By Michael Meiphami Shaiza
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:9-10
Introduction: The Seat on the Stone
The photograph I have shared is not a mere old picture. It is the soul of the Naga Nation. An old chief sits alone on a stone altar on a hill, wrapped in a shawl, barefoot, beside the mithun skull, which is our ancient sign of honour, sacrifice, and covenant. Behind him are the valleys and hills that are our God-given home.
That man sat for peace. In the old Naga way, peace was never signed on paper in a distant capital. It was made on a stone, under a tree, before God and before the people, with blood and honour. He waited, he watched, he guarded.
Today, we Nagas, a people who are 95% Christian in India and Myanmar, who raised the cry “Nagaland For Christ,” have forgotten that stone. We seek peace in the halls of Parliament, in Framework Agreements and Agreed Positions, in Delhi and in ceasefire camps. But true peace and reconciliation are not crafted in the halls of Parliament or dictated by political agreements alone. They emanate from a profound choice of forgiveness, rooted deeply in Christ and through Christ. It is a divine gift, not a political bargain.
The theological foundation
The world offers a peace that is defined as the absence of gunfire. The Bible offers a peace that is defined as the presence of righteousness.
There are two kinds of peace known to man:
- Political Peace: This is negotiated peace. It is conditional, transactional, and fragile. It says, if you give me this territory, this power, this money, I will stop fighting. It is necessary, but it is not lasting, because the heart that made war remains unchanged.
- True Peace – Shalom, Eirene: This is Christ-centered peace. It is reconciliation, restoration, wholeness. It does not merely stop the bullet; it heals the heart that pulled the trigger. It is what Apostle Paul meant when he said, “For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us.” Ephesians 2:14.
The Naga struggle has tried the first for 75 years. Agreements, ceasefires, accords, suspensions of operations. Yet true peace has not come, because we have tried to build a roof without a foundation.
Forgiveness in Christ is central. Forgiveness does not say that the wound did not happen. It says that vengeance will no longer be the answer. It liberates individuals and communities from cycles of pain and vengeance. Without forgiveness, every Naga talks about justice, but no Naga experiences peace, because every tribe, every clan, every faction carries a memory of being wronged by another.
The Naga journey
The Naga story is intertwined with faith and nationalism. When A.Z. Phizo and the early NNC leaders declared “Nagaland For Christ” in the jungle, it was not a political slogan. It was a covenant that our Nation would belong to Christ.
Yet decades of conflict have stained that covenant with brother’s blood.
Nagas have killed Nagas. Tribe has suspected tribe. Faction has assassinated faction. The pain of inter-factional killing from the 1980s to 2000s is deeper than the pain inflicted by any external force. How can we negotiate with India honourably and forgive India, when we have not forgiven each other?
This is why the Churches, Civil Societies, Organizations and Associations have played a role far more indispensable than any political group. Organizations like the Naga Shisha Hoho, Naga Mothers Association, Naga Students Federation, and above all the NBCC, Council of Nagalim Churches, and Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR) led by Rev. Dr. Wati Aier, have been the true peacemakers.
Their greatest achievement was the Covenant of Reconciliation signed on 23rd September 2009 by the top leaders of Naga National Political Groups – Isak, Muivah, S.S. Khaplang, and others. At a time when Nagas were killing Nagas in the streets of Dimapur and beyond, these leaders, under the call of Christ, came together and signed that we shall stop inter-factional violence and pursue reconciliation.
That covenant marked the most significant step toward halting fratricidal violence. It showcased that forgiveness and mutual respect are the cornerstones, not military strength.
Many Nagas believe in a Gandhian reconciliation and non-violent approach, exemplifying bridge-building efforts, emphasizing listening to each other and dialogue. That is Biblical. James 1:19 says, “Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.”
Bridge builders vs. wall keepers
Today, the Naga Nation stands divided between two spirits: Bridge Builders and Wall Keepers.
