A brief history of Catholic faith in Lakhuti village

When we think or talk about Christianity today, it must be viewed and understood from the prism of British India when there was no Nagaland except Naga hills under Assam Province (1826) with Samaguting as the first District Headquarters of the Naga Hills, then for a brief period Wokha (1876-77) and finally shifted to Kohima in 1878 which ultimately became the capital of Nagaland in 1963. It was during this British era that EW Clark brought Baptist faith to the Aos in 1872. And from there on spread to various parts of Naga Hills.
Mr. Shanjamo Jungi of Yikhum village was first to preach about Baptist faith in Lakhuti village in 1913 while he was the Pastor of Changpang village but it was only in 1920 that Lakhuti village embraced the Baptist faith officially when four households with eight members were baptized in February of 1920.(Centennial Jubilee History of Lakhuti Baptist Church, 2020)
Then in 1949, there arose an internal issue in Lakhuti Baptist Church that led to the expulsion of three of its members for reasons best known to them namely; Mr. Shanpano Humtsoe, Deacon; Mr Yantsao Yanthan, Chowkidar and Mr. Chenisao Humtsoe, Deacon. These three pleaded for forgiveness and implored the church for taking them back but to no avail. At this, they were in total panic as they could not go back to their forefathers religion as they did not know any other Christian denomination. Incidentally, there was a man Mr. Rhansumo Humtsoe, from Lakhuti village who worked in Dibrugarh as a helper to an Anglican Bishop and Fr. L. Piasecki and had returned to the village then. He told the three expelled members that there was a Catholic mission in Golaghat and a Catholic Church at Gorajan and suggested them to embrace Catholic faith if they wished to. Heeding to the suggestion, on December 28, 1950, the three walked down to Golaghat to meet Fr. Bollini and expressed their desire to become Catholics. (Fr. Bollini’s Diary) After this eventful meeting, the three families, on 2nd April 1951, had a special prayer on their change of faith and on April 4th 1951they were welcomed to the Catholic faith by way of thumb impression making them and their village as the first Catholics in Naga Hills. Later on Mr. Rhansumo Humtsoe himself embraced Catholic faith and two of his daughters became professed nuns in the service of the Church.
It may be noted here that the three members were not re-baptized when they became Catholics because they had been already baptized validly in the Baptist church. This was and is so because baptism, being a sacrament, cannot be administered twice. Unfortunately, for Baptist, baptism is not a sacrament but only an ordinance and that is why they baptise again and again. The Catholic Church, in order to maintain the sanctity of the sacrament of baptism, will only ask the new convert, from other denominations, as to whether he or she had been baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit or not. If not then the new convert or converts will be rebaptized due to the invalidity of his or their previous baptism. Likewise, marriage sacrament is given only once. In case, a married man marries again, for instance, owing to the death of his wife, the sacrament of marriage will be administered to the wife, to be, only and that too if she had not received a marriage sacrament earlier. If both the man and the woman had been married earlier then instead of the marriage sacrament only confirmation of marriage will be administered.
Concluded
Jonas Yanthan