,20,510/- from the total

budget of 1,00,50,24, 000/-. TheSynod Finance officer Rev.Lalzuithanga expressed on behalfof the Church his gratitude to allthe church members who readilygave to God through the Church.The summary of the SynodFinancial position at the Year endis given as below:

Summary of the Synod Financial Position 2012-2013

Budget Head

2012-2013 Budget

Total Receipts Surplus from the Budget

Surplus percentage

Pastoral 59,67,67,000 64,36,59,045 4,68,92,045 7.86 Mission 40,82,57,000 51,10,61,465 10,28,04,465

25.18

Total 1,00,50,24,000 1,15,47,20,510 14,96,96,510 14.89


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WORK SPIRITUALITYA Reflection on Jeremiah 18:3-4

- Rosy Zoramthangi Ralte

In Jeremiah 18 we read how the Lord told Jeremiah to go down to thepotter's house, for there he would let Jeremiah hear his word. So Jeremiahwent down to the potter's house, located in a valley just outsideJerusalem's walls.

TEXTThe word for potter simply means'shaper'. This term is often used todescribe God's creative activity(Gen. 2:7-8, Ps. 94:9). Themetaphor ascribed to gods is alsopresent in Mesopotamia. The wordfor wheel here literally means 2stones. In Jeremiah's time therewere two varieties, a slow wheeland a fast wheel. The context of thetext suggests the fast wheel whichconsists of two disks or stonesjoined by a vertical axis. Thepotter's wheel has been in existencesince approximately the 4thMillennium BC.

Pottery was an important businessin ancient Israel. Every householdneeded several clay jars for carryingand holding water. As explained inthis parable, often during theprocess of throwing the clay, some

defect appears either in the natureof the clay or in the design of theobject. The potter then squeezesthe developing objects intoshapeless mass of clay and beginsthe process of creating the clayvessel all over again.

We read, "The vessel he wasmaking of clay was spoiled in thepotter's hand and he reworked itinto another vessel as seemed goodto him (v. 4)". The potter did notthrow the flawed vessel into thereject bin. The clay was still soft andpliable; so he crushed it down andreshaped it into a more perfectvessel. Prophet Jeremiah findsinspiration for his spiritual messagein a strange place by watching apotter turning a pot at his wheel.He watches as the worker mouldsand shapes the spinning pot skillfullywith his hands. At one point he goes


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too deep and spoils the pot he ismaking. So he starts over using thesame clay, until he has the vesselthat he wants. Jeremiah foundsacred meaning in this very earthy,physical task of an artisan. Thepotter spun his wheel and made hispot with skill and care and precisionand it was sacred work, andJeremiah saw in that work an imageof how God works with us, God'screatures, to mould and shape usinto the persons we ought to be.

Work Spirituality: Is work sacred?The idea of putting a word like"sacred" next to "work" may seemstrange to some. Work can besatisfying, aggravating, exhilarating,exhausting and many other things.But sacred? How do we see ourrespective works andresponsibilities? Do we think it is'sacred'?

The one who put sacred next towork some time back is a mannamed Thomas Moore, a writer,psychotherapist and a formermonk. In his book, Care of theSoul, Moore says that in manyreligious traditions "work is not setoff from the precincts of the sacred.

It is not 'pro-fane' - (literally) infront of the temple - it is in thetemple. In Christian and Zenmonasteries," he says, "work is asmuch a part of the monk's carefullydesigned life as are prayer,meditation, and liturgy."

That means the different works wedo during our training for futureministry is sacred. It is studyingdiligently as a student, regular andsupportive in teaching not onlythese, doing floor duty, sweeping,cutting grass, trimming trees,collecting cow-dung, looking afterflower beds, making kitchengarden etc are all sacred work ifdone for the sake of God. By doingour respective works diligently wefind some peace of mind andhappiness. Words cannot expressthe joy we feel when we see theseeds we sowed germinate orlooking at the clean roads aftersweeping it meticulously or theclean surroundings after weeding.The important thing about work isthat it is a form of therapy.

