The Talkalone Karen Tribe
By Allan Eubank edited by Parthenia Stout
Allan and his wife Joan have been missionaries for nearly 50 years and they have ministered to many tribes, but the Karen have always fascinated Allan as well as many missionaries that I have done research on.
This is a bit of chronological look through his involvement with this tribe way up in the mountains. In the beginning it was by elephant and hiking many days. Others had also been intrigued by their unique legends and some of the first entry was by others to build a hospital and a school beyond 4th grade.
A Karen couple who were evangelists named Olive Pa and wife Olive Mo came many times with those who traveled to meet this hill tribe hidden in the mountains. As Christians would share the story of Creation they were very interested but no decisions were made as the rule was that only as the head man agreed could go they go ahead with any desire to follow. (Like in Moses’ and Joshua’ and Abraham’s days they are very close in unity as a body in the belief under one man’s leadership).
This Karen tribe can give us much information as to their sacrifice and their morals. They sacrificed chickens to appease the evil spirits as they had lost the “Book” that gave them instructions for the one true God.) The Talakone did not raise any animals as they were too poor to have beef.
In one village no one could read but one old man (how was this possible? As far back as the early days when the gospel came from Burma?)
He was given a portion of Genesis and said he would try to explain it to others. In other villages they asked, “How can we know these things? No one has ever told us.” Many villagers followed the Talakone custom of wearing either Karen traditional dress or brightly colored shirts and sarongs. No plaids or stripes or designs in which lines are crossed are allowed. (In Leviticus 19:19 God did not like a mixture either.
Only men were allowed near the head man and they were grouped around the scared center (like in the days when the 12 tribes were grouped around the tabernacle.) This head man told the visitors that there was no difference between men as they were all children of the one Father ---this is such amazing insight for those who have never read the Bible.
These people had been caught in a long time struggle with the Burmese and they asked for help to restore their peace. This civil war had been going on for about 50-60 years at this time. We can see that as Israel is struggling for peace and longing as both Karen and Jews wanted to live in peace. It has been the same time frame in parallel for both Karen and the Hebrews in Israel.
They read to Allan from palm-leafed books about the white brother and questioned the Bible as the Lost Book. But to follow Jesus was dependent on their leader. He was reluctant because they questioned its value for about 5 hours and repeated what had been heard on previous visits. They had expected this book to be a magic volume with special, obvious powers. (Possibly because of their long association with the evil spirits) Allan offered the Bible as a symbol of our stretched out hand to help. A young man who spoke Thai for the younger generation said, “We know we are in a hole and cannot get out by ourselves.” (I learned later he had accepted the Bible and was a follower of Jesus then he was killed. A martyr for his faith!)
Alan said, “we were discouraged at their continued resistance to Christ, but this younger man voiced a sincere cry for help, ‘Don’t give up on us’ made us decide to send Karen evangelists to follow up.”
It was many years later before the older head men died and then the cry ‘we are ready for you to teach us.’ The Karen evangelists had formed drama, dance, act, and song using the Karen traditions as a bridge to understand how they pointed to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now the most surprising event took place. They wanted to be engaged--to be engaged as a visual of the covenant between the Christians and the Talakone. (I was not sure who began this symbolic act, later I asked Allan and he said the Karen did.)
The Christians presented their side of the engagement agreement as ‘That all worship be offered to the only living God above all gods. That they accept God’s word (the Bible) as the guide to live by (Jeremiah 31:33) so that the Holy Spirit could write the laws on their hearts. And that they accept teachers to teach them how to read and write, and understand and obey God’s word.’
The Talakone wrote their covenant ‘That we retain our 5 rules of behavior --that we maintain our rules of dress and eating --and that we maintain our ceremonies of worship.’ We accepted that if all their worship was for the one true God. Both sides knew that there would be many more negotiations.
They asked us what was our pledge to continue this engagement? We offered to allow the Karen evangelists (man and wife) to be the engagement ring. As we traveled home we set up our plans for the return engagement trip. We would take the Karen couple back with us when we met in April to set up a home for them.
