Rock n Roll & Mizoram

I thought for a post I'd talk a little about what life is like for people in Mizoram so everyone could gain some perspective on the region:

As I have said before, Mizoram's population is 86% Christian. Further, most of the non-Christians in the region are non-Mizos. Some are mainland Indian working for the government or doing business while others are laborers coming from Burma and other regions to find work. As a result, there is enormous social pressure to be a part of the church. Much like in America just a few decades ago, a person who is not a member of a church is often outcast. Indeed, political leaders make sure to be seen at church on Sunday morning for fear of losing votes if Mizos discovered their leaders were not church folk.

As a result, the church dictates the lives of the people both directly and indirectly. For instance, I was talking with a young teacher during my time in Lunglei about the social lives of young people in Mizoram as compared to the United States. I explained that in the US, it's quite popular for young people to meet at coffee shops, bars, or concerts during the evening to socialize. In sharp contrast, I've discovered that in Mizoram there is virtually no such thing. Around town, shops close down about six or seven leaving the city to look abandoned. Granted, the sun sets early here and family structures guiding dating aren't keen on late night dates. Nevertheless, I expressed my fascination with the lack of social outlets for young people.

The teacher replied that not only did shops closing down affect night life, but the church did as well. "On Wednesday night there will be a special service," she said, "the same with Saturday and all day Sunday. Then there might be a committee meeting on Tuesday or Thursday. The church has so many events that no one has time to do anything at night because they must be at church or they will be looked down on." Perhaps the issue wouldn't be such a point of growing tension in Mizoram were it not for the influx of Western media and a growing number of students being educated outside Mizoram.

As the teacher told me, "many students are now leaving Mizoram to go study at schools in India or elsewhere. These places are very different then Mizoram and have many things to do at night. Not only that, but in TV, movies, and music from the West the young people are seeing people like themselves out dancing and doing things. But for us, it's just a dream or something we read about in books. I am not from Mizoram, so I am use to a night life. But many of my fellow teachers are not so some times I try to ask them why they do not go out. But the thought never crosses their mind because they have never experienced it. The young people who are coming back to Mizoram, however, do know about these things and are frustrated."

Indeed, in the past week I have heard at least two sermons about how the young people are being lost in Mizoram. Low attendence and high dissatisfaction with church services by young people is becoming an increasing issue for the church. Furthermore, many young people are professing faith in different religions (even Satanism). The church has a problem yet most of the heirarchy are unwilling to change in order to reach the young people. For instance, the worship songs sung during service are the same traditional hymns that were song by the old heads way back when. These songs are wonderful for the older generation but the younger generation finds no meaning in them. As is a struggle in the US today, churches find themselves singing in a language that the young people do not understand. Furthermore, the young's experiences of different cultures make them unwilling to perpetuate certain modes of living so popular in Mizoram.

In essence, you can think about Mizoram and the problem of the young people like you can the US and rock n roll during the 1950s. These kids have just listened to Elvis and been to a rock n roll concert only to return to a place that says rock n roll is evil. But the church cannot simply outright reject everything the young people are bringing or it will be cast off because it is no longer relevant to the people. Granted, not everything from the West or other cultures is beneficial to the young people. Trying to imitate rappers talking about "smacking hoes" isn't exactly what we want our young people doing. Nevertheless, that doesn't mean that rap music is bad or Western culture is evil. It does, however, mean that everything must be filtered. The church must quickly learn to be a filter rather than a stop valve or risk the pipe bursting.

But only time will tell in Mizoram. The hierarchy of the church is unwilling to change because they don't see the need to meet the demands of young people. The young people are unwilling to listen to the older generation because they feel they know more. Some one has to give somewhere. But perhaps this is the story of the world: the older generation perserving tradition while the younger generation seeks innovation. I just hope the narrative turns out well here in Mizoram.

Well, that's all you get for today. An update about my weekend and preaching will come later in the week. Maybe today you can, like me, think about whether your church/tradition/faith/group is being a filter or stop valve. What would you do to reach the young people where you live?