If we let other people do ourordinary work for us, or if we do itourselves without care, we might be


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losing something irreplaceable andeventually experience that missingelement as a painful sense ofloneliness or homelessness.The work we do, whatever it is,can be done with imagination andartfulness or it can be doneroutinely and unconsciously, buthowever it is done, we mustremember that "work affects thesoul profoundly."God worked for six days creatingthe world and then rested on theseventh and God invites uslikewise to create and build andshape and mould, whether it iscurtains, bookcases, student'sminds, or a loaf of bread.

The Protestant Work Ethic: Isthere sacred and secular work?Do we believe in the distinctionbetween sacred and secularwork? The usual understanding is- the work done by the clergy andlay volunteers being sacred, theeveryday work done out in theworld being secular. But aschildren of the reformation weshould know better. Martin Luthersaid that the work done by thefarmer in the field or the farmer'swife in the kitchen was just as holy

as that done by the priest if done tothe glory of God.

The Reformers affirmed that alllegitimate work, done in faith,glorifies God - it is worship. Thedifferent works that we are doing forthe sake of God are equallyimportant; we must therefore put ourbest efforts even if we feel lethargic.To be 'called' by God does not entailwithdrawing from the world, butdemands critical engagement inevery sphere of worldly life.

To speak of a 'Protestant work ethic'is not to decry those who cannotwork, but to censure those…whowill not work. Am I the one whooften try to excuse myself citing lameexcuses like I don't know how to domanual labour? Let us examineourselves from the point of view ofprotestant work ethic. If we knowwhat to do we should not wait orkeep it pending, for James 4:17 says,"Whoever knows what is right to doand fails to do it, for him it is a sin."

'Work,' it must be added, for theReformers is not understood as 'paidemployment,' but as diligent andproductive use of whatever resources


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and talents one has been given.Work is a profoundly spiritualactivity, a productive and sociallybeneficial form of prayer. Physicaland spiritual activities are combinedin this one action, by which sociallyuseful functions may be dischargedand personal assurance of salvationmay be gained. It also brings a newdepth of meaning to the everydaymundane activities of life.

With the right knowledge of work,our culture of work can be revived.We may be doing different kindsof work but we all are working forGod. Recollection of my stint as anLDC for 2 years till I joined BDcourse revealed that most of theoffice employees work to earn alivelihood without ever realizing thatwe are doing the work of God andserve others. It is a challenge for usto teach and set an example toothers that we are doing the workof God in various ways through themany daily works that we areengaged in. We must therefore doour work as if we are doing it forGod, not humans.

One important ingredient for work:Determination

Any work demands 'Determinationor Perseverance'. Just as the pottersaw beyond the disfigured soft clay,we must not dwell in what is visiblenow. Determination helps us lookbeyond the ugly spoilt clay, but thebeautifully designed vessel that itcan become.

Our life carries with it certain worksand responsibilities and it is up tous whether we will let ourselves bestopped or move on in spite ofcertain failures. Are we going tomake excuses or face the stumblingblock headlong? Failures are notmeant to break us rather it is anopportunity to retreat, regroup, re-evaluate and then take action moredeterminedly. We might be unableto run most of the time, but we canwalk, even if to just walk is hard,we should at least crawl instead ofsitting and making excuses. If wethink and regard the many workswe do like teaching, studying,manual labour, office work, for theglory of God and as a contributionfor the extension of God's kingdom,we will be more determined and tryharder to be more productive andat the same time supportive of oneanother.


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Our prayers for God's will to bedone on earth is deeply attachedto how we see and carry out ourworks. For to pray that prayer weneed to work to make it come true,prayer without work is anotherform of hypocrisy. Realizing this,many people pray not throughwords but through the witness oftheir lives, through the work theydo and the love they offer to others.

