Church Schools or Home Schooling? (Part 2)

In September, the mainland site Christian Times published a piece originally posted on the China Home Schooling Alliance website about Christian education in China. In the article titled “Church Schools or Home Schooling?”, the author lays out what he believes to be the difference between Christian education conducted within a church setting and home schooling. He then sets out to argue that home schooling is the most effective way for Christians to educate their children.

The article provides an interesting glimpse into a conversation taking place online among Christians in China regarding an important issue. Due to the length of the original article, it is posted in two parts. Part 1 was posted on December 9, 2014.

Let’s look now at some of the prejudices against home schooling.

First of all, many brothers and sisters worry that parents don’t have a strong enough spiritual life to give the child a proper spiritual education. They think that only a church school can provide adequate spiritual education. ‪

I strongly beg to differ with this view. Of course, the church is a platform for shepherding its people, but the life of the believer is truly lived out in one’s family life. Faith is not merely a gathering on Sunday for worship; it is, more importantly, the struggle and witness of everyday life. The state of our lives often truly emerges within our family. What we see at church or at school is only skin-deep and lacks this type of deep, truly living faith.

The most important thing as a parent is a heart for the Father. The Bible says: “Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers.” The Bible also says: “If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.”

As we mentioned above, as parents face the issue of how to educate their children they will also be confronted with their own faith and the roots of their faith.

Homeschooling is unlike other schooling in that it emphasizes that life itself is education, that education does not necessarily need to take place within the confines of a school that is separated from life. In the same way, spiritual education does not necessarily need to take place within the confines of a spiritual school that is also isolated from real life. This is because spiritual life must be put into practice in everyday life.

A second misconception is the belief that the secularized knowledge of professional teachers is often a better education than that of parents.

This is actually related to the first issue in that parents lack confidence in home schooling and believe that education is a professional matter, something that parents cannot do. This is a great misconception regarding standardized schools for people today.

But what does the Bible say? Many people believe that the charter for Christian education is found in Deuteronomy chapter six, but this chapter is clearly speaking of parents.

I do not agree that the sovereignty of Christian education lies with the church. No matter the case, parents have both the right and responsibility to educate their children. A church school can be seen as a school founded by a group of Christians for the education of their own children and the children of their Christian brothers and sisters. A church monopoly on the right to educate children of believers will only lead to laziness of the faith in believers. On this point, we can see the reason behind why this article analyzes the drop in Sunday School and family worship: the decline of the modern American family worship.

As recorded in the Bible, God himself instituted the family as a sacred unit and placed children in the center of it. I believe this is the best place for children to mature. At the same time, in Deuteronomy chapter six the great commandment that is revealed to us also tells us the most important method to practice the great commandment is to teach our children.

I believe that the family is a great mystery of God’s grace and blessing. Children and parents play an integral role in the family. Parents and children will be a great blessing to each other in the growth of their lives.

Home schooling is also a reflection of the model of universal education. Both Christian schools and secular schools are part of the system of standardized schools. This type of school system emphasizes transmission and instruction according to man’s activity, crowding out the space for God himself to guide each child and ignoring the independence of the child. This system emphasizes knowledge and competition, but lacks love and profound life experience. It also ignores children’s individual differences. It emphasizes specialization and standardization, but ignores holistic life. Since the school system is very powerful, Christian education school system is also confused and held captive to the world’s system. The school system of the world emphasizes a closed model of instruction, separated from life. It emphasizes teacher professionalization and sidelines the parents. It stresses communities, but ignores the value of the individual.

Many people misunderstand home schooling and the issue of social interaction between the community and home schooled children, including Christians. See the article: “Home Schooling Data: Academic and Social Interaction”, the United States has proven that home schooling is not a problem.*

In fact, we need to look more seriously at the negative effects that the school system has on the social interaction among children. Here is an additional article that can help you: “Home Schooled Children Have Social Problems?”*

From a biblical perspective, Jesus continuously warned that in our society or community, we are quick to turn our hearts from God and look to man to obtain glory. When there is great pressure from the peers around us we are unable to follow truth.

