An Appeal to observe AUGUST 10th as “National Protest Day”

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Respected Ecumenical Leaders and dear Friends,

Greetings from NCCI- Dalit and Tribal/ Adivasi Concerns!

National Council of Churches in India-Dalit and Tribal/Adivasi Concerns, Catholic Bishop’s Conference of India-Office for SC/BC and National Council of Dalit Christians jointly appeals all of you to organise and proactively participate in observing ‘National Protest Day’ on 10th August to raise our protest regarding the continual negligence of the government to the cry for the rights of Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims in the country.

The infamous Presidential (Scheduled Caste) Order 1950 was signed on 10th August 1950 by the then President of India which says “No person who professes a religion other than Hinduism shall be deemed to be a member of the scheduled caste” which was later amended to include Sikhs (1956) and Buddhists (1990) in the Scheduled Caste net. But this law, as we are all aware of, keeps the Dalit Muslims and Dalit Christians from the Scheduled Castes list. Ever since this order was promulgated, the Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims have been observing 10th August as a BLACK DAY/ NATIONAL PROTEST DAY. Unfortunately, due to Covid 19 pandemic we could not conduct any physical meeting/programme for past two years. This year, the situation has been improved and gradually normal life is resuming. We are therefore, hopeful to observe National Protest Day as usual across the country on 10th August. In Delhi, this year since the monsoon session of the parliament is resuming, the organizing committee has decided to hold a “Dharana” at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi on 4th August 2022 from 10AM to 3PM. We extend our cordial invitation to all of you to participate in the ‘Dharana’ and be part of this movement.

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Let Peace and Prosperity prevail amongst all People . . .

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NCCI message for Eid-ul-Fitr and Akshaya Tritiya

On behalf of the Christian community represented by the Churches of the Protestant and Orthodox traditions in the fellowship of the National Council of Churches in India, we extend best wishes and hearty greetings to the friends and fellow-citizens – adherents of the Islamic, Hindu and Jain faith traditions, on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr and Akshaya Tritiya which this year falls on the same day. This significant co-incidence we hope and pray will further strengthen the bond between Muslims, Hindus and Jains in India and worldwide.

Let it be our prayer, of all those who believe in faith traditions and such other well-wishers, that this year’s celebrations may bring new understanding about life especially when the forces that threaten and negate life are hell bent on overpowering life and life systems.

The observance of these festivals this year follows close on the heels of the conclusion of the Lenten fast in the Christian tradition. Only yesterday the 2nd of May 2022, the Baha’i Community in India and around the world have concluded the 12-day Ridvan, also known as the king of all Baha’i festivals.  This further emphasises the common sociocultural roots of various religious traditions and their geo-cultural origins.

Despite the onslaught of the market in commercialising some of these noble religious observances, it is amazing that such practices are being carried out generation after generation to add more meaning to life. Therefore, it becomes an imperative for us to respect each other’s spiritual and cultural celebrations and through these enhance our shared spiritualities. In doing so we also mutually critique ourselves of the patriarchal and structural hegemonic oppressions that have come to be associated with our faith traditions, and with God’s help seek to overcome them together.

Celebrated in the midst of a war and widening rift between communities and countries in different regions of the world it is nevertheless a beautiful occasion, to pray, smile, love, and share. Let this day be a blessing to all our Muslim, Hindu and Jain friends and their families. May the spirit of Eid-ul-fitr with its emphasis on equity and that of Akshaya Tritiya with its emphasis on prosperity of all, coming as it were in the beginning of Spring, enhance mutual cooperation and dynamic intermingling among all communities in India and around the world irrespective of caste, creed and colour. May God Almighty shower abundant blessings over all.