George Arthur Buttrick said, "Fields

are not ploughed by praying overthem. But let everyone rememberthat fields become drudgery, or abotched labour, or even greed andbitterness, unless the ploughing isnot done in prayer".

We must therefore remember thedifference between just doing andmaking it a prayer because whenwe make our work a prayer, wedo it not only for ourselves or ourneighbour, but for God.

(This biblical reflection was delivered on February 26, 2013 MorningDevotion at the Aizawl Theological College Chapel. We thank MissRosy Zoramthangi for making it possible to publish in this Review.Rosy is a Lecturer (on contract) in the Department of Old Testamentat ATC.)


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RESOLUTIONS OF THE SYNOD EXECUTIVECOMMITTEE MEETING NO. 244DURING FEBRUARY 26-28, 2013

The Synod Executive Committee, the apex committee of theMizoram Presbyterian Church Synod had its three-days sessionduring February 26-28, 2013 at J.M. Lloyd Hall, Synod Office,Mission Veng, Aizawl. Some of the important resolutions of thesession are given below:

1. The Mizoram Synod will give financial support of Rs. 300,000 to thelocal Church who is hosting the General Assembly of the PresbyterianChurch of India.

2. The amount of house rent given by the Synod for Pastors/Ministershas been increased.

3. A new Chairman and Secretary of Central Women's Fellowship during2013-2014 were appointed. Mrs. C. Lalhmangaihi, Venghlui wasappointed as the new Chairman and Mrs. H. Lalpianthangi, Asstt.Coordinator, Women's Department as the new Secretary.

4. The resolution of the Officers' Meeting for getting prior permissionfrom the concerned Church authority with regard to the publicity ofsome of the decisions made by the Synod meeting which can havenegative impact upon the public was accepted.

5. The proposal of Revival Committee to hold State level Pavalai Meetand to give financial support of Rs. 1,00,000 to the hosting churchwas accepted.

6. A new Office hour for the different departments under the Synod wasmade as follows:


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09:30 am to 04:00 pm - October -February09:30 am to 05:00 pm - March - September

7. It was decided that the Synod will sponsor visiting professors fromUSA and Netherlands who are teaching in Aizawl Theological College.

8. Due to the increasing price hike in commodities it was decided thatthe Living Allowance of Synod workers will be increased by 20 percent from April 2013.

9. As demanded by Govt. law Synod Information and Publicity (Synfo)was given permission to be registered as an Association.

10. Four committee members under Unit Committee were appointed totake care of matters concerning the establishment of MeiteiPresbyterian Singlup as an Administrative Unit.

11. Manipur Mission Field headquarters will be shifted from Imphal toKwakeithil from 1st April, 2013.

12. The meeting entrusted the OM to identify appropriate person to bethe Registrar of United Theological College, Bangalore as requestedby the said College.

13. The request to donate Rs. 2,00,000 by the National Council ofChurches in India (NCCI) to the Mizoram Presbyterian Synod forthe celebration of the NCCI 100 years in 2014 was granted.


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REPORT OF RURAL EXPOSUREAizawl Theological College

Field Education, 2013- Loye Kabui, BD II

Introduction:The Mualcheng vilage is around 160 Km from Aizawl via World BankRoad. It is under Serchhip district and E. Lungdar RD Block. Mualchengvillage was established in 1912 by Christian community who were expelledby Lungchhuan chief; a few years later, the Lungchhuan chief made hisson as the chief of Mualcheng. In 2012 Mualcheng Presbyterian churchcelebrated its centenary. There are around 280 houses, with around 1600people living there.