To prematurely place a child into the school community is definitely a bad idea. The smaller the child the more the child needs to live with their parents, to build himself or herself up, to learn how to take care of himself or herself, to be independent, to understand interpersonal relationships and behavior. But, a bunch of kids who gather with their peers means more competition, disruption, or being under the teacher’s power. The younger the child the more they are unable to understand the complex connection between the collective and the self. Thus, the collective pressure often causes a great deal of harm to the child.

‪Those same drawbacks that we mentioned regarding the standardized school system are the same problems that Christian schools established by churches are facing. American church schools also have a lot of problems that are rooted in the institutionalization of the school: children who are rebellious, precocious, who commit crimes, and so on. This is an important reason for the decline in American church schools and for the sharp rise in the number of people who home school.

‪The above is an analysis of some of the differences between church schools and home schooling with the predominant emphasis on a defense for home schooling. Because we see many Christian brothers and sisters who do not agree with home schooling, and because we also see the importance of the development of Christian home schooling in China, therefore we have been so bold as to write this piece. Of course, there are also many challenges with home schooling. However, the importance of home schooling is so great that it is worth it for brothers and sisters to do home schooling and to promote the ministry of Christian home schooling across the country.

‪There are many Christians who are full-time mothers. Encourage these full-time mothers to raise and teach their children at home and their total economic and manpower costs will see significant savings. The most important thing is that this in accordance with the biblical order of education. Parents are directly responsible for their child’s education, not a school.

‪In actuality, many domestic Christian schools have big operations, but are tightly controlled by the government. They survive under the pressure and are unable to fully teach children from the Bible. For small scale Christian schools and church schools, the costs are higher, they are under enormous pressure, and they have become schools for the elite.

I think under the current situation, encouraging more brothers and sisters to be involved in the ministry of Christian education cannot in any case be overstated.

And, starting with their own children, these parents will quickly become unyielding with their education, producing an even greater testimony for God.

‪You can imagine that if there is better support for our brothers and sisters to do home schooling, then there will be a rapid rise in small scale Christian home schools.

* links to referenced articles did not appear in the original article

Original article: 教会学校还是在家教育
Photo: Chicago Tribune

The Wenzhou Church Reborn from the Ashes

‪This year’s attacks on church buildings in Wenzhou have been the subject of much analysis, the majority focusing on the relationship between church and government in Wenzhou. The following blog post, written by a Christian in China, and published in the mainland Christian Times, takes a closer look at the impact on the Wenzhou church itself.

While not dismissing the seriousness of the attacks, the writer nonetheless suggests that the unfortunate events of this year may actually prove to be a significant turning point in the development of the Wenzhou church. Key to his argument is a return to the true nature and purpose of the church – one of the enduring lessons of the church in China during the past 65 years but a lesson that had perhaps been forgotten during the prosperous decades of reform. Today, as Wenzhou churches are under attack, church leaders again need to examine their priorities. Outward success measures such as the size of church buildings and congregations are giving way to a renewed focus on personal spiritual growth. In place of an almost exclusive focus on the well being of Wenzhou church members comes a healthy concern for the society and a fresh understanding of the interconnectedness of all believers in China.

The sense of urgency that has characterized the church scene in Zhejiang Province in recent months is hastening this awakening. Rebirth is emerging out of the ashes of despair. The painful but necessary pruning that is now taking place will, in God’s timing, bring forth greater fruit in years to come.

 The Wenzhou Church Reborn from the Ashes

‪The church in Wenzhou has always attracted much attention and has seemingly become the weather vane of the church in China. Today, however, the attention received is no longer because of its ubiquitous eye-catching crosses, but because of the fiercest trial it has faced since the Cultural Revolution. To date we have no way of knowing exactly how many churches and crosses have been demolished during the “Three Rectifications and One Demolition” campaign. “Church” signs on the buildings have been changed to “Elderly Activity Center.” Formerly neon-lit crosses have been, one by one, wrapped in burlap and the churches demolished. The demolition of crosses has become an ache in the soul of many Christians and has left many observers dumbfounded. But after experiencing this raging inferno, we see that in this baptism of fire a new kind of Wenzhou church is being reborn in the ashes. Two years ago I wrote an essay titled “The Decline of the Wenzhou Church.” Now, as a result of this terrible campaign, the Wenzhou church is on the verge of experiencing a fiery rebirth.

