Ecclesiological Imagination: Christian Witness in the Naga Context

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Ecclesiological Imagination is a collection of contextual essays written and contributed by friends, colleagues, and church leaders in honor of Rev. Dr. Zelhou Keyho, General Secretary of the Nagaland Baptist Church Council. The articles in the book contain constructive musings on new visions for the church, ordinances for the church based on biblical narratives, scope and opportunities on church ministries, and responses to being the church in a pandemic environment. The essays share perspectives both at the scholarly and popular levels and envision directions for the church in the context of Nagaland.

The editors have privileged me to write this preface to the Festschrift in gratitude and in honor of my friend Professor Kethozelhou Keyho, who anchored the academic deanship and taught Old Testament and Hebrew language at Oriental Theological Seminary for 18 years. To this, the OTS faculty members and a few other friends have contributed to the making of this Festschrift. In a strict sense of the word, unlike a Foreword to a book, Preface is an invitation to a book and I am delighted to do so.
At the centre of this invitation the inviter takes the readers to the task of cogitation that theology of and about God cannot be isolated from the ecology of humanity and the created orders in every context. This entails faithful practices of theology in a trying and challenging context of the world. Each chapter addresses varied subject matters, converging on the vision that theology in one or another is not only to discover knowledge, but to practice as to serve a way of life. I would affirm that the writers are enlightened to vindicate the relevancy of theology in its historical context. Our theology of and about God and our way of fleshing it out its content should go hand in hand.
One of the scopes of the Festschrift is also a response to the contemporary waves within our society and conversely, it is also self-examination of "academic theology." In this age of post modernity, the foundation of Christian theology needs strengthening with utmost urgency.