By Felix Anthony –
Nampong: A remote village in Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh marked the silver jubilee of becoming Christians with blessing and inauguration of a new church on 10 February 2021.
Hetlong is a humble tribal village with 30 families belonging to the Tangsa tribe. The community had their worship in a bamboo structure with tin roof for the last quarter of a century and marked the 25th year of receiving the Catholic faith with a new concrete Church in the presence of guests and dignitaries from around the district.
Blessing the new Church, Bishop George Pallipparambil sdb of Miao Diocese, congratulated the community for staying strong in their faith for the last 25 years. He invited them to have a stronger Church now not in terms of building but in faith and encouraged the community to keep alive the flame of faith to withstand the danger that the future is threatening to pose. “In the Bible we see several letters of St. Paul addressed to the Corinthians and Philppians. These communities do not exist today because they did not live according to the teachings of the faith they received. This could happen to us too if we are not fervent in the faith we celebrate today”, he cautioned.
The Church, dedicated to Apostle Peter, is a substation under Nampong Parish of Miao Diocese, manned by the Society of the Missionaries of St. Francis Xavier, the Pilar Fathers.
Speaking on the occasion, Laisam Simai, local MLA and Advisor for Tourism and IPR & Printing, Government of Arunachal Pradesh, spoke of his personal example of being faithful to the church services. “Wherever I have been, as a student and even today, I always look for the nearest Church to participate in the Sunday services for I have experienced its transformative effects on my life”, said the leader, who is also one of the youngest MLAs of Arunachal Pradesh.
Kothan Mossang, the village leader and one of the firsts to receive Baptism in the village, inaugurated the new church.
Many youth and 30 children received the Sacraments of Confirmation and First Holy Communion during the inaugural Eucharistic celebration.