‪1. From competition over physical structures to spiritual construction.

‪In recent years, the economic conditions for the Wenzhou church have been quite favorable. Competition to build churches had almost become the order of the day. As soon as a new church was built, it was torn down and rebuilt again! Before the new building was even filled with people, they begin to build an even bigger and more luxurious one. There are many domestic intellectuals who have raised critical objections to this point, arguing that it’s normal for every church leader to want his church to be the most visible and most beautiful. Quantifiable things have become their own performance evaluation standards, but they have had little overall success. “Large churches, few believers” has become the common characteristic of many Wenzhou village churches. At the same time, however, the style of the church building has become increasingly more important. Many believers mistakenly think that tithing to support building a church building (建堂) is the same as building a congregation (建教会). Since they believe this pleases God, they happily tithe to build a church building. Congregations often use church building projects as a means of uniting believers. This recent church demolition campaign, however, surprised people at first, then caused many congregations to sober up. They have learned that a church building is not the same as a congregation of believers and that a congregation without a building is still a church. So now, instead of competing to see who can build the best building, the focus has shifted to the spiritual construction of believers. Training programs have increased, the number of people studying theology (but not necessarily in full-time ministry) has increased, and spiritual formation is once again being valued. I believe that the experiences of the Wenzhou church during the “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign will bring about maturity.

‪2. From Three-Self / house church division to substantive unity.

‪Prior to the church demolitions, Three-Self churches and house churches in Wenzhou had little or no contact with one another. This was also true of native Wenzhou and non-native Wenzhou communities. The result was that they were actually in competition with one another. However, the “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign suddenly made all these groups (registered and unregistered churches; local Wenzhou churches and non-native churches) realize the common danger they were facing. They were reminded that we are all members of one body and if one part suffers we all suffer. We must help each other in harsh circumstances in order to survive. This deep insight has caused the Wenzhou church go from “no contact with each other” towards “mutual understanding and acceptance,” from “personal politics” towards “substantial unity.” This unity also includes cooperation between native Wenzhou and non-native Wenzhou churches.

‪3. From chaotic religious investment to purity of ministry service.

‪Because in the past the Wenzhou church provided a platform for fame and profit, many church leaders, to put it bluntly, were “speculators” of this fame and profit. Greedy for fame and fortune, ignorant and incompetent, given to sensationalism, they did things that they themselves were not good at in order to improve their reputation and increase their popularity. The church demolition events that were triggered by the tightening policies on religion will mean that these church “speculators” will have no choice but to weigh the cost of such speculation. If this campaign continues, the church will eliminate a number of religious “speculators,” a group of vulgar leaders and preachers. Of course, the true believers will be more resolute, helping to make clear the distinction between true believers and religious speculators. In fact, this group of speculators is now waiting to see which way the wind will blow, keeping silent during the campaign. On various occasions they expressed dissimilar voices, waiting for a time of opportunistic change. But if the church becomes more ardent as this type of event plays out and as this continues to ferment, church leaders will be forced to articulate their positions. (The last two botched sessions of the National People’s Congress and Chinese People’s Political Consultative Congress [两会] really do not match the political stance of a production team leader from the 1960s.)¹ This will result in the cleaning out of a number of religious fame and fortune speculators and the church will therefore be more pure. This will provide an opportunity for the Wenzhou church to be sanctified, bringing once again a big revival.

‪4. From trending towards prosperity theology to returning to the salvation theology of the cross.

