Aizawl, Jan 11 (PTI) Christian-dominated Mizoram on Thursday celebrated ‘Missionary Day’ with special prayers and worship services being held in churches across the state.
All government offices, educational institutions and some business establishments were closed as the government declared a public holiday to mark the sanctity of the day.
Special prayer and worship services were held in local churches, especially in those belonging to the Baptist Church of Mizoram (BCM) and Presbyterian Church.
'Missionary Day' is celebrated in Mizoram every year to commemorate the anniversary of the arrival of two Welsh Christian missionaries in the 1890s.
Several local churches of BCM also organised community feasts as thanks-giving programmes during which rich tributes were paid to two Welsh Christian missionaries Rev JH Lorrain, and Rev FW Savidge, who set foot in then Lushai Hills in 1894.
Welsh Christian missionaries Rev JH Lorrain and Rev FW Savidge, fondly called by the Mizos as 'Pu Buanga' and 'Sap upa' respectively, arrived in Mizoram by boat from Assam at the banks of river Tlawng near Sairang village on January 11, 1894 and spread Christianity.
The two missionaries made Lushai (Mizo)-English Dictionary, known to the local people till today as 'Pu Buanga Dictionary'. They established the Presbyterian Church in the northern part of Mizoram and the Baptist Church in the south of the state.
They also helped educate the Mizo people by creating Mizo alphabets using Roman scripts. The two missionaries were instrumental in changing the rustic life of the Mizos.