Winter 1999Vol. 1 No. 4

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a T he church in China does not exist in a vacuum. Rather, it isexperiencing unprecedented change that mirrors the rapidpace of change in society at large. Caught up in this vortex,

Tony Lambert

the question is, “Can the church keep up and adapt itself for effec-tive witness in 21st century China?”

A Rapidly Changing SocietyWhile societal changes are many, there are several that wield

great influence. Urbanization is one that is reflected in the ratio ofrural to urban dwellers which will soon be 60 to 40 compared with80 to 20 just a few years ago. The result is massive dislocation thatincludes a “floating population” of seasonal and permanent mi-grants numbering in the tens of millions. Economic development,which under Deng Xiaoping had been rapid for two decades, nowseems to be slowing due to the economic meltdown in SoutheastAsia. China has survived but faces serious problems with inefficientState-controlled industries. Millions are becoming unemployed andthe government fears the social unrest that is on the increase.

Loosening of control at the grass-roots level has led to a fragmen-tation of society allowing much greater freedom in travel, but alsoresulting in a huge increase in crime, drug-use, the spread of AIDSand other evils. While civil society is vastly freer now than when un-der Mao, it has also experienced a downside. The ideologicalvacuum that came with the collapse of Maoism as a pesudofaith hasled to a “crisis of faith” in Marxism and a great resurgence of reli-gion, especially Christianity, Buddhism, folk-religion and new cults.The spread of materialism and, in some cases particularly with theurban youth, hedonism and nihilism as well, causes young people toseek out business opportunities and strive to “get ahead”. All thispresents a challenge to the church, which must adapt to a rapidlychanging environment while remaining true to the eternal messageof Christ.

The Changing Face of the ChurchGovernment policy towards religion and the church. This policy,

granting limited authority under the Communist Party leadership,was codified in 1982 in Document 19. Ten years ago there was hopefor radical change and perhaps even the dismantling of repressivestructures of control; however, the events in Tiananmen Square onJune 4, 1989 ended it. Since then, government policy at central andlocal levels has sought to restrict and repress all unregistered reli-gious activities. Policy documents have all become more detailed,compared to those issued in the ’80s, as authorities seek to closeloopholes. The last few years have seen a serious increase in repres

The Changing Faceof China’s Church

China’s “CulturalChristians”. . . . 7

No Stranger: TheChurch in the Eyesof the Chinese. . . . 9

Strategic TeachingOpportunities. . . . 10

The ChurchAmong the Peoplesof China. . . . 12

In 1985 the registeredchurch in Jiuquan,

Gansu rented an oldcottage in the suburbs

for its meetings;in 1989 it built a

small church; in 1993it added a hall;

in 1996 it tore downthe entire building and

built a large churchwith a four-story

tower.

●

A number ofmonths ago, while

visiting in southChina, I met youngleaders of house

churches, each witha mobile phone.

●

While searching fora member of a housechurch that I intendedto visit while in China,I was told, “Oh, she’s

emigrated toCanada!”

Inside:

2

ChinaSource is published quarterly by ChinaSource, a cooperative effort of the Evangelical Fellowship of MissionAgencies, the Interdenominational Foreign Mission Association, World Evangelical Fellowship, the ChineseCoordination Centre of World Evangelism and the Institute for Chinese Studies, Wheaton College. Its purposeis to provide up-to-date and accurate analysis of the issues and opportunities facing Christians involved in Chinaservice and to provide a forum for exchanging viewpoints and discussing strategies. The views expressed hereindo not necessarily reflect those of ChinaSource or its cooperating agencies.

Brent Fulton, Editor ● Julia Grosser, Managing Editor ● Dona Diehl, Layout and Design

ChinaSource may be requested from ChinaSource, 501 College Ave., Wheaton IL 60187 (china@xc.org or 630.752.7951) for a donation of $20 per year. No partof this publication may be reproduced or transmitted without prior written permission of the publisher.

sion of unregistered house churchesin many areas, especially in Henan,Anhui and Jiangsu. However, thispolicy has become more and more outof touch with reality, as local officialsobserve the positive effects of Chris-tianity and as society, in general, loos-ens up, allowing for greater freedomfor Christians in spite of governmentpolicy. Over the long term, somethingwill have to “give.”

The Three Self Patriotic Movementand China Christian Council. The re-tirement of Bishop Ding a couple ofyears ago has allowed the TSPM/CCCto fall into the hands of the olderTSPM leaders from the ’40s and ’50swith their liberal theology. This is astep backwards. However, a youngergeneration of TSPM/CCC graduates,many of whom are more open andgenuinely evangelical, is coming to the

fore. In the long term, the future ofthe TSPM/CCC is problematic, as itsfifties-engendered control system is in-creasingly anachronistic and deeply re-sented by many Chinese Christians in-cluding many TSPM pastors.

The TSPM/CCC churches have nowhad twenty years of relative freedomduring which an impressive infrastruc-ture has been built. According to themost recent TSPM statistics, there are13,000 churches, 35,000 registeredmeeting-points, 20 seminaries and over20 million Bibles that have been legallyprinted in the country. While the

TSPM has provided the legal frame-work for this, it should not be forgot-ten that these achievements owe farmore to millions of committed Chris-tians all over China using meager re-sources and contributing in a spirit ofself-sacrifice.

I believe the TSPM affiliatedchurches have been influenced by theSpirit of revival just as the housechurches have, providing a strongcounter-current to the control andlimitation imposed by the authorities.Churches and pastors vary. In some,the Holy Spirit has the upper hand andmuch is being accomplished for theLord; in others, the dead hand of theState and formalism crush the church.

The house-churches. The housechurch movement has grown, diversi-fied and matured in recent years. Sev-eral “streams” have appeared, some

claiming millions of members. Insome areas the house churches havetheir own buildings and have func-tioned semi-openly. In recent years,particularly the last three, the issue ofregistration has come to the fore andhas caused division. Some housechurches have registered, seeing gov-ernment recognition as the only way tocontinue effective ministry. In somecases they have been allowed to carryon unhindered while in others theyhave been bitterly disappointed. Theirleaders have been dismissed and re-placed by those acceptable to the

TSPM and restrictions have beenplaced upon them. Many otherchurches have vigorously resisted regis-tration on the theological grounds thatChrist is the Head of the church. Theyare prepared to go underground againand risk persecution rather than allowthe State or the TSPM to interfere inchurch affairs. There are cases wherechurches appear to have been allowedto register with the government with-out accepting TSPM control; however,this is unusual. In general, the situa-tion differs by area and in many areasthere has been a significant tighteningin recent years.