National Council of Churches in India is a national platform of 30 Nation-wide and nationally networked Churches, 18 Regional Councils of Churches, 18 All India Christian Organizations, and 7 Internationally renowned Related Specialised Professional Agencies. The NCCI works closely with the Catholic Bishops Conference of India and the Evangelical Fellowship of India. Globally it is a member of the Christian Conference of Asia and is related to the World Council of Churches and several Global Communions of Christian traditions

Rev Asir Ebenezer
General Secretary
National Council of Chur

The morcha moves on …

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the morcha moves on – and the cross is but a station

Please join me in ushering ‘easter hope’ into a world torn apart by war, strife and toil – a hope that stands beyond the cross. It is our prayer that each one in this country, and the whole world, with the entire created order break forth in everlasting joy and praise at the possibilities of a morcha moving on.

With the dawn of the first Easter day came the hope of a new beginning – the news that the disciples wanted to hear since that fateful Friday afternoon. This news was crucial to the very existence of the women and men who followed Jesus as his disciples; without this news they were lost, their lives in jeopardy.

Mutual distrust, fear of the Jews and the Romans, as well as the mis-happening all around were all dinning the ear to a state of deafness refusing to believe in a reality and a good news of hope coming their way beyond their situation and their existentialist contexts. COVID like contexts compound the situation in which a sense of impermanence set in leading to a situation of ‘eat, drink and be merry (any way) tomorrow you will die’ syndrome

Yet easter – the experience of life over death is crucial. It is seen to be expressed and experienced in recognising and acknowledging the familiar voices of the assuring contexts of the past as Mary experienced beside the tomb on easter morning. The disciples experienced this as well when they  assuredly or even hesitatingly (but consciously) sought to embrace the unknown and the stranger.

With these experiences of life, Mary and the two at Emmaus rush back to the community of the faithful and the easter community gets expression. This community and expression is both evident and confident even until today and thus, the morcha moves on – with the cross being just a station …

This process of recognising and acknowledging the familiar voices of the assuring contexts of the past as well as rest assuredly or even hesitatingly but consciously embracing the unknown, should be to us the mantra for moving on – forward unto Galilee. We should not be stuck at the cross to which the world ties us down.

Rev. Dr. Asir Ebenezer
General Secretary, NCCI

A Joint call for Solidarity and Prayer

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The War on Ukraine is still on. We have all been praying for the cessation of hostilities in the region and that Russia will announce a ceasefire and take up non-violent ways in dealing with whatever issues it may have with Ukraine. We also hope that the peace-making process will ensure healing trauma, building trust, rebuilding the land, its infrastructure and people that are affected due to this war.

It will be good for us Christians, many of whom will be going into the season of lent, to have this intention in prayer during this season that the war will end and the victim compensated.

Such acts of aggression are seen in different parts of the world and in varied contexts. We will lift all such situations and people, along with ourselves, to be transformed into a people of love, and seekers of just-peace

Along with the Catholic Bishops Conference of India and the Evangelical Fellowship of India, we urge you to say a special prayer every week during the season of lent so that individuals and families, as well as communities and nations will be built on values of love, peace and justice.

You may like to use the intercessory prayers that can be accessed here

Rev. Dr. Asir Ebenezer
General Secretary, NCCI

A Tribute to the man of God who walked the talk: Rev. Dr. P B M Basaiawmoit

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We are saddened to know of the sudden demise of the Rev. Dr. P. B. M. Basaiawmoit, a senior leader of the Presbyterian Church in India, a fiery social activist and a committed ecumenist, who was called to glory in the early hours of Wednesday the 9th February 2022.

Rev. Dr. Basaiawmoit led from the front in the Churches’ involvement in the issues that affect the common people. He was the leader of the Church who gave leadership in many community groups and social action networks. He was a leader who spoke his heart and did not fear anyone in the hierarchy. Rev. Dr. Basaiawmoit was an eloquent speaker, a good preacher and a practical theologian. His sermons address practical Christian witness.

He served as the Chairperson of the NCCI Commission on Life during the quadrennial (2004 – 2008) and as the Vice President of the National Council of Churches in India from 2008 to 2012; during the latter period he was also the Chairperson of the Personnel committee of the NCCI. During these times he played a major role in making the ministries of the NCCI relevant to the issues in North East India and to the contemporary socio-political challenges facing the country. He was a pillar of strength to the Secretariat and the leadership when the NCCI faced an organisational crises in the years 2009 and 2010.