THE ORGANISATION OFMATERIAL BASE

1. Economic Structure:a. Interaction with nature:Most of the villagers depended onagriculture. Shifting cultivation ispracticed and also numbers ofpeople are making farm, meanwhilethey also depended on shiftingcultivation. The people of the villageare not highly educated but they arevery much aware about theenvironmental problems. The villageis eco-friendly. The forest of thesurrounding village is preserved;they are restricting cutting trees forcommercial purposes. It was onlyallowed for household materialssuch as construction of a house; it

is not allowed for producingfirewood and timber forcommercial purposes. The riverVarhva is flowing near the villageand the Young Mizo Association(Y.M.A) protects it: They prohibitcatching fish with poison, so alsohunting within the village councilarea. The authorities of the villagerestrict selling of hunting tools inthe shops. The village people usefirewood for cooking. Houses arebuilt of woods; only few can affordconcrete buildings.

b. Tools of production:People began to cultivate cashcrops. The villagers depended onwet-cultivation (paddy field on flatland); there are three rivers near the


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village; this made tilling easy. Peopleof the village used traditional toolsin their agricultural field; only somefew can afford modernized tolls forcultivation those who are mainlyworking government's jobs,whereas the common masses couldnot afford such tools. Those whohave wet-cultivation lands can geta tiller machine in subsidized ratefrom the government, and othermachines were received fromgovernment for subsidised rates.Carpenters have started usingmodern or electronic tools. Mostof the production tools they usedwere traditional and classic. TheGovernment funds like New LandUse Policies (NLUP) were alsodistributed but the result was foundto be a failure in the village. Thereason for this failure being thatthose who received such fundspurchased machines, or electronicgadgets, or even two-wheelersvehicles than trying to improve theireconomic products.

c. Property relations: Mostof the houses were Assam type -built from tin sheets and timbers,with tiles for wall; only around tenhouses were concrete buildings

constructed by using bricks andmortar. The village councildistributed the land equally, andthose who grow orange for cashcrops were allotted about 3 bighasand those who did not own landwere allotted an area of 5 bighas.Some plots of land were privatized.Electronic goods like television,refrigerator, washing machine,computer and mobile phones wereused in the village. There arenumbers of vehicles especially twowheelers; most of them aresecondhand, and there were onlytwo or three motor cars whichwere mainly used for going to theircultivation. Most of the familyproperty is controlled by a father,who is the head of a family, andthe society is very patriarchal.Property is inherited by the son,while some few families give sharesto their daughters.

Most of the government servantshave their own land. When thegovernment makes NLUP, MIPetc, village council court gave a landto those who do not have their own.But many of them have sold theirland and now they becamelandless.


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d. Division of Labour:There is no formal division of labour,since most of the people wereworking on the agricultural fields.There were around thirty personswho have been working ingovernment offices or schools.Society is very much patriarchalbased, but men and women wereworking together in the fields; thewages of men a day is Rs.170/-while it is Rs.150/- women.

e. Distribution of wealth:In the distribution of wealth, it ismore or less equally distributed,although the government servantswere wealthier than the farmers.Those who have wet-cultivablelands were wealthier than thosewho do not have. NLUP fundswere also distributed; it was givento those who were really in need.The families who have orange farmfor cash crops were supposed tobe richer than others. MNNREGSscheme (a development schemefrom the central governmentincreased the income of the people;this was a source of income for thepoorer class; those who work fordaily wages were working underthose who have government jobs.

f. Market and money:The village economics system wasbased on Commodity-Money-Commodity (C-M-C). Most of thefamilies used to sell their cropsaccording to the market rate, inwhich more women were foundworking than their men folks.Mostly women were seendominating their family economicssystems. Shop owners sold theirgoods at higher rates than theretailed prices due to high rates oftransportation charges from city tothe village. There is a co-operativesociety which made available thingslike hardware and medicine in avery cheap rate. The people fromsurrounding areas and from othervillages such as North Vanlaiphaiand some other places werepurchasing drugs in a very cheaprate and sold it to the youths of theirvillages those who abused andaddicted to drugs. The village hasno market. The villagers keep thevegetable when they can make itavailable in the shops, and theshopkeepers sell it for them eithergaining some amount or free ofcost. Some women were foundselling their vegetables door todoor. Orange and Ginger were cash


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crops grown in the Jhum or in theirown gardens.