While theological differences haveemerged on some issues, in most casesthese reflect the vigorous growth of thechurch and its concern for biblicaltruth but, on occasion, are indicationsof personal rivalries among strong lead-ers. Overall, there has been a signifi-cant advance in the maturity of thehouse church movement. This was ex-pressed in August 1998 as several of thelargest groupings issued a joint state-ment appealing for dialogue with thegovernment, an end to persecutionand the release of Christian prisoners.The tone was irenic with no denuncia-tion of either the government orTSPM. This maturity was also reflectedin a joint “Confession of Faith” whichwas issued a few months later to showthe world that house churches are notcults (as is often claimed by the au-thorities and TSPM). The confessionvery clearly showed that mainlinehouse churches are biblical evangel-icals with a high orthodox view of theBible, the Trinity and the person ofChrist. For the most part, they hold totraditional premillenial eschatologyand are open to charismatic gifts while

There has been a significant advance in the maturity of the house church movement.

3Winter, 1999

avoiding extremism. The response ofthe authorities in late ’98 and early ’99was to instigate several mass arrests ofhouse church Christians in Henan—an indication that they are unwillingto stop repression and engage in dia-logue. However, for the first time,the house churches gained the initia-tive and won positive internationalpublicity.

The new generations. There is nomore stark contrast than that betweengenerations in China. We often forgetthat leaders today in their eighties andnineties were born prior to 1911 in im-perial times when the pigtail was stillobligatory and the 2,000 year-old Con-fucian examination system still heldsway. Older leaders, who suffered dur-ing the fifties and the Cultural Revolu-tion are still highly respected through-out the Chinese church. While the

death of Wang Mingdao in 1990marked the end of an era, those whosuffered and survived passed on apriceless heritage of biblical truth andliving testimony that ensured the sur-vival and revival of the church in theseventies and eighties.

Nevertheless, a whole middle gen-eration is often now missing. Today, amuch younger generation in theirtwenties and thirties is emerging. Inthe cities, the more affluent ones sportmobile phones and wear designerjeans. These Christians “knew notMao”; for them the Cultural Revolu-tion is only history. The first two de-cades of the 21st century will similarlysee the emergence of another younggeneration who “knew not Deng.” Be-tween the older and younger leaders atension exists. Under the TSPM systemmany promising theological graduatesreturn to provincial cities only to findthemselves barred from effective spiri-tual ministry. Still, despite many hin-drances, a keen younger generation of

leaders is emerging across China inboth house churches and within theTSPM.

The rural/urban divide. Some ar-eas of China are still extremely back-ward. Recently I visited Miao villagesin south China where people were liv-ing in hovels more like cowsheds thanhomes. About 50 million people arestill classified by the government as liv-ing in extreme poverty (the UN be-lieves the real figure is over 200 mil-lion). Probably over 70% of thechurch is comprised of peasants—many of them caught in the povertytrap. A huge number of people in thecountryside are either fully or season-ally unemployed. Millions head for thecities in an unending “blind tide.” TheThree Gorges Dam project alone is up-rooting about two million people,many of whom are being thrown into

dire poverty.All these factors impact the church.

Promising young leaders are forced bypoverty to go to the cities to becometaxi drivers or entrepreneurs; manyhave been forced to leave full-time orpart-time ministry in the struggle tosurvive. Many rural churches arebarely able to function; the poverty oftheir members is unbelievable by ourstandards.

In the cities, mass unemploymentnow looms and is already endemic insome regions. Some churches arereaching out to the poor in their midstby conducting literacy classes. Othersare holding clinics. Under the TSPMsystem, it now seems that in many areaschurches may engage in a muchbroader scope of social action. Insome areas political constraints still re-strict such initiatives but, in general,the situation is opening up. The likeli-hood that social conditions will con-tinue to deteriorate as the economicrecession bites means that churches are

faced with a vast field for practicalChristian ministry such as drug reha-bilitation, ministry to AIDS sufferers,serving in orphanages and work withthe blind, mentally or physically handi-capped to name a few.

Continuing church growth. The last25 years have seen the greatest growthof the church since Pentecost—inMainland China! The national TSPMleadership admits to 13 to 15 millionbelievers, but provincial TSPM leadershave issued figures totaling nearly 18million. This indicates 18-fold growth

over the last three decades. However,the real figure is probably closer to 50million.1 This growth has many under-lying reasons, but the bottom line isthat many areas in China are experi-encing a genuine revival. In Lanzhou Iwitnessed 250 people being baptized.In Liaoning I saw hundreds gatheringat 6 a.m. in the pitch dark to preparefor an 8 a.m. service that was packedwith 1,000 worshippers. The pastortold me that in 1995, one thousandpeople had been saved and added tohis congregation! This is genuine re-vival.

Growth brings its own problems—

There is no more stark contrast than that between generations in China.

Ken Benintendi

4

not the least of which are the lack oftrained leadership and the inroads offalse teaching. In Jiangsu province theratio of registered pastors to Christiansis 1 to 10,000, while in Henan it is 1 to50,000 and in Anhui only 1 to 60,000!2

The 1,200 theological students in semi-nary training at any one time are only atiny drop in the ocean. Large numbersof part-time workers are trained duringthe agricultural slack seasons, but thereis a chronic lack of trained leadership.House churches have their own train-ing programs, some excellent and oth-ers very poor. Many overseas Christiansare now involved in leadership train-ing, a strategic and vital area for rein-forcement that requires careful strat-egy, much field work, cooperation andhumility.

The rise of cults. Another downsideof growth is the spread of heresy. Sincethe “Shouters” became active in theearly 80s, the Chinese church has beenbedeviled by an increasing number ofcults, many of them homegrown.

There are the Lingling, Beiliwang (Es-tablished King), Lightning from theEast, Cold Water, Disciples, WildernessSect as well as others. We must notoverlook the fact that Buddhism,Daoism, folk-religion and secret societ-ies are again flourishing in China, pro-viding a spawning ground for syncretis-tic cults on the fringes of orthodoxChristianity.

How widespread is the problem?Recently government researchers esti-mated that up to 100,000 people hadbeen affected by the Disciples inGuizhou province. The total numberof Shouters has been estimated at250,000. Based on such figures, Iguesstimate that between 5% and 10%of China’s “Christians” may be mem-bers of cultic groups. The situation isserious but not yet chronic. Efforts arebeing made to circulate books andbooklets against the cults by both theCCC and the house churches, but ma-terials are inadequate. Much morecould be done by providing literature,tapes and broadcasts to support our

brothers and sisters in their spiritualwarfare against deception.

Another serious aspect of the cultphenomenon is the attitude of the au-thorities and the TSPM. Since cults areseen as subversive to society and theState, they are targets for suppression.The strange, hybrid alliance of theTSPM with the Communist authoritiesas an official “State church” can betraced back to longstanding Confucianattitudes towards heterodoxy in Impe-rial times. In the case of Christianity,the devastation caused in the 1850s bythe Taiping Rebellion has not been for-gotten. A weird, but potent blend ofOld Testament religion with folk-reli-gion provided the fanatical impulse be-hind a political movement that led to20 million people being killed. Theauthorities today have lost their formertight control of the countryside and arevery nervous that secret societies andcults might become a focus for politicalsubversion. The unexpected massdemonstrations in the center of Beijingin April 1999 by the Falungong cult and

Housechurches

25-50 millionChristians o

ppo

siti

on

TSPM/CCCchurches15 millionChristians

“Underground”churches

ILLEGAL

TSPM/CCCopen churches

13,000registered

Registered meetingpoints 35,000

LEGAL

Models of the Church in China

The house churches are seen as totally separate from the TSPM/CCC churches and the two groups as opposing each other.This model, however, is too simplistic. It ignores the wide di-versity within the church and the fact that many churches are“in the middle”. While it contains an element of truth, thereality is far more complex.

