History of Shan Churches in Burma 1861-2001 - Khamkoo

Baptist mission among the Shan 60
At first the Shan missionaries at NamKham were responsible for the Kachin work. But in 1906 a
separate missionary was appointed for the Kachin work. However, occasionally one missionary family
had to serve both language groups. The hospital served Shan, Kachin, Chinese, and other races on an
equal basis. In 1914 separate Shan and Kachin Churches were organized and in 1919 the schools for
Shan and Kachin became separate too. It was reported in 1916 that the Christians have increased from
sixty-seven to seventy-six. From 1922, Dr. and Mrs. Gordon Seagrave served in NamKham until World
War II forced their evacuation from Burma. They gave the longest continuous service to the NamKham
mission. New buildings were constructed, using the cobblestones from the NamZaLe and NamYaKau
and better equipments were added. The Nurses’ Training Class trained young women from wide areas
of Upper Burma for good service to the country and people. In 1942, there were about five hundred
Shan Christian in the ShweLi Valley, and a firm foundation had been built. The war brought trials and
testing to the Shan Christians. When the Japanese occupied the ShweLi Valley, they mistook the Shan
pastor in SeLan, Saya Paw Kham, for Chinese and murdered him and his son. Immediately the rumor
spread that the Japanese would persecute and kill Shan Christians, and many of them evacuated to the
jungle with only what they could carry with them. They built bamboo chapels for their worship
services. In spite of the dangers, Christmas 1942 was celebrated by the ShweLi Valley Christians with
Shan Buddhist and Japanese guests. Their experience led to the formation of the ShweLi Valley Baptist
Association on December 24, 1945, with Saya Ai Pan, pastor of the Church at NamKham, as President,
and Saya Kham Yee as Secretary.
Dr. Seagrave had resigned from mission service in 1942 to join the medical Corps of the United
States Army. His American friends organized an independent, non-denominational agency to operate
the hospital in NamKham along with an Advisory Committee of local leaders. The American Baptist
Foreign Mission Society leased the NamKham Hospital compound and buildings to this agency at a
very nominal rate. The ShweLi Valley did not escape the general insecurity of the post-war and post
independence periods. NamKham was occupied for a time in 1950 by insurgent forces, and they took
personnel and medical supplies with them when driven out by Government troops.
First Shan convert
On December 28, 1894, Rev. Cochrane said, “The three converts are doing well. The young
man, our first fruit, was married last night to a good-looking, highly respectable Shan girl. She was
perfectly willing to have the ceremony performed according to Christian custom and seemed to enjoy
the change of style.” 62 The names of those three converts were not mentioned in the report. We don’t
know who they were. By oral tradition Kham Maung was the first Shan convert in ShweLi when he was
baptized at the age of 15. Kham Maung was ordained on March 5, 1924.
ShweLi Valley Baptist High School
NamKham Mission School began in February 1893 with a teacher and twelve pupils. In May
the number of students increased to eighteen, ten day-pupils and eight boarders. They studied the Bible
the first hour every morning. During the first year five of the pupils had been baptized. They were
expected to become preachers, teachers and Bible-women in the future.
Dr. Hanson conducted a combined boarding school for Shan and Kachin. He also took charge of
the girl boarders on the Kachin compound and Dr. C. A. Kirkpatrick took charge of the boy boarders on
the Shan compound. Dr. Kirkpatrick had also established a day school for Shan in the town of
NamKham. Saya Sam Pwa arrived in NamKham in 1901 and worked as schoolteacher until he passed
away in 1942. Saya Htun Pyu and Saya Tha Dun arrived NamKham in 1912 to teach at school. In 1914
the increase of Shan and Kachin girls in the school making 22 in all. There was such dire need of a
girls’ dormitory that they could not let the opportunity pass. When the board were unable to give rupees
62 Report from Rev. W.W. Cochrane, NamKham, Dec. 8, 1894, The Baptist Missionary Magazine, p78