Firsthand accounts of faith lived out in the context of Chinese Christianity.
As the church in China continues to grow and mature, opportunities to connect and partner with churches in the West continue to grow as well. In many cases, these partnerships provide opportunities for churches in China to learn from the experiences of the churches in the West. This is a good thing.
To better understand the recent Sanjiang church demolition and what now appears to be a coordinated effort on the part of the government to curb visibility of Christianity in the public sphere, it is also helpful to briefly consider the relationship that Christianity has with China historically.
While much is written about the explosive growth of the church among the Han (dominant ethnic group in China), less is written about the spread of Christianity among the minority peoples. The article translated below is about a county in Yunnan Province that is praying and raising money to build a church.
Last month we highlighted a video from the Grace to the City Convention held in Hong Kong in March, which featured the participants singing the popular Getty hymn, "In Christ Alone."
The Mainland site Gospel Times recently published an article about the poor living conditions of preachers in the countryside. The article contains stories and photos of preachers in three different counties in southwest China. Below is a translation of one of those stories. The article is set within the context of the Sanjiang Church, an unusually expensive and ornate church in Wenzhou that was demolished last month.
Kudos to Ian Johnson for getting his hands on an official document that helps explain the Sanjiang Church Demolition Incident. In what is arguably the most comprehensive reporting on the incident, he writes in The New York Times that "an internal government document reviewed by The New York Times makes it clear the demolitions are part of a strategy to reduce Christianity's public profile.
In March of this year, more than 1500 pastors and church leaders from around China gathered at Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Hong Kong for a conference called Grace to the City Convention. The keynote speaker was Dr. Timothy Keller, of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City who, with the assistance of a phenomenal interpreter, spoke on the themes of grace, contextualization, integration, and movement. In addition, the participants heard four pastors from four different areas of China give their perspectives on these themes. A team of musicians from Harbin led the worship.
The website Xuanjiao Zhongguo (Missions China) recently ran a post written by a university student in China, sharing his/her reflections on faith in modern China.
In the week since the Sanjiang Church was demolished, netizens in China (both Christian and non-Christian) have taken to social media to comment on the incident.
The biblical way of handling advice and counsel lies in stark contrast to my foolish responses and is, I believe, something the Chinese Church models fairly well.
In response to the situation at the Sanjiang Church in Wenzhou, a Chinese believer posted an open letter to Christians world-wide to pray for the Church in China.
Many people in the West are familiar with the Back to Jerusalem Movement, which refers to a movement of Chinese Christians to take the gospel to Central Asia, and then "back to Jerusalem."
Fewer people, perhaps, are aware of the fact that this movement, or vision, is not something new; it really began in the 1940's when God called a group of Chinese believers to take the Gospel to Northwest China (Xinjiang) and Central Asia. They formed a team called the "Preach Everywhere Gospel Band," and fanned out across Xinjiang.