I’m posting one chapter a week of my newest book, Witness Men, which has just been accepted for publication.
“Tuan,” one of the Dani chiefs called to Gordon Larson. “Welcome back.”
It was 1958, and Gordon Larson had just returned from the United States to the Dani people of the Ilaga Valley, where he was continuing to teach, to build, and to help the people. The Dani men, who were big and strong, were glad to help him build an airstrip for his airplane. In exchange, Gordon gave them beautiful cowrie shells and amazing steel axes.
“I’m glad to be back, Lalok,” Gordon answered. “What is your news?”
Lalok stood tall and strong, his long gray hair hanging down his back in a net bag. “Do you remember that before you went away, my son-in-law found hai?”
“Yes, I remember your son-in-law,” said Gordon. “He’s Den of the Damal tribe. He came to Christ just before I left.”
“Before you went away, Den’s people burned their kuguwak. All the Danis in the Valley knew about it.”
“I remember,” said Gordon. “Another chief told me that all of you would be watching the Damals. He wanted to know if their pigs would die or their gardens would fail, or if their babies would die or their enemies would kill them.”
“Yes, I said that too.” Lalok shook his head vigorously, and his net bag swung up and down. “But for these many suns, the Damal people have not suffered at the hands of the angry spirits. They have been kept safe. Truly, the Damals have found hai. Tuan, all the Danis are talking about it.” He swept his arm across the air in front of him to show how far the astonishing news had traveled, like shock waves through one valley after another.
“But your people haven’t received our preaching,” Gordon reminded Lalok. “You think that no spirit can have love, that no spirit can be good. You think that no man can rise from the dead.”
“Yes.” Lalok nodded slowly. “But the Damal have searched for hai for many seasons. I know that my son-in-law is not a fool. If he and his people burned their power pieces and have suffered no harm, it is because they found something even more powerful. Come over here to the grass behind these bushes.”
Gordon squatted down with Lalok. “Tell me more,” Lalok whispered. “Who is this Jesus you talk about?”
“He’s the great Maker who became a man like us,” Gordon said, repeating words he had spoken many times. “He’s the Great Spirit come to earth because of love.”
“My son-in-law says that this Jesus will give life that goes on and on,” Lalok said anxiously. “Will my son-in-law live forever?”
“He won’t live forever on this earth, but after this life, he’ll have eternal life with the great God, Jehovah. That’s because Den no longer holds to his power pieces, but he looks to Jesus only for his power.”
“So maybe this is the nabelan kabelan of the Dani,” said Lalok.
“Tell me about nabelan kabelan,” said Gordon.
“The bird dies, of course. But the snake lives forever, as we can see by the new skin he gets again and again. Long ago the snake and the bird had a race, and the bird won the race. Our ancestors foolishly followed the bird and lost the way to live forever. But we believe that someday we will again find nabelan kabelan, my skin your skin. That is the forever life that our ancestors lost. Then we will have no more death, no more fear, no more hard work, no more war. Maybe what you tell me is this.”
“I can’t promise no more hard work. I can’t promise that you won’t die. But I can promise that in Jesus Christ you can have no fear. I can promise that in Jesus Christ you no longer have to have these terrible wars. I can promise that in Jesus Christ you can live forever after death.”
But Lalok still looked anxious. “If we burn our kuguwak, will our pigs die? Will our enemies win battles over us and kill us?”
“You must be ready to trust Jesus Christ, to know that He is true,” said Gordon. “You must believe in Him alone. But He can give you freedom from your fear.”
One day Lalok came to Gordon and said, “See this?” He held up a handful of shell necklaces. “These are the cowrie shells of my father’s father. If I burn these, I fear that I will have no power in battle. My enemies will kill me and destroy my people.”
“Then wait,” said Gordon. “Our God is very great. Greater than all the enemies, greater than all the power pieces of the world. You can put all your faith in Him for all your power. When you’re ready to do that, you’ll want to burn your kuguwak.”
Lalok gazed up over the high, high mountains. “I want my people to be free from the power of the spirits,” he murmured. He shook his head, and his long matted braids swished back and forth. “But I can’t burn my kuguwak unless all my clan does it with me. We do all things together. That is our way. Maybe next month we’ll have a burning.” He looked at the cowrie shells, and his shoulders sagged. “These things are like strong vines around us, but we’re afraid to burn them. We want them because they help us have power, but really the spirits use them to hold power over us.”
Over the days and weeks and months, Lalok and the other leaders continued to ask questions and listen. Now they listened with open hearts. The Damals had found hai. Would the Danis miss nabelan kabelan?
One night, the time had finally come. Lalok sat with Gordon alone in the man hut. “I will burn my kuguwak,” he said. “I will look to Jesus Christ. He will protect me. My power pieces will not.” He took a deep breath, and his lips became set in a firm line. “If the other Dani clans don’t want to join me in the burning, I’ll do it anyway.”
“My people!” Lalok announced to his village the next day. “We cannot learn about the true and living way until we cut the strong vines that bind us, like the Damals did. These kuguwak are strong vines binding us to the spirits of fear!”
Was it right? The people felt the tremor of fear shiver through their bodies. Was it right? Would the spirits be angry?
“My people!” Lalok repeated. “We must do this. We must burn our kuguwak to be ready to receive nabelan kabelan.”
The leader of the clan had said it. They were a people together.
So it was that the next day, on the outskirts of the village near the airstrip, people gathered sticks for a huge fire. Then, some with joy, some with fear, brought their power pieces, in piles and bags.
The flames leaped up and caught the kuguwak. Brightly the fires burned and burned and burned.
The Danis of Lalok’s village had burned their power pieces. And the news of those flames traveled like a forest fire through one village after another after another.
[Reprinted by request from January, 2011.]