Editing Modekngei (section)

==Practices==
The goal of Modekngei is to preserve ancient Palauan traditions in a way that aligns with [[Christianity]].

Adherents in [[Ibobang]] practice a lifestyle centered on ancient ideas of family, community, and purity. The religion prohibits followers from all [[alcohol (drug)|alcohol]] and drug use, and children in the village are required to be home by dark and abstain from making loud noises in sacred places.

Citizens of Ibobang attend daily church services. The church building is located in the center of the village and is likewise the center of activity. One Modekngei custom requires members of the community to walk silently to church each morning. To speak, especially loudly, before a church service is disrespectful and borderline [[blasphemy|blasphemous]].

Women in Ibobang usually wear pants, but at church they are required to always wear a skirt or dress when either entering or passing the building. As a result, it is not uncommon to see a woman in Ibobang dressed in pants to take a longer route to her destination to keep from crossing the church grounds without the proper attire. Daily Modekngei church services are short, consisting mostly of individual and group [[prayers]]. However, services celebrating both traditional and religious holidays are more elaborate and can last several days, with weeks of communal preparation.

One custom that most Palauans observe—regardless of religious affiliation—is the prohibition of alcohol or [[tobacco]] within the Ibobang city limits. According to tradition, violating this religious ban will bring terrible rainstorms upon the village that will not go away until the [[sin]] has been forgiven by the Modekngei goddess.

Even Palauans who may normally drink or smoke will abstain from bringing the banned substances within the city limits. The belief that rains will plague the village is so strong that Modekngei elders will hang fruit and other treats on tree branches throughout the village in hopes of propitiating the goddess to be forgiving of outsiders' misconduct.

Another customary activity that takes place in Ibobang is the blessing of the roads. This particular custom coincides with the [[moon cycle|moon's cycle]]. A few days before each full moon, the community works together to clean the entire village. Lawns are cut, trash is cleaned and houses are scrubbed. Then, the evening before the full moon dawns, everyone who lives in Ibobang waits inside their houses while a village elder walks up and down the streets chanting prayers and blessings over the village. This is a necessary practice in Modekngei because it's believed that during a full moon, the Modekngei goddess is better able to see the malpractices of her people.