‪Over the years, along with the success of the charismatic movement, the so-called “prosperity gospel” has exploded in mainland churches. Awareness of the prosperity gospel recently began to emerge in some Wenzhou churches. So in one sense, the start of the so-called “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign came just in time and in the right place to convincingly give the recently intruding prosperity gospel a whack on the head. As a result, the Wenzhou church has begun to reverse this prosperity gospel trend and is beginning to return to the salvation theology of the cross. It is moving from the “optimism hermeneutic” of showy displays of happiness and prosperity back towards the hermeneutic of revelation. In this sense, the “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” event has undoubtedly led to a regenerative movement to maintain the purity of the church in Wenzhou. In communication with students in Wenzhou, we have noticed a decrease in fantastical visions for “heaven on earth,” and somewhat of an increase in profound distress; a decrease in designs for material construction, and somewhat of an increase in sharing about spiritual experiences; less of a sense of superiority, and more a sense of crisis. Most obvious is the moving away from notions to build tall and impressive church buildings and back to the theology of suffering, the historical mission of Christians, social responsibility, and spiritual reflection over salvation theology. I think that this is an important step towards maturity on the part of not only the Wenzhou church, but of the Chinese church.

‪5. From gradual secularization of indifference towards an enthusiastic sense of crisis.

‪Before the Sanjiang Church Incident, the church in Wenzhou had a universal optimistic mood of blind superiority. Such sentiments gradually caused the Wenzhou church to be inclined toward secularism, (in fact, valuing the magnificence of the outside of the church over the humility and formation of the lives of those inside the church is precisely one form of secularism). Secularization caused the Wenzhou church to lose the zeal of the generation of believers after the Cultural Revolution. As a result, the new generation in the Wenzhou church became indifferent, even apathetic. However, after the Sanjiang Church Incident, we noticed some changes. In the past, when we read about Jesus Christ warning the church of the hardship and persecution it would face in the last days, we had thought this was in the distant past or the future. But now, we are very clearly aware that perhaps we are that generation. We will eventually face the apocalyptic warnings Jesus spoke of during Passion Week. But this sense of crisis has made the church become more sober and full of enthusiasm. Our church has begun thinking about our social responsibility, our call to missions, the purpose of our existence, as well as the form of development our church really needs. This is a peripheral incident that prompted the Wenzhou church to reassess and awaken.

‪6. More than ever the church values theology and church education.

‪The Sanjiang Church Incident forced the Wenzhou church to shift its development objectives from church construction to life training and the building of a church culture. Before and after this event, more and more church figures realized they needed a foundation of theology. They needed to clarify the church’s tradition, and promote the establishment of church education and the tradition of family faith. Even if it is just an act, this can be seen by the number of Wenzhou preachers, even preachers of the older generation, who are beginning to focus instead on the impact of the Internet. After the Sanjiang Church Incident, the awareness of this was pushed to a new climax by the “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign. For the foreseeable future, when the course and energy of church development are forced to turn from constructing church buildings, inevitably it will push the church to devote its efforts to the development of theology and church education – those spiritual foundations of construction. I believe that, with Wenzhou at the epicenter, this particular “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” event will have the result of upgrading the quality of theological education in large areas of the domestic church. In the near future, the domestic church will produce theological scholars in all different areas of higher education. Many ordinary church pastors in our ranks will have a Doctor of Theology. The resulting large number of domestic and overseas scholars produced from this will also be uniquely qualified for the ministry of theological education in Mainland China.

‪7. From personal politics to gradually producing contemporary pioneer-style spiritual leaders.

‪Except for several highly respected contemporary church leaders, the domestic church so far has not since produced any church leaders of a similar mold. Although there is no shortage of people doing all they can to become this generation’s church leader, none have been successful. This does not mean that the church does not need these church leaders, nor does it mean the era of church heroes has passed; however, without the right opportunity, a generation of “heroes” cannot be created! The “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign has provided a “right opportunity” for creating the “church hero.” Personal charm, charisma, leadership in times of crisis, church approval, theologically trained, a nimble political mind as well as the ability to promote character are characteristics required for contemporary church leaders. These characteristics all seem to be present. The essential catalyst is the right opportunity for a crisis in the current situation, and the “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign is precisely that. If the “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign continues to evolve, it will help Wenzhou, and it will help the nationwide church go so far as to produce a contemporary pioneer-style spiritual leader, and thereby establish a special team. A contemporary leader of this type may appear in the house church, or within the institutional church. Maybe he’ll have to pay a certain political price, but the higher this price, the higher his prestige, increasing the opportunities for the church to create more great spiritual leaders. Even with superior political acumen he would not need to pay a political price, but would only need to find a balance in the tension between a person and his abilities, perhaps producing similar contemporary church leaders.