Wall Keepers are those who perpetuate division. They keep the walls of tribalism, of factionalism, of clanism, of Isak-Muivah versus NNPG, of Tangkhuls versus others, of Nagaland state versus Naga areas. They profit from the wall. They collect tax at the wall. They maintain their relevance because of the wall.
Bridge Builders are those who foster unity and understanding. They are peacemakers. They listen. They weep. They are willing to be persecuted for righteousness’ sake, as Matthew 5:10 says, because to call for reconciliation in a time of war is to be persecuted by all sides.
True reconciliation demands that Nagas be bridge builders.
Faith must be used and utilized as an instrument of peace. Faith-based actors, Churches and civil societies, have mediated peace not because they are politically powerful, but because they are spiritually credible. When a politician says forgive, people doubt his motive. When a mother who lost her son says forgive, people listen, because her forgiveness is rooted in Christ.
The ongoing negotiation
Ongoing negotiations and Political Talks, the Framework Agreement of 3rd August 2015 with NSCN-IM and the Agreed Position of 17th November 2017 with the NNPGs, seek resolution.
Yet Nagas yearn for deeper, spiritually-rooted peace through Our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Why? Because a Framework Agreement can give us a political arrangement, but only Christ can give us true reconciliation.
A political agreement without reconciliation will be like building a house on sand. Even if Delhi and Naga groups sign the best agreement tomorrow, if Tangkhuls do not forgive Semas, if Semas do not forgive Angamis, if NNPGs does not forgive NSCN-IM, if the national worker does not forgive the overground politician, that agreement will collapse under its own weight.
Prayers and spiritual dependency are therefore vital. Churches appeal for prayers seeking an honorable solution to Naga peace talks, affirming the destiny of the Naga People and Naga Nation in the hands of Almighty God. The destiny of Nagas is not in the hands of Parliament. It is in the hands of God.
This is the collective longing of the Nagas: that unity demands accountability, transparency, and civil society’s active role in holding leaders responsible for their actions and decisions. Peace without accountability is impunity. Reconciliation without transparency is another secret deal.
The remedy
What then must we do for true peace and reconciliation?
- Personal Repentance Before National Reconciliation: Reconciliation is not a conference. It is a cross. Each Naga must ask: Whom have I wronged? Who have I taxed? Who have I hated because of his tribe or faction? “If thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.” Matthew 5:23-24.
- Inter-Clan and Inter-Tribal Forgiveness: The chief in the photograph represents an era when peace was made face to face. We must return to that. Let the tribes meet not to negotiate political percentages, but to confess and forgive. The wounds of fratricide can only be healed by Christ’s forgiveness.
- Forgiveness as Liberation, Not Weakness: Forgiveness is not surrender of our political right. It is liberation from hatred. We can still assert our ancient territory and identity with strength, but we must do it without hating each other or our neighbors.
- The Church Must Lead Again: The Church must not be a chaplain to factions. It must be a prophet to all factions. It must tell all Naga Political Groups the truth in love: that Nagaland For Christ cannot be built on extortion, division, and pride.
- Becoming Sons of God: Jesus did not say, blessed are the peace-lovers. He said, blessed are the peacemakers. Peacemaking is work. It is active, costly, risky work. It is the work of bridge-building across individuals, clans, tribes, and political groups.
Conclusion: The Call from the Stone
That old chief still sits on the stone in the picture, waiting.
He is waiting for a generation that will understand that true peace is not when the Indian Army stops operation, or when a final agreement is signed. True peace is when Naga loves Naga through Christ, when we become peacemakers and are called sons of God.
The Naga Nation will not be saved by a perfect political agreement. It will be saved when we kneel, forgive, and reconcile through Christ.
For only then can we say with truth, with honour, and with eternity: Nagaland For Christ, and in Christ, True Peace. JESUS SAVES!!! AMEN
Kuknalim!
Michael Meiphami Shaiza is the President of Ukhrul-based NGO Ecological Rehabilitators’ Association (ERA).
(Views expressed are writers’ own and do not, in whatsoever manner, reflect that of Ukhrul Now)
