Taingyintha theology in the making in Myanmar: a public theological perspective.

ABSTRACT

Since almost all Christians in Myanmar are taingyintha Christians, Myanmar must have a taingyintha theology that makes a serious attempt to analyze the reality of the socio-political context of Myanmar and evolve a meaningful theology that is relevant and contextual to the contemporary reality of Myanmar.

In this article, the author highlights that the task of taingyintha Christians is to struggle for tiangyintha liberation from their socio-politically discrimination and Burmanization in their homeland, to empower the inner person of the taingyinthas, and to strive for their empowerment in all spheres, and to lead inclusive humanism for the goal identity and humanity of the taingyinthas within the human community. The objective is to emerge taingyintha theology not only from the experience of taingyinthaness in their socio-political setting but also from the fundamental biblical categories like equality, justice, peace, and hope for socio-political transformation. In interpretation, an inductive theological method will be applied to examine the taingyinthas’ struggle for identity in the context in which they struggle in order to actualise their vision of a genuine federal Union and to empower taingyinthas to be the transformational role in the contemporary socio-political setting.

KEYWORDS:

• Taingyintha
• burmanisation
• identity
• equality
• rights
• freedom

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No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

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Notes on contributors

Lahphai Awng Li

Rev. Dr. Lahphai Awng Li is a professor & Director of Judson Research Center of Myanmar Institute of Theology, Myanmar, and a Baptist ordained pastor of Myanmar Baptist Convention. He earned his Ph.D. in Religious Study degree from Philippines Christian University in March 2008. His concentration area is Asian Ecumenical Theologies and Public Theology. He is also serving as a board member & resource person of the Myanmar Ecumenical Institute of Myanmar Council of Churches, and a founder of Myanmar Center for Unity in Diversity. The title of his public book in English that publish in Myanmar is ‘Restating the gospel of Salvation in Myanmar Theravada Buddhist Context: Towards Myanmar Soteriology’.