Model 1:As Frequently Viewed by Those Outside China

The TSPM/CCC churches or registered churches are seen as legal whilethe house churches are seen as unregistered, underground illegal ele-ments. “Anti-China” elements from overseas are seen as controllingthem. This view is frequently propagated in the West. However, it ig-nores the reality of many independent house churches.

Model 2:As Viewed by the TSPM/CCC

5Winter, 1999

IndependentHouse Churches

Registeredmeeting points

35,000

CCC pastorsPolitical TSPM/CCC churches13,000 open churches

movment of someout of TSPM

Smallhome

meetings

Various networks andgroups of churches

outside TSPM

JesusFamily

NewBirth Registered

churches

Charistmatics/Pentecostals

movement of someinto TSPM

Models by Tony Lambert. Housechurch statistics compiled by TonyLambert. TSPM statistics: TSPM ViceChairman, February, 1999.

Model 3: A Realistic View

The reality is quite complex. There is a movement of some house churches into the TSPM and more recently, a small movement of some churches outof the TSPM. Some “house” churches have registered but have not joined the TSPM. Among the churches outside the TSPM are various networks andgroups of churches. Some groups espouse heterodox elements and through syncretism become cultic.

its subsequent repression are furtherproof of the government’s fear of sec-tarian movements. In ignorance, orsometimes deliberately, central and lo-cal authorities target orthodox evan-gelical unregistered Christians for ar-rest, fines and other harassmentdespite their protestations of ortho-doxy and non-involvement in politics.They need our prayers.

The impact of the West. When I firstwent to Beijing in 1973, there was noadvertising; rather billboards withquotes from Mao decorated everystreet corner. Now, McDonalds andKFC have invaded every major city andthe trappings of Westernization areseen everywhere. With capitalism nowcondoned, Western materialism, collid-ing with the innate propensity of theChinese to make money, produces aheady—and in some cases ugly—mix.We may ask, “What is to be done?” inthe face of such enormous needs andproblems along with opportunities forthe gospel. The danger is that we shall

rush in with plenty of enthusiasm, andperhaps plenty of money, and wreakhavoc with the best of intentions. Letus stand back and try to view the over-all situation impassively.

The revival of the last three decadeshas been a work of God through a to-tally indigenous movement. The mis-sionaries had been expelled by 1952.Radio and literature work had signifi-cant impact beginning in the late 70s,but otherwise, until recently, Westerninput and impact was minimal. Wemust face the fact that God, throughHis suffering people, raised up to Him-self a glorious church without our pro-grams, money or involvement—but notapart from our prayers.

Now, however, the situation is signifi-cantly different. Overseas involvementis growing all the time—not just fromNorth America, but from South Korea,Japan, Singapore, Europe, Australiaand many other countries. In China,the “Three Self” principles are beingfrayed very thin as churches write let-ters thinly disguising their begging for

funds to help build bigger buildings(no doubt very much needed for ex-panding congregations). Housechurches are also faced with greattemptations when lavish overseas do-nors dangle vast sums of money infront of them. The great problem forwell-meaning Christian donors contrib-uting overseas is accountability. Wemust face the unpalatable truth thatChina today is riddled with corruption.

Bishop Ding, prior to his retirement,was greatly worried by the possibility ofthe resurgence within China of de-nominationalism financially supportedby overseas denominations and mis-sions.3 Recently I met with young ruralhouse church leaders who struck me asgodly, serious individuals effective inministry. One told me he was workingwith a network of 20,000 Christians, yetI was told later that often they did nothave enough money for food. Whatmessage does Western Christian afflu-ence send to poverty-stricken Chris-tians and non-Christians? What temp-tations does it expose them to?

LittleFlock

SyncretismFolk Religions

Hereticalcults

Shoutersanti-TSPM

6

The much vaunted “unity” underthe TSPM/CCC is, in fact, quite fragile.We are on the brink of again imposinga cultural and economic imperialismon the church in China, however wellmeaning we might be. Handouts arenot the way forward. In the old days,when the CIM sought to establish self-governing, self-supporting and self-propagating churches in poor ruraland tribal areas, the temptation to do-nate a few dollars to aid the church orits pastor was overwhelming—but wasresisted. Rather, believers were encour-

aged to give sacrificially. Today, it isthose same churches that have oftenbecome the core of the recent spiritualrevival. There is a hard lesson here.God has blessed and honored the suf-fering and self-sacrifice of His peoplein China. Now materialism is sweepingthe country. Will we, who are ourselvessaturated in materialism, unthinkinglyfurther the process and so destroy theindependence and very spirituality ofthe people we wish to aid?

Help from overseas Christians willcontinue to grow—it is inevitable. It isour task, then, to channel funds andaid in a responsible way that ensuresaccountability. Much more coopera-tion and coordination is needed to tar-get increasingly specialized areas ofneed such as materials for Sunday

Schools, the training of Sunday Schooland youth workers, materials for the il-literate and semi-literate, apologeticbooks for students and intellectualsand materials in “minority” languages.Too many groups want “their” programor materials translated into Chinese atvast expense because they worked else-where in the world, but they do notconsider their cultural relevance orthat similar materials, produced byother Christian organizations, may bein existence. This is egotism—notevangelism!

We need to work with Christians

within China wherever possible as wellas with long-standing organizationsbased in Hong Kong and Taiwan thathave great experience in China minis-try. We also need to consider thestrong emerging church among theMainland Chinese diaspora in NorthAmerica and elsewhere. This body isproducing strong leaders on the cut-ting edge of intellectual trends inChina and is beginning to producefirst-class materials for witness to Chi-nese intellectuals and scholars.

Final ThoughtsGod has seen fit to raise up a vital

church in China. Within the next fewyears, if not already, Mainland Chineseevangelicals will number more thanthose in the United States and there-

fore comprise the largest national evan-gelical church in the world. It is a so-bering and encouraging thought thathalf a century of persecution, repres-sion, harassment and discrimination,far from destroying the church, haveseen it grow to perhaps fifty times thesize it was on the eve of the Communistvictory in 1949. This church is largelybiblical and evangelical. I have nottouched on specific theological issues,but here would simply point out thatwhile much mainline denominationalChristianity in the West has sunklargely into apostasy, and evangelical-ism has been increasingly marginal-ized, in China, zealous and costly ad-herence to the biblical gospel hasresulted in what is probably the great-est revival and church growth inchurch history.

What have we to learn from their ex-perience and spirituality? What havethey to contribute to world evangelism?Could it be that Chinese MainlandChristians harnessed with the affluentand theologically trained overseas Chi-nese Christian churches will providethe spiritual renewal and impetus for amajor surge in worldwide evangelismin the 21st century? We are privilegedas we enter the new millennium tolearn more of Christ through our Chi-nese brothers and sisters, to servethem, and to help them fulfill theGreat Commission.

