No Longer Alone
When people who have long been studying, teaching, pastoring, and serving in different contexts finally sit in the same room, what becomes visible?
When people who have long been studying, teaching, pastoring, and serving in different contexts finally sit in the same room, what becomes visible?
The conference, "Chinese Christian Scholarship and the Church in Global Perspective: Review and Prospect," organized by the Institute of Advanced Studies of Chinese Christianity (IASCC) was certainly a fruitful event.
The Chinese church is gradually moving from numerical breadth to intellectual maturity—from movement-driven growth to the building of institutions and a knowledge tradition.
These sessions showcased the intensity and seriousness with which this generation is pursuing in-depth knowledge with academic integrity, intellectual purpose, and faith.
Among these Christian scholars are those who have newly embraced denominational identities, begun to promote interdisciplinary dialogue beyond traditional theological–philosophical impasses, and reopened a robust debate about the role of faith in scholarship, Chinese church history, and contemporary life.
This conference is a good reminder to Christians that the ultimate purpose of even something seemingly cold and private like theology is ultimately to equip ourselves and our fellow believers to better love God and one another.
God is not confined to church walls. He meets us in the world’s wounded places.
Mission is not a straight line—it’s a web. And in today’s globalized world, where people are constantly moving across borders and cultures, Chinese Christians have a unique part to play.
If we truly believe that diaspora is God’s mission strategy for this era, then no generation should be missing, no language should be diminished, and no one’s sense of belonging should be sacrificed.
God is actively working among his people throughout East Asia in ways that may be surprising to those of us in the West or may appear hidden.
On November 14, 2024, nearly 200 Chinese pastors, church leaders, theologians, and educators from around the world gathered at the picturesque Biola University. Together, they celebrated the historic establishment of the Institute for Advanced Studies of Chinese Christianity (IASCC) and the Biola Research Initiative for Chinese Theology.
On July 9, 2024, approximately 80 Chinese and Korean pastors, ministry leaders, and researchers met in Gaithersburg, MD, to hear about, reflect on, and find applications for the first comprehensive baseline study involving Chinese and Korean churches in the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and northern Virginia (DMV) region.