User talk:Lijo babycmi/sandbox
CHRIST - THE KARAM RAJA
Lijo Baby CMI
Samanvaya pursues theologizing in context that makes the candidate an effective evangelizer reading the culture and way of people. The Village exposure programmewhich is part of its curriculumgives the students ample opportunities to encounter and to experience the Christianized tribal festivals as part of inculturation.
The stay atStChavara parish church, Junavaroffered me an opportunity to partake in the Christianized Karam Festival. Karam festival is one of the Oraon tribal festivals, wheretheOraonsworshipKaram Raja as their and their ancestors’ protector. These are stories that enumerate when the enemies came to retaliate; the womenwere able to hidethemselves inside the Karam tree and save themselves from the cruel hands. Many such stories and beliefs are prevalentregarding the Karamfestival; they also considerthe Karam Raja as the god of fertility and prosperity. The Stories told and folk songs sung during the festival are the ways to hand over the traditional understanding of the Karam festival to the younger generation.
When the Oraons began to believe in Christ as their ultimate saviour, these festivals were also brought into Christianity as a renewed form of celebration of Christ, their protector. The celebration of Karam festival in Junavar parish was a unique experience to me. The celebrations began in the evening,three girls and the elder men played the significant role. After spending three days infasting and prayer,the community moved to the forest in search of a Karamtree andon finding it, the elder men cut three fresh and healthy branches not attacked by any worms. Thus they remembered Abel’s offering to God which was pure and blameless.These three branches represented the Holy Trinity.
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Before cutting the branches, the priest blessed them with the recital of a few prayers and sprinkling ofHoly water. The three young virgins carriedthe branches and the priest led them to the church and the community accompanied them in procession by singing and dancing with all solemnity. The three branches were placed in front of the church and after the prayer and the blessing; the community began to dance to the toneof folk songs of Karam. This continued for the whole night. In the morning the branches were taken to the nearby waterbody for a ceremonial dip and that marked the end of the celebration.
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The participation in the festival and the experience helped me tounderstand how inculturation could offer a vivid yet rich faith experience by revisiting one’s roots. Moreover such typical practices and festivals help the missionaries to carry out evangelization without loosing thetribal identity of the people.
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