ENDNOTES1. Lambert has published detailed

statistics in his new book, China’s Chris-tian Millions: The Costly Revival. Seethe book review in this issue. Ed.

2. Based on TSPM figures.3. I share those concerns, perhaps

for somewhat different reasons. I rec-ommend Jonathan Bonk’s book Mis-sions and Money: Affluence as a WesternMissionary Problem (Orbis, 1994).

Tony Lambert is the director of China re-search for OMF International and the au-thor of China’s Christian Millions. Thisarticle is taken from an address given at aChina briefing in April, 1999 in Tucson,AZ.

Continued from page 5

God has seen fit to raise up a vital churchin China. Within the next few years, Mainland Chinese evangelicals will number more than those in the United States.

Hans Wilhelm

7Winter, 1999

in the publication of dozens of bookson “Christian thought,” “Christiantheory” and “Christian culture”through China’s academic press.Christianity now has a presence and aspokesperson in China’s intellectualcircles through these “Cultural Chris-tians.”

Some definitions are in order here.Many Chinese professors of philoso-phy, foreign languages, literature, art,history and social sciences have takenan interest in Christianity as an aca-demic subject of research. These areaccurately called “Scholars in MainlandChina Studying Christianity” by EdwinHui of Regent College. Within thislarger group, a few have taken a per-

sonal (but unconventional) step offaith in Christ. These are “CulturalChristians.” They do not identify withany church nor do they attend church.They are, however, promoting Chris-tian ideas and values in the Chineseacademic context. Their goal is tomake Christianity (understood in theirown way) a visible force in China’ssearch for a new social and intellectualorder in the 21st Century. LiuXiaofeng is the most visible and mostprolific “Cultural Christian.”

Born in 1956 in Chongqing, LiuXiaofeng studied Chinese classical po-etry with his father. Belonging to the“Cultural Revolution” generation, hewas assigned to the countryside afterhigh school graduation. In 1978, whenuniversity entrance examinations wereresumed in China, Liu was admitted tothe Sichuan College of Foreign Lan-guages. He studied in the French andGerman departments, and graduated

s China continues her journeytoward modernity andpostmodernity, many forces are

competing to shape the 21st CenturyChinese mind. Christians in the Westdo well to take note of the rise of indig-enous religions (as well as novel formssuch as Falungong); the prevalence of aWestern-influenced, materialisticlifestyle based on the pursuit of money;a native, anti-foreign and anti-Ameri-can nationalism; and the influence ofthe media in the lives of 1.3 billion Chi-nese. In this cacophony of voices, wemust not forget those writers, teachersand thinkers generally classified as “in-tellectuals” (zhishi fenzi). They, too, aretrying to shape Chinese thought andsociety. Some of them, in fact, are en-gaged in the development of Christiantheology in Chinese context (hanyushenxue), albeit in a form seldom no-ticed and recognized by theologians inthe West.

Since the death of Mao, Chineseacademicians in the fields of literature,history, philosophy and the social sci-ences have attempted to re-build theirtheoretical foundation in a more opencontext. Since “philosophy” and“metaphysics” were buzz words associ-ated with Marxist-Maoist orthodoxy,and China in the 1980s had not yet to-tally rejected Marxist ideology, theo-retical inquiries in art and literaturebecame arenas where one could discuss“ontological” issues with relatively morefreedom. One may discuss questionswhich are “ontological” (which is desir-able) without being “metaphysical”(not desirable).

Liu Xiaofeng is one “Cultural Chris-tian” seeking to find some form of “on-tology” for life, through his inquiry intoaesthetic and literary theory. Hissearch for the “home of existence” ledhim to Christian theology. Today, Liu’sdirect and indirect efforts in writing,translating, and editing have resulted

ASamuel Ling

Putting Christianity on the Map—for Chinese Intellectuals

with a bachelor’s degree. He thenwent to Beijing University in 1982,studied aesthetics and received his Mas-ter of Philosophy in 1984. In 1985, Liuwent to Shenzhen University (justnorth of Hong Kong) and taught inthe Chinese literature department. In1989, he began his doctoral studies insystematic theology under ProfessorHeinrich Ott in Basel, Switzerland, andreceived his Doctor of Theology. Liu ispresently academic director of the In-stitute of Sino-Christian Studies on TaoFong Shan, in Shatin, Hong Kong. Heis also an honorary research fellow atthe Institute of Chinese Studies, Chi-nese University of Hong Kong. He isadjunct professor at Beijing

University’s Institute for ComparativeLiterature and visiting professor in theChinese department of People’s Uni-versity in Beijing.

Liu has authored five works. Thefirst was Romanticism, Philosophy and Po-etry: Explorations on the Poeticizing of Phi-losophy.1 He continued his search forthe ground (or “home”) of existence inhis second book: Salvation and Freedom.He compiled a series of articles writtenfor Reading magazine in the volume, To-ward the Truth on the Cross: Introduction toTwentieth Century Christian Theology.More recently he has written Introduc-tion to Social Theory on Modernity: Moder-nity and Modern China and The HeavyFlesh: Narrative for an Ethic for Modernity.

Liu has also published collections ofshorter pieces and has sat on numer-ous editing committees which haveproduced monumental series of vol-umes introducing Western thought andChristian theology to China. Signifi-

Christianity now has a presence and a spokespersonin China’s intellectual circles through

“Cultural Christians.”

8

cant titles include The History of Chris-tian Thought and Scholarship Treasury,The Contemporary Continental EuropeanReligious Thought Series, The Best of Twen-tieth-Century Russian Spiritual PhilosophySeries and Modern Society and Man: A Se-ries of Translations of Famous Works. Hehas written for, or edited journals suchas Christian Culture Review, Christian Cul-ture Journal, and Logos and Pneuma: Chi-nese Theology Review.

Why should Christians care about

Liu Xiaofeng and the whole movementof “Scholars in Mainland China Study-ing Christianity?” First, Liu Xiaofenghas crossed over from aesthetic theoryto Christian theology to social-culturaltheory. He is recognized as a memberof China’s intellectual elite. It is highlysignificant that such a broadly trainedscholar is an advocate of Christianity inChina’s academic circles! Suchbreadth of concerns should challengeChristians in the West to dialogue withscholars like Liu on the theoreticalfoundations of civilization. The Chris-tian faith once took a leadership rolein the shaping of Western thought, mo-rality, and culture (until John Lockeand the rise of Deism). It is high timethat Christians in the West return tothe articulation of a biblical and all-en-compassing world-and-life-view, anddialogue with our Chinese colleagues.The collapse of modern culture andthe rise of a pagan, postmodern cul-ture demand nothing less.

Second, it is highly significant thatLiu began in the 1980s with aestheticand literary theory. He exemplifies thesearch, by China’s intellectuals, for ahuman element in philosophy and,more fundamentally, for the emancipa-tion of the human spirit in a post-Marx-ist context of limited (but expanding)academic freedom.

