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Shillong/Dimapur, Aug. 20: The small Ao community of Shillong is getting ready to celebrate a very special occasion this weekend: the golden jubilee of the Shillong Ao Baptist Arogo (church).
This church is the only organised Naga church in Shillong and was born of a fellowship service initiated in 1953 by a few homesick Nagas employed in the then undivided Assam and some students based in the present Meghalaya capital.
“In the beginning, this service was meant for all Nagas but as the majority were from the Ao tribe, the service was conducted in their language. In order to avoid any misunderstanding, the nomenclature of the service was thereafter changed to Ao Naga service,” L. Yapang, the pastor of the church, said.
The Ao Naga service was given the status of a full-fledged and independent church by the Ao Baptist Arogo Mungdang, the apex body of Ao Baptist churches in Nagaland. It came to be known as the Shillong Ao Baptist Arogo from 1966. The church has been organised in the mould of the Ao churches in Nagaland.
“We have planned a two-day celebration, on August 23 and 24, since it is a very joyous as well as significant occasion for the Ao community here,” Yapang said.
Over the years, the Ao church has gone from strength to strength, becoming the community’s anchor and providing succour to families and students in Shillong.
“It fulfils our need to congregate as a community and gives us a sense of belonging,” one of the church members said.
The church has subsidiary wings for women and youth.