Editorial reflection and analysis on issues shaping Chinese Christianity.
Jeffrey Towson and Jonathan Woetzel, both professors at Peking University's Guanghua School of Management in Beijing, claim you can understand China in an hour. An excerpt from their new book on the McKinsey and Company website says getting a handle on China is a lot less about politics and a lot more about a handful of major economic and social trends that are shaping the country's future.
Yesterday I highlighted some of the key points of the first of two panel discussions hosted by the Brookings Institute last week. The specific topic of that panel was the political and social status of Christianity in China.
Is Christianity transforming Chinese society? The Brookings Institute China Center recently hosted two panel discussions exploring that question.
The 2006 China Church Leadership Study, conducted jointly by ChinaSource and Geneva Global Research, identified seven types of Christian leaders in China. While three of these are in traditional church roles at various levels, the other four function largely outside the bounds of the local church and represent the growing role of Christians in China's larger society.
I have been involved actively in China ministry since 1996. I often tell people that those years have been some of the most exciting times for China, her government and her church. Just as I was actively getting involved, the Chinese government was beginning to wrestle with what place people of faith could have in Chinese society. It seems clear that they are still wrestling with that question today!
Urbanization has irreversibly changed the landscape of Chinademographically, socially, geographically, and economically.
In our previous post, "How to Fail at Philanthropy in China," we shared some insights from Clare Pearson in Beijing, based on her experience with corporate donors in China. Clare presented these last month at Philanthropy and China: A Time of Promise, a conference sponsored by the International Association of Advisors in Philanthropy.
Is there religious freedom in China? The answer, of course, depends on the meaning of the term "religious freedom"
At a recent conference on China hosted by the International Association of Advisors in Philanthropy, Clare Pearson of Charitarian Magazine in Beijing offered some helpful tips.
Christianity in rural China is heavily influenced by concepts of Chinese folk religion and functions in many ways like a folk religion. This is due to the influence of traditional religious concepts and the limited education among most rural people. Folk concepts observed in rural Christianity include predilection for the mysterious including evidence of supernatural power, obsession with objects (the evil of unspiritual objects as well as the benefit of spiritual objects like pictures of Jesus or crosses), an intuitive desire for ritual to express one's faith and other aspects to be discussed below.
Why China's most privileged youth generation ever is still looking for more.
It's been awhile since a new book has found it's way onto my must read list, but I suspect that a new one Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith in the New China by Evan Osnos is going to end up there.