We in the West need to take notethat it is often in the fields of art andliterature that Chinese thinkers are tak-ing the lead to shape China’s future—not necessarily in philosophy. Whatdoes the Church of Jesus Christ have tosay about freedom? Do we dare tomake the distinction between the au-tonomous human mind and spirit, de-claring one’s independence from Godhis Creator, on the one hand, and truefreedom to live for the glory of God in

all endeavors of life, on the other? Thelatter view of freedom implies a cri-tique of the quest for humanity, even inChina’s post-Marxist context. This isdifficult for Chinese to hear, because“humanism” seems such a hypnotiz-ingly beautiful dream. Jesus says youshall know the truth, and the truthshall set you free.

Third, while overseas Chinese andnon-Chinese theologians may not knowwhat to do with Liu’s massive transla-tion and editing effort, it is clear that,as we enter the 21st century, there is a“Christian voice” participating in theintellectual debate in China on how toshape her social, spiritual and moralorder. This is one of Liu’s primarygoals in life: to put Christianity on thefront stage of contemporary Chineseintellectual development. He has suc-ceeded.

Evangelicals should rejoice that suchan effort is made, with fruit, in a post-Marxist society to put Christianity onthe map of intellectual discourse. Wein the West, in a post-Christian context,are struggling for “space” to speak inthe public square. There needs to becollaboration and conversation withpeople like Liu.

Fourth, Christians may be per-plexed that “Cultural Christians,” whoare not baptized and have no church

affiliation, are promoting Christianityin China. We can find few parallels inchurch history.2 We must come toterms with this unique development,whether we like it or not! Shall we diginto Scripture and church history tofind clues on the proper mode of re-sponse?

Fifth, the key to understanding Liu’sintellectual inquiry is to feel the painand anxiety of contemporary Chineseintellectuals as they seek to fill an ideo-logical vacuum and shape China’s so-cial, spiritual and moral order for thefuture. An understanding of modernChinese intellectual history, especiallysince the May Fourth Movement (1915-1927), will aid in this. A review of exis-tentialism and its impact on Protestanttheology (through the writings ofBarth, Brunner, and Heidegger) willdefinitely help us understand the Chi-nese plight. A biblical evaluationneeds to be made on both the existen-tial and contemporary Protestant re-sponse to man’s search for a “home.”

How will Christians respond to “Cul-tural Christians?” First, with an earnestattempt at understanding. Second,with friendship, dialogue, and well-de-fined collaboration. Third, by provid-ing a biblical response which issensitive to the Chinese context.

ENDNOTES1. Liu’s works are written in Chi-

nese. These titles have been translatedfor this article. Ed.

2. Edwin Hui has given us a veryeven-handed evaluation and critique ofthese “Scholars in Mainland ChinaStudying Christianity.” His essay will befound in a forthcoming book, ChineseIntellectuals and the Gospel, to be pub-lished by China Horizon.

Samuel Ling, Ph.D. is president ofChina Horizon, a ministry of apologetics inthe Chinese context. He is currently in-volved in a research project on “MainlandChinese Intellectuals and Christian Theol-ogy.” Mr. Chan Juin-Ming, a student atSingapore Bible College, assisted in back-ground research for this article.

Why should Christians care about Liu Xiaofengand the whole movement of “Scholars inMainland China Studying Christianity?”

9Winter, 1999

At the mention of the word “church,”a complex and cautiously subtle expression will come over the face

of an ordinary Chinese person.

fter over 20 years of economic reform, nothing seemsto really catch the eyes of the Chinese today. Walk-ing along the streets of Beijing packed with towering

five-stars hotels, bright computer software stores, a shiningMcDonald’s arch and other fancy neon signs, with cars ofmany different makes scurrying around under skyscraperssurrounded by expressways, one may think, “Everything theWest has, we have here as well.” From news regarding po-tential US presidential candidates and the Australian refer-endum concerning ties with the British royal court to NBAsports and the World Cup qualifying games, it is all availableon television in any corner ofChina. If you have a minute tochat with an ordinary Chinesewalking along the street, youmight be surprised to find thathe knows as much as you doabout Wall Street’s ups anddowns and the latest moves ofBill Gates. For Pabst Blue Rib-bon beer-drinking, Marlboro-smoking, jeans-loving Chinese,Western contacts have becomeas frequent as the daily soap op-eras. Is there anything that Chi-nese have no knowledge aboutor any issue left that causes themto pause before expressing anopinion? There should be. For most Chinese, one of thesehard questions is, “Do you know anything about the Chris-tian church, and how do you look at it?”

At the mention of the word “church,” a complex and cau-tiously subtle expression will come over the face of an ordi-nary Chinese person. Church? The moment the word isuttered you suddenly realize that you have trespassed into aland of seriousness. This term is not an everyday one; it isassociated with so much information and imagination thatfor some Chinese it is a very sensitive word.

The history of Christianity in China can be traced back toat least the Tang Dynasty(618 - 907A.D.) with the Nestorianpresence in Chang An (now Xi’an), the capital of the em-pire. From the time of the Ming and Qing dynasty periods,when many missionaries entered China, churches began toappear in different parts of the country. By 1949 China had

A

5 million Christians. However, the Chinese government hasnever responded positively to the presence and growth ofthe church during either the church’s “debut” under theMing and Qing Dynasties, or during the Republic (1911-1949) era and communist rule. The history of evangelism inChina is full of man-made mistakes, prejudice and persecu-tion. During the time of the Cultural Revolution in the 60s,the church as the “residue” of the Reactionaries was de-clared “cleaned up” by the government. People back inthose days would immediately associate the church with im-perialism and the superstitions held by a bunch of backwardolder men and women who knew nothing about science andtruth.

However, by the end of the 70s when the Cultural Revolu-tion was over, Christianity was expanding at a speed no onehad anticipated. China, at that time, did not officially haveeven one foreign missionary, yet the church was quietly re-

vealing itself in every corner ofChina. From coastal provinces toinland areas, from urban centers torural counties—there were churchactivities everywhere one would go.The miraculously revived churchwas like scattered patches of newgreen growth, vibrant and full oflife in the barren land of a dead so-ciety held under the tight control ofthe communist regime. If one men-tioned the word “church” to peopleat that time, their response wouldhave been that the church was amysterious, curious phenomenon,and no one could make sense ofwhy so many were emerging in

China. Though there was prejudice against the church,people no longer thought of it as reactionary.

Since the end of the 80s and the decade of the 90s, thechurch has continued to grow though at a lesser speed thanthat of the 70s. The government has changed its attitude ofindifference toward the church; instead of despising or belit-tling it, the government has engaged in an effort to searchfor a counter policy and the means to control it. Gradually,ordinary people have found that they have some sense of tol-erance and, even respect, for the church.

