The Birth of Christian Enthusiasm among the Angami of Nagaland

Abstract This article juxtaposes the notion of individual agency with the Durkheimian concept of religious enthusiasm. Focusing on religious conversion among the Angami Nagas of Nagaland, 90 percent of whom are now Christian, the article shows how individuals may choose to change denomination even after having converted to Christianity; not being bound to any one sect, they are able to switch affiliation between a variety of denominations. Among the Angami, and in Nagaland as a whole, breakaway churches are constantly being established and so are available to new adherents alongside older sects. This fissiparous tendency is disclosed through individual stories of conversion. Moreover, the new churches differ from the longer-established ones in terms of their liturgical traditions and modes of religious enthusiasm. The younger churches exhibit a more vocally-explicit form of worship while the older ones are more muted and often celebrate their longevity through the installation of monoliths and the wearing of specially-designed commemorative cloths.