2. S O C I A LSTRUCTURE:

a. Socio-Economic: Urbanvs. rural: Mualcheng village wasdominated by the urban lifestyle,which could be seen from theirinterior decoration of the housesand the availability of consumergoods and their use of electronicmedia; one wondered that howmuch the society would have beeninfluenced from seeing and using ofall those things. Mobile phoneusers, especially the youths, wereseen using costly model types; carsand bikes were also seen in thisremote area; the youths and thewomen were very much influencedby the Korean serial movies whichwas obviously reflected in theirdresses, hairstyles and the use ofcosmetics to have clear and glowingskin to look like the Korean people;this has greatly affected the economiccondition of families.

Class: The people of this villagetreat each other equally; it wasdifficult to make a class division.

Government servants wereregarded as higher class in thesociety; they were respected andwere given important positions insocial organizations such as YMA,Mizo Hmeichhe Insuihkhawm Pawl(MHIP-a women's Organisation),and so also in the church.Government scheme likeMNNREGA to certain extent wasmaintaining equality among the richand the poor by the distribution ofthe fund equally; those who haveextra skills like carpenters andmechanics have extra sources ofincome.

b. S o c i o - c u l t u r e :Patriarchy: The dominant ideologyof the Mualcheng village was verypatriarchal. The village is maledominated as most of the heads offamilies were males; even thewidows and divorced women wereunder the control of men if theyhave a male member in their family.Most women were expected to dothe household work apart fromgoing and working in the field.Meanwhile women contribute a lotmore than man in regards to theeconomic life of the family. Morewomen were found than men as


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Shopkeepers, vegetable vendorsand the government officeworkers. The villagers did not feelnecessity to include women in theorganizations like YMA as officebearers, excepting Churchwomen and MHIP in whichinevitably women hold leadershipwhich is their own organisations.They have the strong opinion thatwomen's work should beconfined to look after the familybut not the society. They didn'tencourage women to be theirleaders. In the past there was awomen candidate in the villageelection, but she was not votedeven by the female voters. Whenasked the reason why, theresponse was blatant: "We don'twant women to be our leaders."Even the Church is verypatriarchal. The women pointedout that in the adult Sunday schoolthere was no female teacher eventhough there are many womenwould be capable of teaching inthe Sunday school. However theChurch has not yet given them achance. The Church still thinks thata female teacher is needed. TheChurch seemed to understandliterally what Paul would say about

the subordination of women whichhe said from his own culturalcontext.

Clan/tribe/ethnic group:Mualcheng village is dominated byMizo. There is only one Gorkhafamily who resided there becauseof a government job. Theorganization like YMA, MHIP,MUP, Student's Union tried tocheck any chance of immigrationfrom outside other than the Mizo,and even if any outsiders other thana Mizo have engagement to work,they were supposed to leave thevillage immediately after theyfinished their work.

c. People's organization:Parties: There are four politicalparties; Indian National Congress,Mizo National Front, ZoramNationalist Party and Mizo PeopleConference. There was a greatcompetition among them, andamong that the Congress party wasthe strongest at present.

Social Movements: In respectof social activity it seemed that therewas no movement as such; in themiddle of 2012, a 13 years old girl


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was raped by one young man andthe MHIP organized a protest byhaving procession by demanding thepunishment of the culprit. One of theimportant social activities of thisvillage was the protection of theVarhva River particularly during thetime when fishes lay their eggs.During that particular time, the YMAorganized the activity of protectingthe fish for which many of the youthsparticipated by making camps nearthe river for the same purpose.

Trade union: In this village onesociety, Co-operative societyactively involved in the trade byhaving a Drugs store, hardwarestore and Departmental store. Theywere trying to strictly control theprice of the commodity; because ofthat prices of goods werecpmparatively low than theirneighbouring villages. Some itemslike dendrite and some other drugscan only be sold by the co-operativestore, under the guidance of JointAction Committee.