‪8. From the big talking “theological craftsmen” towards young preachers with a contemporary spirit and theological foundation.

‪Before the events of the Sanjiang Church Incident, many of our young generation of preachers had never even completely read John Calvin’s Institutes; however, this has not stopped them uninhibitedly rattling on about Calvinism. They may have obtained a little theological training, but they still lack basic theological maturity and cultivation. Since they are fond of criticizing others over nit-picky theological details, I have come to call them “theological craftsmen.” Questions raised by these theological craftsmen are difficult theological propositions to wrestle with and to think through in their spiritual, contextual, and historical backgrounds. Those desiring to be regarded as theologians especially enjoy arrogantly droning on about theology. What the theological craftsmen produce actually has little to do with what is being produced within the church. But the crisis of the “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign gives the church no choice to play armchair theology. We need to think about our own mission, values ​​and a way out from the current plight we find ourselves in, and also, rooted in theological contemplation, discover logical explanations and the church’s developmental path for our current circumstances. Theologians are not trained in laboratories, but are forged in current reality. Therefore, it is possible to transform these theological craftsmen into true preachers who are molded by the spirit of the era and with a theological foundation. The campaign gives us an opportunity for this kind of transformation.

‪9. From native Wenzhou pride towards honoring the catholicity and apostolic succession of the church.

‪For a time the Wenzhou church was extremely xenophobic. It was very difficult for outsiders to be accepted in Wenzhou church circles. In the past, second and third generation native Wenzhou preachers often had a superiority complex. If you paid attention to the way they talked you would often hear, “My Wenzhou is like this or like that” carelessly come up in conversation with co-laborers in Wenzhou. They habitually reference their own experiences and particular Wenzhou church culture to measure the differences with the situations of other churches. But the “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign has forced the Wenzhou church to start considering their own position from theological tradition and questions about the nature of the church and they have begun to accept non-Wenzhou churches. This thought process and communication with non-Wenzhou churches will force the Wenzhou church to consider historic theology as well as the catholic and ecumenical nature of the church in light of their own plight and mission. This will help elevate their values and the church culture. The Sanjiang Church Incident is an opportunity for a Second Great Awakening in the Wenzhou church following the Cultural Revolution.

‪10. Self-centeredness towards accepting non-Wenzhou communities.

‪Somewhat similar to the point above, along with the outflow of the native populace and the inflow of non-Wenzhou communities into the Wenzhou church, contact and acceptance between churches is on the rise. In the past, the Wenzhou church focused much more on its own church growth. It was very easy to use it’s own customs as a basis for what was proper. Now, however, the church is looking at what lessons can be learned from the outside. They are more accepting of non-Wenzhou groups and are promoting modernized and internationalized church reform.

11. From employing church doctrine to the importance of building church culture.

‪Wenzhou culture has a practical and pragmatic, or, you could say, utilitarian cultural tradition. This is very different from the inland farming culture or nomadic cultures of northwest China. Wenzhou culture is more similar to a maritime culture. This culture is characterized by valuing practicality, performance, risk-taking, economics and trade, and pragmatics over philosophical guidelines. Maritime culture is more conducive to the spread of Christianity. From the earliest days of Chinese history, Wenzhou was engaged in maritime trade, something that has been manifested in both migration and smuggling across distant lands. Perhaps influenced by the local maritime culture of Wenzhou, the Wenzhou church places a high value on visible, quantifiable church assets. This is a characteristic of Wenzhou church culture. However, due to the current campaign, the era of focusing on building church structures has come to an end; going forward, churches in Wenzhou will no longer be able to compete with one another for the best “hardware.” The Wenzhou church has no choice but to begin focusing on building a church culture that is characterized by a Christian lifestyle, education, training, and other methods that will increase the maturity and cohesion of the church. This new culture will help the Wenzhou church have a substantial impact on Wenzhou society. This may also become a pioneering model for the domestic church.