We acknowledge the contribution of this man of God in the different local, national and global movements relating to environment, human rights, mining, migration, plight of the refugees, anti-conversion laws and such other issues.

We join the family and the church, especially all those who were mentored by him, in thanking God for the gift of Rev. Dr. PBM Basaiawmoit to the world and the ecumenical movement particularly in India. We offer our prayers and deep condolences to each member of the family. May God’s peace that surpasses all understanding remain with them today and always.

Rev. Asir Ebenezer
General Secretary NCCI
10th February 2022

Let’s discern and be dictated by the agenda of the masses …

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Today, the 73rd Republic Day of our country, is one more occasion to celebrate our prowess and proficiency in different sectors of our journey together. Traditionally, it has also been an occassion to take stock of the strides that we have taken in-country and in the world.

In the last year, we have supposedly done well in many areas of our history as a nation. In some other areas we have not done as well as we would have wanted to.

Unequal distribution of wealth, differentiated access to rights and privileges, challenges to dignity of life, culture, and heritage of the religious minorities, socially disadvantaged ethnic communities and the economically disprivileged persons however continue to haunt the journey of our destiny. Today is yet another opportunity to pull ourselves together to address what lies ahead of us and achieve it together.

The Christian Gospel teaches us to fashion ourselves and the environment around us on the terms of the conditionalities of ‘the least, the last and the lost’. This approach among other things is certain to further build common resources and thus safeguard against transfer of public assets for personal gain/ private profit.

The Gospel also requires that we network with all those who are similarly oriented irrespective of faith and belief. There are several activists, academics, economists, civil servants, politicians and concerned citizens belonging to all faiths and beliefs who are working on these lines orienting our thinktanks, our planners, also the executive and the enforcement on the terms and conditionalities of the persons pushed to the bottom of the ladder.

There is an urgent need to cultivate this basic ethos amongst all peoples, and ward against alternates that promote prosperity for all but cultivate it otherwise – where there is further impoverishment because of organised loot and thus disproportionate growth.

The need is also to hold each other and all the arms of our governance accountable. It is time now to orient ourselves on our civil and political rights in order that the debates on rights and privileges of unique and diverse individuals, groups and communities will not be derailed toward affirming ‘majoritarian’ privileges of the small numbers of the unduly privileged.

Let us as members of nationally networked historic and traditional churches in this country along with all related agencies, regional ecumenical councils and christian organisations, individually and together as the National Council of Churches in India, renew afresh our commitment ‘to discern, be informed and be dictated’ by the agenda of the masses, their dreams and aspirations. And let our good work, along with those of all other like-minded individuals, groups and communities, continue to be a light to the nation.

Let us rise to bless India. God bless India . . .

Rev. Asir Ebenezer
General Secretary
National Council of Churches in India

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2022

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Unity Octave (Week of Prayer for Christian Unity) is a joint global initiative of the Commission on Faith and Order of the World Council of Churches and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. In India, NCCI joins with all Episcopal and Confessional traditions in coming together to observe the Unity Octave and to pray for Christian Unity. Policy, Governance and Public Witness department of NCCI is coordinating the Unity Octave observance this year.
The theme for this year’s Unity Octave is
‘We saw the star in the East, and we came to worship him”  (Mt 2:2)

This year also we are not printing booklets instead we are giving the link to worship orders in PDF format so that it can either be projected or be copied and distributed according to your own convenience. The available translation in different languages are also given. We are grateful to Rev Vijayesh Lal, the General Secretary of Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI) and to the secretaries of Kerala Council of Churches and and Tamil Nadu Christian Council for the translations in vernacular languages You are also free to contextualize this liturgy considering the needs of your local context. We strongly encourage all our constituents to observe unity octave along with members of other Christian denominations and be part of the World Christian Community initiative to have ecumenical expressions through worship.

Download liturgies – English | Hindi | Tamil | Malayalam | Marathi | Punjabi 

With Prayers,

Rev Dr. Asir Ebenezer,
General Secretary, NCCI.