Today, at the end of the 90s, after five decades of atheisticgovernment indoctrination, people, especially the young,are embracing the church, and Christianity is becomingtheir faith and pursuit. Without favors from the media, orthe benefit of publicity from open debates or overwhelmingpromotional brochures, the Chinese church has thrived as

The Church in the Eyesof the Chinese

from the Wall

No Stranger

ViewBy Huo Shui

View

10

thorns in the desert and reeds in themarsh, becoming deeply rooted in thisgreat land of the East. Young people’spursuit of Christianity and their faith inChrist has no resemblance to the RedGuard’s impromptu expressions of ex-citement during the Cultural Revolu-tion; their choice is based on carefulreasoning. Their link with Christianitydoes not compare with joining theCommunist Youth League and theParty, which bring about opportunitiesfor bureaucratic promotion. Thatolder people embrace Christianity indi-cates a re-evaluation of their lives, andnow they are excitedly making up forthe lost years while their church affilia-tion is a silent statement of protestagainst the injustices they suffered dur-ing the last few decades. Still more arecoming with a heart to pursue truthand freedom. Most have started by ob-serving the Christians around them inwhom they have seen new hope radiat-ing and the great power of love.

The church is no longer a synonymfor the anti-revolutionary, the back-ward, the superstitious, the feudal orthe running dogs of imperialism. How-ever, Christianity in China is far lowerin status than, for example, science andtechnology, which are encouraged bythe government and allowed to beopenly discussed. Although less preju-dice and discrimination are imposedon the church than previously, lack ofknowledge about the church is verycommon among the public.

The public is fed up and furiouswith the corruption of the Party-con-trolled government. They are asking ifthe church might not be an option tosolve their social problems. Can thechurch help change their status quo?These questions reflect a Chinese tradi-tion of pragmatism and utilitarianismthat remains the major stumblingblock in their path of pursuing thetruth. For those who otherwise wouldhave no prejudice towards the church,this tradition is like an invisible wallthat keeps them away from churchpews. To them, the Church remains in-tangible and unreal, hard to define.These good, practical citizens of Chinabelieve little of what the government

has been telling them through propa-ganda in the media and school textsand do not wish to say anything nega-tive about the church; however, for thepresent, watching from the sidelines isas far as they are willing to go. Theyconstantly experience their spirituallife as a two-fold torture stemmingfrom the thirst of their soul alongsidetheir engagement in worldly gains.They are waiting, pondering, and com-paring as they waver back and forth.

What is the church? To ordinarypeople in China it is such a simple, andyet puzzling, question. On the onehand, you have the appearance of

President of the China GraduateSchool of Theology in Hong Kong, thechurch in China has three main needs.First is a great need for training goodvolunteer workers, Yi gong. These vol-unteer workers are like ministers, notlaymen. They have given up their jobsor have retired and now work full timein the church. For example, in the

province of Zhejiang, there are 7,000of these volunteers, most untrained.The Chinese church leadership is cur-rently training these Yi gong at a rate of150 at a time, for forty days, four timesa year. At this pace, it will take 12 years

n recent years the church in Chinahas continued its steady growth. Anumber of phenomena have

emerged which have never been wit-nessed before. First, the average age ofbelievers is gradually going down—more young people are being attractedto the faith. Second,the general educationallevel of believers is ris-ing, and many intellec-tuals are turning toChrist and the church.

Shanghai’s re-nowned Mu En churchconfirms these changes.Of the 440 people tak-ing part in trainingcourses for new believ-ers, most were youngpeople, and nearly 25%had completed someform of higher educa-tion. What are the rea-sons for this? In thepast, intellectuals har-bored an indifferent attitude towardChristianity viewing it as a foreign im-port that opposed traditional Chinesecultural values. This perspective hasbeen re-evaluated and a new opennesshas emerged.

According to Dr. Wilson Chow,

IHans M. Wilhelm

Strategic Teaching Opportunities

Continued on page 13

There is a need for training emergingleaders and future pastors who are at-tending seminaries and Bible schools.

booming mini-churches and meetingplaces combined with the public’sgradual realization of the church’s ben-efits to society while, on the other, thegovernment is imposing a higher de-gree of control over, and continual pro-paganda against, the church. While allthis makes church-related issues con-troversial, at least one thing has be-come less controversial: the church isno longer a stranger to Chinese society.

Huo Shui is a former government politi-cal analyst who writes from outside China.Translation is by Ping Dong.

Hans Wilhelm

11Winter, 1999

IN PRINTServing China Together, Samuel Ling, PhD., editorStrategic Considerations for China Service, Huo ShuiU.S. and Canadian Theological Education and Ministry to the Chinese People, Greg ZjabaServing China primer: A Primer for Pastors, Churches, and Ministries

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distinctions between the many peoplesof China.

One problem created by looking atChina through the lens of the officialgroupings is that we can easily overlookdozens of unreached people groups,assuming that they are the same, ornearly the same, as a reached groupwithin their nationality. The Miaopeoples, for example, could be consid-ered to have been reached, based onthe fact that 70% of the Small FloweryMiao and 53% of the Big Flowery Miaoare Christians. The reality is that thereare dozens of Miao people groups thathave no known Christians amongthem. The many people groups in-

Jim Nickel

I

Peoples of ChinaPeoples of China

The Church Amongthe Peoples of China

cluded under the umbrella of the Miaonationality speak dozens of mutually-unintelligable languages and dialects.For the gospel to be transmitted fromone group to another within the Miaonationality requires cross-cultural evan-gelism.

Besides these ethno-linguistic dis-tinctions, there are other barriers tothe flow of the gospel from one groupto another within China. The differ-ences between rural and urban peoplesserve as a case in point. The church inChina is predominantly a rural church,with Christians making up less than 1%of the population in most of the citiesof China. Significant socio-culturalbarriers will need to be bridged andother challenges overcome if thechurch is to fulfill the Great Commis-sion in the cities of China. China’sUnreached Cities, a new book profiling52 needy cities of China, should helpthe church around the world to beginto respond more effectively to this chal-lenge.1

will never forget the experience ofworshipping in a church in a villageof the Yi people in Guizhou Prov-

ince on a Sunday in 1995. Joyfullythese Christians lifted praises to theLord in indigenous song and dance,scarcely giving the Pastor five minutesat a time for a sermonette before burst-ing out in more worship. We were toldthat 70% of this village was Christian.

Scenes like this are rare, but increas-ing in China today. Recent researchhas revealed some very challenging de-tails concerning the status of Christian-ity among the many people groups ofChina. In a soon-to-be-published bookon the peoples of China, PaulHattaway profiles 491 people groups,the vast majority of which areunreached. Over half of these groupshave no known Christians amongthem!

On the other hand, there are anumber of people groups in Chinawith significant Christian populations.(See box on page 13.) These statisticsdemonstrate that the peoples of Chinacan, and will, respond positively to thegospel if only given the chance to hearit in an understandable and culturallyappropriate way.

