A message for the Christmas

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men (humans),” goes the King James Version of Chapter 2, Verse 14 of the Gospel of Luke, a beautiful and hopeful message of Christmas.

 


“Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas,” goes a famous quote by the former US President Late Calvin Coolidge.

 


Despite the unsavoury state of affairs, Christmas season is that time of the year when the citizens of Nagaland eagerly look forward to a temporary ‘truce’ from the daily struggles, we commented last year.

 


The states of affairs have not changed much. Many returning home to spend Christmas with families and friends still have to collectively trudge on the bumpy and dusty roads. Governance is found wanting in several spheres – concerns over ‘illegal appointments’ and pending salaries still persist, while access to quality healthcare remains a big challenge. And yes, the solution to the protracted Indo-Naga political issue enters into another year, with bigger chasm and uncertainty. The lists go on. 

 


Amidst the concerns over ‘domestic affairs,’ the people are also confronted visuals and voices of the dramatic scene unfolding across India after the far-reaching changes to the country’s citizenship law.

 


More specifically, the state of affairs created by the Citizenship Amendment Bill, later legislated into an Act, has created several fault lines across India. Many argue, it strikes at the heart of the Indian Constitution by diluting its secular credential. At the same time, there are genuine voices of concerns from the periphery - the North East, worried about the adverse impact of such unprecedented action upon ‘Indigenous Peoples.’

 


Confronted with such realities, as one reflects, the message of Christmas of peace and goodwill towards fellow humans were never felt more needed.

 


Away from the glittering gifts and glad tidings associated with the season, the state of mind, to repeat Coolidge, “is to cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.”

 


Both the internal and external state of affairs can be corrected if the essence of empathy and compassion, so fervently espoused by Jesus Christ, are rediscovered.  The issue of governance can be sorted out to a great degree if self-interest gives way to collective goods. To this end, being empathetic and compassionate signify the first step towards course correction.  Solidarity and spreading the goodwill beyond own backyard would also enable one to come out of the misplaced stoicism and extend one’s empathy towards neighbours’ concern. To the follower of Jesus Christ, Apostle Paul also instructed in Ephesians 4:32 to “be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you." This can also solve many vital political issues confronting the Nagas.

 


Can the Naga society collectively, we reiterate, embrace peace, practice magnanimity and re-discover compassion and empathy this Christmas?  

 


Here’s to a very Blissful, Safe and Purposeful Christmas.