‪12. From an optimistic sense of peacefulness towards a sense of crisis.

‪The past attitude of superiority on the part of the Wenzhou church was very similar to pre-WWI liberalism in the West, which held that the world would inevitably continue to turn towards a peaceful path of progress. The Wenzhou church was extremely optimistic about the future, believing that religious policies would open up more, the number of believers would continue to grow, and the more churches built the bigger they would be. It believed that revival in the church would continue to increase, the status of believers would continue to grow, and Christians would increasingly become synonymous with being fashionable. They believed that a Christian kingdom would come, and that Jesus would return within the foreseeable future. They believed that life would get better and better, everything would be peaceful, the earth would become a wonderful heaven. Indeed, we have built our hopes upon the earth, not expecting Jesus to come quickly. However, after the Sanjiang Church Incident, the church has begun to feel a sense of crisis. From theology and eschatology, the church has begun to reflect on the current circumstances. I believe that this sense of crisis will promote awakening and reassessment within the church. The “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign will bring awareness to the Wenzhou church. In terms of the development of the church, this campaign may very well prove to be a turning point for the Wenzhou church, allowing it to focus on mature growth and strength, and thus avoiding the denigration that happened with the Roman Church. In this sense, the “Three Rectifications, One Demolition” campaign will promote the healthy development of Wenzhou church.

‪At this point, I am reminded of Jesus’ words when he said, “every branch that does not bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful!” Prune from our body the branches that do not bear fruit and let the real fruit grow more abundantly. This process is painful, but it will have a good result. Behind this heartbreaking series of events, it is clear that Jesus Christ is still truly in charge. If we trust in the prophecy of Jesus, we will easily endure hardship. I believe it is all grace. Indeed, as the Psalmist says, “The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as King forever.” Seen in this way, it is just as Joseph acknowledged: “But God meant it for good!”

‪I believe that this crisis will inevitably provide the Wenzhou church an opportunity to be reborn from the ashes!

*Editor’s note: In the 1960s the Chinese countryside was organized into production brigades (formerly called villages). It was the most grassroots form of governance and decision-making. In this sentence the author seems to be expressing his dissatisfaction with the work of China’s highest level legislative bodies by making an unfavorable comparison to the 1960s work brigades.

Article: 张远来：浴火重生的温州教会 in the Christian Times. Translated and posted with permission.

Photo Credit: CC image “Chashan Church” by Ken Larmon, via Flickr.

Interview with a Reformed Church Pastor (1)

One of the interesting developments in the church in China over the past decade is growing popularity and influence of Reformed theology, particularly within urban house churches. This has come about as the Christians in China have had increasing opportunities to interact with the church outside of China, either directly, or via the Internet. Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion has been translated into Chinese, as have the writings of prominent voices in the “New Calvinism” movement in the United States, such as Tim Keller, D.A. Carson, and John Piper. Probably the most influential figure, however, is Rev. Stephen Tong, head of the Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia. In order to better understand the rise of Reformed theology and its impact on churches in China, the Christian Times conducted an interview with a Reformed pastor. Because the interview is extremely long, we are breaking it into parts.

Interview with a Reformed Church Pastor: The Impact and Controversy of the Reformed Church in China

‪‪”改革宗” (Gaige Zong) is translated from the English word “reformed,” referring to the Reformed tradition of the Christian church. It is one of the most significant of the major schools of thought that arose following the Protestant Reformation. The Reformed theological system is primarily Calvinist; that is, the theology of the Protestant Reformation’s important representative individual, John Calvin. Chinese theologian Pastor Stephen Tong translates the term as “归正宗,” (Guizheng Zong); therefore in the Chinese community, “Reformed” is also translated as “归正宗.”

