By Sangzuala Hmar, IANS
Aizawl : Christian clerics from India's northeastern state of Mizoram are much in demand in Britain to meet an increasing shortage of ordained priests, besides trying to make people attend church congregations.
"The church in Britain is counting on us to help in several ways from filling up vacancies of pastors and also to attract people for attending the churches," said Reverend Vanlalchhunga, moderator of the Mizoram Presbyterian Church, the state's largest Christian denomination.
"We have two pastors in Wales right now and they are doing their best," he added.
One of the first Mizo priests to arrive in Wales was Reverend Hmar Sangkhuma — to offer spiritual guidance to people in Maesteg, near Bridgend.
"What we are doing right now is to interact with the people. We often go to bars, pubs and attend youth gatherings, and help them in whatever way we can," Reverend Sangkhuma told IANS by telephone from Bridgend.
Another Mizo priest, Reverend Z. John Malsawma Colney, working as a pastor near Bridgend, said: "One of my aims is to increase the size of the congregation, not to just fill the church, but for them to accept god."
Said Reverend Hmar: "They are Christians by birth but they hardly practise their religion. We tried to gain their confidence, do charity missions, visit jails, de-addiction centres and now the local people really love us."
The Mizo tribal people were animists until two Welsh Baptist missionaries from Britain, William Frederick Savidge ad J.H. Lorrain, landed in the hills of Mizoram in 1894.
Of the seven northeastern states, Mizoram, Nagaland and Meghalaya are predominantly Christian.
"We were head-hunters when they (Welsh missionaries) came and converted us to Christianity. The fact that the same head-hunters are now teaching them the essence of Christianity is really turning on the media in Britain and helped us a lot in our mission," Reverend Colney said.
The Mizoram Presbyterian Synod Mission Board has 602 missionaries, 346 short-term missionaries and 454 field workers, working in and outside Mizoram.