The names of some of these groupswill be unfamiliar to readers whoseknowledge of the people groups ofChina is based on the list of 56 nation-alities officially recognized by the gov-ernment. Christian researchers arefinding that these somewhat arbitrarygroupings, created by the governmentof China, are not very useful for ourpurposes. Those who would obey ourLord’s commission to make disciples ofpanta ta ethne of China will need tolook beyond the 56 nationalities to therealities of the many ethno-linguistic

The peoples of China can, and will,respond positively to the gospel

if only given the chance to hear it in anunderstandable and culturally appropriate way.

less than 0.2% Christian

0.25 to 0.50 Christian

0.50 to 1 % Christian

1 to 5% Christian

Data not available

Percent Christians

CHINAPercent Christian

Differing educational levels consti-tute another barrier to the flow of thegospel. There is a growing movementof interest in Christianity among intel-lectuals in China, but most of these in-dividuals do not feel comfortable in ex-isting churches, whether they beaffiliated with the TSPM or one of theolder house church networks. In alllikelihood, new churches will need tobe started to accommodate the needsof these new believers.

One of the great challenges thatneeds to be addressed is the lack ofclarity concerning the many unreachedpeoples among the Han Chinese, espe-cially in inland areas of China. Asdemonstrated by the accompanyingmap, the growth of the church amongthe Han Chinese has largely been lim-ited to the coastal provinces and acouple of others adjacent to them.Churches in the other provinces withsignificant Christian populations (i.e.,in the southwest and the far north) arelargely composed of minority believers.What about the need of the Han Chi-nese in these areas to be evangelized?

Even in the areas where the Hanchurch is the strongest, there appear tobe large numbers of Han Chinese whoare cut off from the gospel by virtue ofthe fact that they are native speakers ofa different language or dialect than theChristians in their area. They may un-derstand Mandarin well enough tograsp the meaning of the gospel whenit comes to them in that language, buta barrier of acceptance may well existbecause of their natural pride in their

People Group

Miao, Small FloweryLipo, EasternAyiMiao, Big FloweryLisuDepoLashiKadoGaniJingpoWaDerung

Percent Christian

70%67%59%53%42%40%33%33%29%27%25%21%

People Groups of Chinawith a significantChristian presence

own heart language. As a Hakka Chris-tian explained to me recently, “Mypeople may understand you if youspeak to them in Mandarin, but theywill really open their hearts to you ifyou speak to them in the Hakka lan-guage.”

In addition to these issues, there arestill large areas of China where thechurch is practically non-existent. InTibet, in the Muslim northwest, in theGuanxi Zhuang Autonomous Regionand in most of the interior provinces ofChina, the vast majority of the peoplehave access to neither the gospel nor achurch where they can worship the liv-ing God. In all these areas Han Chi-nese comprise a significant portion ofthe population, and full-orbed evange-listic efforts will need to take them intoaccount along with the minority popu-lations for which these regions areknown.

The church in China is not obliviousto the challenge of the unreached inChina. Recently the leaders of fivelarge house church networks in Chinaset a goal of seeking to reach 40 millionpeople with the gospel during a monthof evangelism. And this is not merelymono-cultural evangelism. Trainersare increasingly receiving requestsfrom church leaders in China for assis-tance in developing competence incross-cultural evangelism and churchplanting.

“I will build my church,” Jesus said,“and the gates of hades will not over-come it” (Matt. 16:18, NIV). God is ful-filling that promise in China today. Letus stand with our brothers and sistersin the churches of China through ourprayers and practical assistance, utiliz-ing whatever channels God has givenus, to support and encourage thegrowth of the church among all thepeoples of China.

ENDNOTE1. Available from Asian Minorities Outreach,

Box 17 Chang Klan P.O. Chiang Mai, 50101,Thailand or PO Box 901 Palestine, TX 75802,USA. E-mail: amo@xc.org Website: www.antioch.com.sg/mission/asianmo/

Jim Nickel is the President of the Insti-tute of Chinese Studies in Colorado Springs,CO. E-mail: <jnickel@xc.org>.

to train them all indicating the greatneed that exists for help with training.

Second is the need for trainingemerging leaders and future pastorswho are attending seminaries andBible schools. Existing seminaries andBible schools need to be enlarged sothat more students can be enrolled.The China Christian Council (CCC) iscurrently building four new theologicalschools in China; nevertheless, there isstill a long ways to go.

Third is the training of seminaryand Bible school teachers and faculty.In order to reach out to intellectuals,pastoral workers need to continue theirown growth and learning. Seminariesand Bible schools need to set up suit-able courses for this purpose. Trainedpastors and Christian workers must begiven the opportunity to return toseminary every few years for a period oftime for “top-off” training and spiritualrefreshment. However, the reality isthat present seminary faculties still ex-perience major struggles and shortagesin coping with the need to provide ba-sic theological education. The CCCleadership has recognized this needand has appealed for short-term andlonger-term (six months to two years)seminary professors from the West tofill this gap. Courses in the areas ofapologetics, family and pastoral coun-seling, pastoral theology and leader-ship development are desperatelyneeded.

Evangelicals are faced with the chal-lenge of assisting in this training whichcan have a profound effect on the fu-ture of the church in China. Seminaryprofessors need to be encouraged tospend a sabbatical year, or a coupleyears of their retirement, in this strate-gic ministry. China’s millions, literally,could be affected. If we do not rise tothis occasion others will.

Dr. Hans M. Wilhelm, the son of Ger-man missionary parents to China, servedwith OC International from 1954-91. Cur-rently he serves as Vice President/Trainingwith an organization involved in China.

Continued from page 10

the result of his own research. He cre-ated a splash in 1991 with the publica-tion of the Resurrection of the ChineseChurch, the first serious work to providedocumentary evidence that housechurches were a far bigger force thanmost academics reckoned at that time.Ironically, he raised an even biggersplash in 1994 when he released a setof statistics in News Network Internationalwith the provocative claim that therewere “not more than” 35 million Chris-tians in China—a claim that did not en-dear him to evangelical ministries thatroutinely traffic in figures of 60 million

plus. This book does not contain anactual estimate, though he dismissesfigures of 80 to 100 million as un-proven, but if you add up his figuresthey come to around 40 million today.

His task, in his own words, is to pro-vide (a) an overview of the scale of re-vival, (b) some reasons why God hasworked in this way, and (c) some sober-ing truths we need to learn. Out offourteen chapters, thirteen deal exclu-sively with the overview. The first foursketch the basic outlines of the regis-tered and unregistered church. Histreatment of the Three Self PatrioticMovement has three characteristics es-sential to a balanced perspective: he ac-cepts progress, acknowledges repres-sion and avoids over-simplification. Ifin that chapter he has been addressingevangelicals that tend to write theTSPM off as a hopelessly compromisedinstitution, his chapter on the housechurch addresses those who wouldtend to dismiss house churches as dan-gerous extremists. He traces the confu-sion back to the ambiguities of Docu-ment 19 which states that “Christiansundertaking religious activities inhome-meetings...should not, in prin-ciple, be permitted. But they shouldnot be rigidly prohibited.”

The next nine chapters go throughthe revival topic by topic, drawing outthe great diversity within ChineseChristianity. The chapter on Henan,the heartland of the revival, is invalu-able, and the chapters on minorities,heresies and intellectuals are also ex-cellent.