Communal Institution: YMAand MHIP are the communal basedinstitutions in this village. YMA hasmore members than MHIP

because MHIP was gender basedorganization, while YMA isincluding both men and women.They were actively participating inevery activity of the society. Sociallife was greatly controlled by theactivity of these two organizations.Both work for the welfare of thesociety. Even the Church joinedhand with those organizations. TheYMA in Mualcheng bought plot ofland for their own and cultivateginger, and the income from thiswas used for YMA. This clearlyshows that they don't depend onthe funds from the government.One of the remarkable things doneby MHIP is that they help the poorand the widow by collectingfirewood for them and alsoweeding their farm, etc. In theirattempt to maintain social equality,the MHIP prepared wreath to beput on the coffin of a dead personso that no rich or poor would maketheir own preparation. Even theYMA also made restrictions ofnumbers of photographs to betaken after funeral function is over.These two communal basedinstitutions have good relationshipwith the village council court; theyworked together for the welfare of


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the village. In these communalbased institutions mostly the leadersare educated people.

d. Civil institution: HealthInstitution: Mualcheng village issurrounded by small towns such asEast Lungdar, North Vanlaiphai andKhawlailung about 10 Km eachdistances which are having PrimaryHealth Center and CommunityHealth Center. But the Mualchengvillage did not have any Healthinstitution; there is only one HealthSub-Center run by theGovernment. There are twoHealth Workers who wereworking in the Health Sub-Centerand one fourth grade worker. Thevillagers made goodrecommendation of theseworkers. They were regular ingiving monthly vaccination as perrequired. In this village the HealthWorkers work like nurse andmost of the people trusted themvery much. But to make moreimpetus, I feel they should opentheir Hearth centre everyday whichthey did not do during our visit.

Educational system: Most of theinstitutions were not satisfactory,

especially those who wereworking in the Middle schoolswere advanced in age and theywere not very active. In the Highschool there were six teachershaving only two classes, thus itwas possible for four of them tokeep on chit chatting while twoothers were taking classes.However, they maintain theirschool campus, which is also aschool park, clean and tidy.Students were trained to docleaning; by doing this they sowedthe seed of a good work culture.The parents did not encourage thestudents to continue their studiesif they failed. They always askedtheir children to work in the fieldhelping their family while schoolsare in session; this made thestudents lose their interest towardspursuing higher studies.

Transport system: The approachroad to Mualcheng from the mainroad is rough and is not properlymaintained. There is one regularvehicle service to and from thevillage; thus the villagers had todepend on the neighbouring villagesuch as E. Lungdar if they want togo on tour. Two wheeler vehicles


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are very common, but they usedthem for going to their neighbouringvillages and paddy field.

Religious institutions: All of thevillagers are Christians; there is noother religious institution. There aretwo Christian denominations, suchas the Presbyterian Church and theUnited Pentecostal Church (NEI).The Presbyterian Church is biggerin number as more than two-thirdof the village population belongedto this denomination.Denominational competitionbetween the two sometimestriggered social conflict. Both of theChurches have youth fellowship andwomen fellowship.

3 . S Y M B O L I CREPRESENTATION

a. Material, mental and socialaspects of communication:Language, art, culture, music,religion etc. mould and guidelivelihood of the peoples' day to daylife. We find competition among theneighbourhood or try to imitatethem by observing them. It ismaterialistic world like in otherplaces, and people try to consume

all the goods whether they find it isnecessary or not in their life. Theysimply buy goods to showthemselves that they are capable ofusing them. People's minds aremotivated by materialism. Atpresent the Mualcheng village is inthe process of development, aftera few decade there might be manychanges in regards to their mindsettowards one another, and also classdivision and distinction between thepoor and the rich will grow, eventhough now we find it is incontrolled; the seed of it has alreadybeen sown.The common language is Mizowhich is their official language. It hasbeen used in the educationalinstitutions which I found notpreferable. I thought studentsshould be taught how to be fluentin English. The parents have highhope towards the PresbyterianEnglish medium school, thinkingthat their children would learn tospeak in English well.

