KOHIMA, SEPTEMBER 27 (MExN): The Jehovah Sabaoth International Ministry has expressed concern over the Nagaland Joint Christian Forum’s (NJCF) opposition to a proposed bill seeking to ban Satanic worship in the state.
In a statement issued on Saturday, the Ministry’s president Khotuo Yaotsu said the NJCF’s position, as reported in the media was taken without the knowledge or consent of respective Church Councils. It alleged that the opposition was hasty, misleading, and lacked moral and spiritual authority.
The Ministry said that while NJCF’s letter acknowledged Satanic worship as universally condemned, it argued against a legislative discussion on grounds that it could “unintentionally promote” such practices. The Ministry termed the reasoning “deeply flawed,” adding that silence on the issue would only allow such practices to grow in secrecy.
The statement maintained that Rev Dr Zelhou Keyho, during his tenure as General Secretary of the NBCC, was approached by the Ministry regarding the alarming rise of Satanic practices disguised in Christian forms of worship. Unfortunately, he “bluntly refused to be involved with the issue.”
It also alleged that during earlier discussions, Rev Dr N Paphino, President of NJCF, had agreed that action was necessary but later reversed course as the bill was about to be tabled in the Assembly.
“This raises serious questions about whose interests are being defended and why a democratic debate on the matter is being opposed,” the Ministry said. It also criticised what it described as an “autocratic style of leadership” that bypassed consultation with Church Councils.
The Ministry called upon church leaders across denominations to review the issue independently, urged the government to pursue the matter “courageously and transparently,” and appealed to citizens to speak out against “deceptive and dangerous spiritual practices.”
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