‪For the past ten years, with an increase in communication between the Chinese church and churches overseas, Reformed theology and church doctrine have gradually entered China and have had a profound impact on the Chinese church.

‪What are the different periods of development for the Reformed faith in China? What kind of impact has it brought to the church in China? How should some characteristics of this phenomenon be evaluated?

Recently, Christian Times invited a Reformed church pastor, Pastor Daniel (at the request of the interviewee, a pseudonym is used) to answer these questions by sharing his personal experiences and thoughts. Pastor Daniel’s church is located in the city center of a second-tier city in eastern China and would be considered an emerging urban church. In terms of its conception of the church, pastorally, and organizationally, it is a representative sample of an indigenous Reformed church.

‪Pastor Daniel told us that the church where he serves began in the early 1990s as a church that was more typical of a traditional house church.* Around the year 2000, they began to face many challenges and restrictions. However, nearly ten years ago, by adopting the Reformed faith, the church successfully transformed itself into an emerging urban church.

‪During this process, he studied, and eventually embraced the Reformed faith, as well as reflected on and encapsulated his experiences and lessons learned. Through his sharing, he hopes to help churches and individuals who are going through a similar journey. At the same time, he has developed personal responses, according to his own thoughts and experiences, to some of the common criticisms of the Reformed faith, such as being overbearing or judgmental towards dissimilar perspectives. He hopes to promote a more objective way of becoming acquainted with the Reformed faith.

‪Christian Times: Against what kind of background has the Reformed faith begun to spread and influence the church in China? How did your church start to come into contact with Reformed theology?

‪Pastor Daniel: Reformed teaching began to influence the church in China primarily around the year 2000. The background is the rise of the emerging urban church and the challenge of transformation facing the traditional churches.

‪The emerging church began to pay more attention to such aspects as theological doctrine, establishment of church governance, cultural influences, and how to interact with society. In fact, this is more in line with the gospel because from the point of view of the Bible, one of the effects produced by the gospel is in fact a need to engage the culture. From a historical perspective, Christian culture has been a leading world culture and has had a profound impact on world culture. So, we can say that the train of thought of new urban churches is more in line with the gospel. Therefore this type of church also affected the traditional church which was formed 20 years ago, creating tension; not being able to integrate is an inevitable consequence.

‪Our church was originally a traditional church, but in 2000 it began to be affected by such a background. There was more of an emphasis on miracles and wonders in the past, emphasizing suffering, and personal piety. Most of the elderly believers in the church had grown up reading Watchman Nee’s books. It was a typical traditional church, established after [China’s] reform and opening up to the world [in the 1980’s] and after the spiritual revival. Although it was within the city, yet it was still a more traditional church.

‪Gradually, the church began to grow. New believers began to attend, and the demographics of the congregation began to change. There were more young people and intellectuals. At this time, we discovered that their areas of concern and our areas of concern were different. With the growth of media and the Internet, we discovered the sermons of Pastor Stephen Tong, who taught that Christianity should engage with the culture. This had a profound impact on our thinking, and we began to make changes.

‪At the beginning of the year 2000, I (and the church) first came in contact with the Reformed faith. We listened to the sermons of Pastor Stephen Tong, studied his theological lectures, and slowly began to transform. And this is not just true of our church; most of China’s transforming churches have been, to some extent, influenced by him.

‪Since then, the Chinese church began to transform. One factor has been the impact of the emerging churches. Another factor is that traditional churches have been forced by the problems brought on by their own growth process and have no choice but to reassess and transform. For example, it is easy for Eastern Lightning to ransack a traditional church, or even to destroy an entire church. Because the traditional church is only concerned about suffering and does not value theology, it values emotions and not reason. It emphasizes mystical interpretation rather than Biblical exegesis of the original text, and personal worship rather than valuing church government. So when faced with heresy they can be easily pillaged. In short, most churches in China today are in a period of transition, because they understand that if they don’t transform, they will be relegated to the margins of society.