With regards toadministration of the Church theChurch leaders excel satisfactorily.Still it was found that many churchmembers neglect attending church


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services. On Wednesday andSaturday out of 700 and abovefull communicant members about200 of them only were seen in thechurch. In the Church activitieslike social work we find only thechurch leaders. The youths werefound to be active only when theKTP called for such activities. Tome, it was the young people whoshould do manual work than theold ones. It is the responsibilityof the KTP leaders to encouragetheir youths to take part regularlyand render their services in suchactivities of the church. Thechurch does not interfere in thepolitics but maintain goodrelationship with the organizationlike YMA, MHIP and others.

The people practiced Mizotlawmngaihna, a selfless service,which creates a sense of unityamong them. If there is aconstruction of the house theydon't need to hire any otherlabourer; they themselves appointa supervisor among themselvesand the villagers gathered to work,and they spend a whole day untilthey accomplished the job. If therewere death in the village, and

needed to keep the dead bodythroughout the night, the youth singthe whole night long to comfort thebereaved family.

Smoke chimneys were found inevery roof of the houses of thevillage which symbolize that theysolely depended on firewood eventhough they have cooking gasstoves; the distributions of gaswere not regular as it is in the urbanareas. Due to influences ofglobalization most of the peopledid not realize the importance ofMizo culture; most of their lifewere influenced either by theWestern or Korean life styles.This was not found only amongthe youths but even among everystages people. Few people of thevillage thought that they'vealmost lost their Mizo identity;those people have the fear thattheir cultural values will be totallylost particularly songs, dancesand even the dress and fashion.They would like to have more ofsinging in "Mizo tune" than theWestern's tonic solfa. In the caseof music many of the youths areinfluenced by the Western musiceven if they didn't really


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understand its meaning..

b) Ideology: In Mualcheng village,the people's dominant ideology isvery patriarchal, which weobserved in every organisation andalso in the Church and the thoughtof the community itself is verypatriarchal. So also the people'sideology is mainly controlled by thereligion, economics, andexperience. In the day to day lifethe ideology they have inheritedfrom their ancestors, is thepatriarchal type of family. Fatheris the head of family; he has fullauthority; no women dared not tocomplain, for they think that it isthe family system. In the social lifealso this kind of practice is stillseen. Class division between richand poor are found to bedeveloping. The political ideologyof the people is changing slowly;among the old aged group theirview of politics seemed to beunchangeable as party feeling isvery strong. But among the youthparty feeling has gone. Theyhope for a better poli ticalenvironment. In social workmost of the youth were foundidle for they were not sincere in

the social work but they wereacquisitive only in their personalwork. The good thing is that thecommunitarian spirit of the traditionalMizo society has is remaining.

4 . T H E O L O G I C A LREFLECTIONS

- Women did not have equalopportunity in the church and in thesociety. They were neglected by thechurch. While the womenthemselves felt that they werecapable to teach and preach in thechurch, they were not givenchances to participate to show theircapability. Once there was a femalecandidate for church leadership butmost of the people said that theydid not want a female for theirleader. When I heard andexperienced this, I think it is a hightime to change our view towardswomen regarding moreparticipation in the church. If weread Galatians 3:28, Paul said that'there is no longer Jews norGreek, slave or free, there is nolonger male or female, for all youare one in Christ Jesus'. If so, wehave to give more opportunity towomen particularly in the church


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level without having anydiscrimination on the basis of theirfemaleness.

- We have seen the unity amongthe community, organizations andin the church. Whenever they haveany work for the development ofthe society, they gathered togetherto help one another. Even inconstruction of a house there isonly the head supervisor and allother villagers worked under hisinstruction as labourers. When Isaw their unity, it reminded me ofwhat Jesus has taught to hisdisciples to love one another andto become one. This Mualchengpeople were maintaining the veryJesus' teaching of love and unity.