Telling the stories of christs and christmases of our times ….

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Sparked by the sheep-farmers’ vision of the birth of a new age, and affirmed by the wisdom from the ‘east’, the message of ‘christ-revolution’ comes to us in the birth of the Jesus movement for over 2020 years.

During these 2000 years and more we have also had many such stories – of events and people that have changed history. There have been significant stories in India and outside that have changed the course of debilitating histories and channelled to life.

The movement to abolish trading in human persons for slavery, the uprisings to free people of colour into the mainstream, the many movements to independence and self-governance, birth of the Dravidian movements and that of Neo-Buddhism against the practice of the perpetuation of caste, nationalisation of public assets and services of common good, the upper cloth movement, the abolition of sati, right down to the victory of the farmers over the farm laws, are only some of the many shining examples of christmases of our times that brought good news, new life and hope to many.

History abounds with stories of liberators who have to be celebrated. There are also many such people that are branded and banished – all because of their professed conviction and stand on the side of the excluded and against perpetuation of hegemonic oppressive structures for organised individual and corporate loot of public wealth and resources.

This Christmas, even as we celebrate Jesus the Christ, let us remember, acknowledge and celebrate the christs and christmases of our times in order that we and our posterity will have contemporaneous memories to cherish and the power to create moments of celebration of life  – the life that is made vulnerable and laid bare by the ongoing pandemic of our times.

Wish you a meaningful and memorable Christmastide. Let Hope prevail in us through every day of the New Year both through the pandemic and beyond.

 

Rev. Asir Ebenezer
General Secretary, NCCI

NCCI condemns killing of civilians in Nagaland, calls for a fresh rethink on AFSPA

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The National Council of Churches in India (NCCI) joins the people of Nagaland and all citizens of the country who mourn the killing of civilians in Mon district in condemning the act of aggression on the part of the para-military force personnel. All actions initiated to bring the aggressors to book have to be followed up with earnest and brought to its logical conclusion.

The NCCI once again calls for a rethink on the AFSPA, and that all policing in the areas in which AFSPA is in vogue be subjected to independent human rights scrutiny.

We offer the prayers and support of the Churches and Christians of the Protestant and Orthodox tradition in India to the people of Nagaland and to the families of the deceased in particular.

Let us join in sincere prayer during this season of Advent when we reflect on the coming of Jesus as judge, that Peace be granted in the hope and promise of requital to all those who are wronged.

Rev. Asir Ebenezer
General Secretary

Call for applications to the post of NCCI Executive Secretary – NCCI Youth Concerns Ministry

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National Council of Churches in India

Call for Applications

 

Applications are invited from interested candidates to serve as Executive Secretary NCCI Youth Concerns.

The candidate must belong to a Member Church of NCCI and should have a commitment to Youth concerns. The appointment will be for a term of five years beginning from 3rd January 2022.

Requirements:

  • A minimum of a Bachelors degree.
  • Should also have a basic Theological Degree (Senate of Serampore College B.D. or its equivalent).
  • Should have a good command in English language – both spoken and written
  • Should be between 25-30 years of age and should have a national ecumenical exposure.
  • Should be endorsed and recommended by the Head of the NCCI Constituent Church of which the candidate is a member.
  • Should have a rich experience of working among youth groups.
  • Should be creative, innovative and communicative.
  • Should have an experience of working in an IT-enabled environment.
  • Should be willing to relocate to Delhi

 Interested candidates may apply with their curriculum vitae including necessary enclosures, endorsement from the head of the NCCI Member Church, and a photograph (with an advance copy by email) to:

The General Secretary
National Council of Churches in India
Post Box 205, Civil Lines
Beside Maharashtra State Biodiversity Board,
Nagpur 440 001, Maharashtra State
Phone:  (0712) 2531312 / 2561464
Email:  ncci@ncci1914.com

 

Last date for receiving application by post/ courier is 7th December 2021.

Short listed candidates will be intimated about the date and time of the interview.

Download pdf file

Rev. Dr. Asir Ebenezer
General Secretary

 Date: November 25, 2021