Two carps do not detract from theoverall impact. One is that for all hisattempts to make the book readable,the writing is often dull. Lambert’sskills as an analyst greatly exceed hisabilities as a storyteller. Anecdotes of-ten lack color and emotion apart fromexcerpts from testimonies. I also ques-tion his assessment of the August 1998United Appeal by ten house churchleaders. He hails the document as onethat “marks the coming of age of thehouse church movement!” That maybe a bit overblown since it is hardlytypical of house church leaders to issueappeals to their government via visiting

A review by Alex Buchan

Book ReviewBook Review

ooks on the Chinese churchtend to be one of two types:weighty academic affairs show-B

ing how great erudition is no defenseagainst naive conclusions, or superlight testimony-fests from evangelicalsgiving the impression that every Chris-tian in China has been miraculouslyhealed from a rare disease or has spent20 years in solitary confinement. Fewbooks successfully offer a balanced per-spective on what is admittedly a com-plex subject; that Tony Lambert hasjust produced one that is both in-formed and readable is a welcomeachievement.

Lambert’s book, titled China’s Chris-tian Millions, represents the fairest andbest introduction to the contemporaryChinese church that I have seen. Hisrecipe is obvious—mix facts, statistics,history, documents and anecdotes intoa good read for the non-specialist. Notonly do you get lots of stories, but youend up actually knowing, for example,what the Three Self Patriotic Move-ment is, or the importance of Docu-ment 19 for church-state relations.

Lambert is well qualified as a guideto the Chinese revival. As OMF’s long-standing China researcher, he trans-lates more letters and documents fromChina’s Christians than possibly any-one else. Still, he has gotten out frombehind his desk often enough to en-counter the revival at the grassroots, asshown by many of the stories that are

China’s Christian Millions by Tony Lambert,OMF International and Monarch Books, 1999.ISBN 1 85424 431 0, paperback, £8.99. In theUS$ 19.99 plus $3.20 postage. Special introduc-tory offer for ChinaSource readers while stockslast: US$ 12.99 plus $3.20 postage. Order fromOMF Books USA by calling toll free1.888.663.2665; fax 1.303.430.4165; email<OMF_Books_USA@ CompuServe.com>

The Costly Revival

For introducing someoneto the story of the

contemporary Chinesechurch, or even if youwant a fast-moving

refresher of key eventsand documents, there’s nota book to touch this one.

Western journalists and append theirnames at the bottom.

In my opinion, the best chapter, byfar, is the last one. Here Lambert con-veys great passion as he answers thequestion “Why did China experiencethis great revival?” He brilliantly cri-tiques both Chinese Marxist and West-ern academic explanations, then addsdevastatingly, “It is worth noting thatsuffering is absent from the list of rea-sons for church growth, from both theChinese and Western academics.(From the former because of politicalconstraints, from the latter probablybecause it is outside their experience.)”He sees the lessons of the Chinese re-vival as a combination of respect forthe authority of Scripture, obedience,prayer, repentance, seriousness, and atrue valuing of Christ and his cross.

The question is whether these arethe fruits of revival rather than itscauses. After all, if revival is about ad-hering to the inerrant Word, why areAmerica’s conservatives not experienc-ing revival also? Are Western Chris-tians really that bad at praying com-pared to their Chinese brothers andsisters? I felt his crucial question—where did the revival come from—re-mained unanswered. But then, per-haps it is the nature of revival (contraFinney et al) to be mysterious!

For introducing someone to thestory of the contemporary Chinesechurch, or even if you want a fast-mov-ing refresher of key events and docu-ments, there’s not a book to touch thisone. It’s even valuable as a referencebook, containing a province-by-prov-ince summary of the church in alengthy appendix. And, for thescholar, it whets the appetite forLambert’s updated version of The Res-urrection of the Chinese Church due nextyear.

Alex Buchan is the Asia Bureau Chief ofCompass Direct and has been writing on theChinese church since 1987.

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—Summer ’97 When One Member Suffers...A Biblical Response/Leadership TrainingStrategy part 2

—Fall/Winter ’97 Understanding the Church in China—Spring ’98 Relief and Development in China—Summer ’98 Training China’s Church Leaders—Fall ’98 Hong Kong: A Bridge to China

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Can we afford to do nothing for China?

ound illogical? It is—to theWestern mind, which gener-ally sees action (doing some-

not well prepared.1 Specifically, theylacked an understanding of the cul-ture into which they were entering,they had no previously establishedlinks to the existing church in the re-

gion, and very few of theirpeople had language skills.This is not to say that nogood work was done; sim-ply that much more couldhave been accomplishedhad more organizationstaken the time to prepareadequately.

In China the opportu-nity for involvement is im-mediate, and the desire of

churches and organizations outsideChina for involvement is great. Thus,to spend time in preparation may beseen, at first glance, as doing nothingof worth or consequence to meet thepressing needs.

However, without some knowledgeof Chinese culture, outsiders will behard-pressed to communicate theGospel or assist Chinese Christians ina meaningful way. Working relation-ships with the existing church are es-sential in order to truly participate inwhat God is already doing in Chinawhile preventing the kind of depen-

thing) as preferable to inaction(doing nothing). In fact, we oftenequate doing nothingwith negligence—whichusually makes the situa-tion worse. ChuangTzu’s idea that doingnothing can have positiveresults flies in the face ofWestern logic, which says,“Do nothing, and noth-ing gets done.”

In China, where theopportunities are many and theneed of a billion people withoutChrist demands an immediate re-sponse, inaction—or doing noth-ing—would be unthinkable. Cer-tainly much needs to be done. Butupon closer reflection, ChuangTzu’s dictum may indeed be rel-evant for those contemplatingChina involvement today.

Following the rush of Westernevangelical ministries into EasternEurope and the former USSR inthe early 1990s, it became apparentthat, for all their good intentions,many of these organizations were

S dency and paternalism that wasprevalent during the mission era inChina. Finally, a willingness to learnthe language signifies a long-termcommitment to China and opensthe doors to relationships that wouldotherwise be out of the question fora foreigner in China.

All of these take time; but, ulti-mately, it will be time well spent. Inthis sense Chuang Tzu was right.While it may appear on the surfaceas if we are doing nothing of imme-diate consequence in China, we cantake the time and pay the price forpreparation now. Or, we can skipthis important step, only to find our-selves struggling to catch up (or sim-ply dropping out) later, when evengreater opportunities arise.

Can we afford to do “nothing”for China? We can’t afford notto.

1. Mark Elliott, “Western Protestant Minis-try in the Former Soviet Bloc: Are There Les-sons That Could Apply to China?” in ServingChina Together, Samuel Ling, editor, Institutefor Chinese Studies. (See page 11 for order-ing information.)

Dr. Brent Fulton is the Executive Di-rector of ChinaSource and Editor of theChinaSource journal.

The Taoist philosopher Chuang Tzu said, “Do nothing,and nothing is not done.”