- The community is eco-friendlywhich is appreciable. Theypreserved the forest, water, andanimals as far as possible on theirpart. They forbid cutting of trees forcommercial purposes, restrictingthe sale of tools for hunting birdsand animals. They plant bamboo inthe surrounding vacant areas. Thevillagers of Mualcheng practicedwhat God has given responsibility

to Adam to preserve and look afterthe land.

- In Luke 4:14 we found that Jesusis on the side of poor. But thechurch is very busy for its ownactivities in that mostly middle classpeople have more opportunity. Thesocial organisations such as YMAand MHIP were found to berendering their services to the poor.Meanwhile, the Pavalai Pawl, anewly formed fellowship of themiddle-aged married men wasfound active in helping the poor andneedy.

- The mindset of the youths werevery much influenced by electronicmedia, which could be seen fromtheir fashion and in their lifestyles.During the last decade the youthat Mualcheng were to have liveda simple life especially with regardsto fashion, but from two or threeyears back onwards they werecopying the fashion they see fromthe electronic media. This causesthem to be neglecting family andreligious values they used tomaintain. They may seem to bereminded what the Ecclesiasteswrote thousand of years ago to


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young people of his time in 12:1 to help them live a meaningful life!Since the church has been given the responsibility of preserving theenvironment, to be siding with the poor, and to give equal chances ofdoing his ministry, it is important that churches everywhere, in rural orurban, need to realise this.

(This report has been published after some modifications. Ed).

SEMINAR ON STUDIES IN MIZO RELIGIOUS MINDSET

Head of Department, Departmentof History & Ethnography,Mizoram University, and a paperon ‘The conversion of the leadingMizo community members intoChristianity and its impact on Mizothe whole Mizo community by Rev.R. Lalthanmawia, the formerSynod Moderator and an expert inCalvinistic and Reformed TheologyAnother paper was presented onthe topic Economic factors forConversion” by Dr. Sangkima,President, Mizo HistoryAssociation. Discussion followedon the two presentations.The third and final Session was chuheld between 2:00-4:00 pm; Rev.Prof. C. Lalhlira, Vice Principal,Aizawl Theological Collegechairedthe function, and a paper on "TheUnderstanding of ‘Born again’among the Mizo, and its implication

On January 18, 2013, 9:30 amSandy Hall at Aizawl TheologicalCollege, the Aizawl TheologicalCollege in collaboration with theZoram Research Foundation (anonpolitical organisation) organised aseminar on "Studies in MizoReligious Mindset; Conversion and'Born Again' Phenomenon".

The Sessions of theseminar were divided into threeperiods: Between 10:00-11:00 am.Prof. Thangchungnunga, Registrarof Mizoram University conductedthe session in which Rev.Vanlalzuata, Senior ExecutiveSecretary led the devotion and UpaProf. R. Lalthantluanga, ViceChancellor, Mizoram University-gave a Keynote address.

The second Session was heldduring 11:15am-1:00 pmconducted by Prof. O. Rosanga,


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Some pictures of Central KTP Business Sessions March 1-3, 2013 atLunglei Chanmari

on the life of the people’ presentedby two persons namely Rev. R.Zolawma, Assistant Professor,Academy of Integrated ChristianStudies leh Rev. RosiamlianaTochhawng, Assistant Professor,Aizawl Theological College. A lively

discussion followed again.Mr. Rochamliana Gen.

Secretary, Zoram ResearchFoundation proposed vote ofthanks at the the sessions wasdismissed.


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The Manager,Presbyterian ReviewAizawl Theological CollegeDurtlang, Mizoram - 796001INDIA

Published by Mr.R. Lalmalsawma at Aizawl, Mizoram on behalf of theMizoram Presbyterian Church, Synod,

and Printed at the Synod Press, Aizawl - 796 001, Mizoram

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