‪Christian Times: How far, then has the church come since 2000? What stage is it at currently?

‪Pastor Daniel: Most churches in China began to make changes beginning in 2000. Theological changes happened first, followed by institutional changes.

‪In terms of theology, I think that the Reformed tradition has certainly been influential. Of course, the number of churches that have actually become “Reformed” in terms of their theology or in establishing a Presbyterian form of governance is still small. However, I have observed that many churches have begun to at least recognize the importance of the Reformed faith, and have begun to explore it.

‪The traditional church is beset by its own problems. These include having no systematic theology and no organizational structure. Therefore, in order to grow, some have begun to  look at the Reformed faith. Even churches in newly developing work places, and those with many young people (and where Arminianism is rather prominent) have begun to focus on the Reformed faith.

‪Christian Times: Allow me to insert a question here. In fact, some of the traditional churches are also working hard to transform and integrate into the city. Some knowledgeable and experienced traditional church leaders are also starting to create their own theological system and church governance based on local circumstances, and it can be said that they have not caught the reformed “bug.” Do you still feel the Reformed faith will impact them?

‪Pastor Daniel: If the traditional church would begin to value theology and trace it back to its origin they will certainly encounter the Reformed faith. In researching the history of Protestant doctrine, ultimately you cannot avoid its origin in the Reformed faith. No matter what Protestant denomination you are a part of, a focus on theology will ultimately lead to  Reformed theology. The three most important figures of the Reformation are Martin Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli. Martin Luther was a pioneer, and Zwingli later supplemented his work. However, Calvin was the one who had the biggest impact on later generations. He was responsible for shaping a theory that was to have a huge impact on later generations. And later, Arminianism was produced in reaction to dissatisfaction with reformed theology. So, if you are looking, you will find the Reformed faith: you cannot get around it.

‪Christian Times: So, looking ahead, in the future what do you believe will be the next focal points of the Reformed faith that will impact the Chinese church?

‪Pastor Daniel: What is the future trend? I believe that the focus will be on church governance.

‪So far, Reformed theology has had an impact on the Chinese church, but the impact of [church] governance/polity is still relatively slight. One thing is for sure: the Reformed faith has led many churches to start thinking about church governance, prompting the development of church government. This is very good. For example, although Baptists use a congregational form of government instead of a Presbyterian form, it is still a form of governance. Furthermore, in the modern context, it certainly is better than the patriarchal system. In regards to church governance, there should be a church structure, a constitution, and one’s own liturgy, but most churches in China do not have any of these. The most common structure is patriarchal, where there is no order to follow – only that which is based on the authority of the individual leaders. Things are done as the leader dictates. Therefore, the demands of the institutional church will become a focal point of future investigation.

‪As I said before, there have been two main transformations of the church; one is theology, one is church governance. Theology became the focus starting in the year 2000, but this has now begun to settle down, and tensions have reduced. The church has gone from thinking little about theology, culture, and society to starting to value theology, culture, and society. Church government will be the next focal point.

*”Traditional house church” here refers to type of house churches that grew up in the countryside during the era when churches went underground due to persecution. As people from the countryside migrated to the cities, these churches moved as well, bringing with them their forms of worship and governance.

Original article: 专访一改革宗教会牧者：改革宗在中国的发展、影响与争议(上) (Gospel Times. Translated and posted with permission)

Image source: Hugenotten Museum

Protestantism and the Future of China

The article translated below is from a Chinese website called Urban Mission (jidutu123.com). In it the author ponders what role Protestantism can play in the future development of China. He begins by talking about the transitional nature of China’s current social and political systems and where China’s current reforms may or may not be headed. He then draws on the writings of German sociologist Max Weber to understand the current situation in China today, to the point of comparing contemporary Chinese society with the German Weimar Republic. Finally, he argues that the main contribution Protestantism can make to the development of China is constitutional government.

It’s important to note that many Christians writing about Christianity in China these days do so from an academic social science perspective. While it’s a perspective that many in the west are unfamiliar (and perhaps uncomfortable) with, it’s still important for us to listen in on this particular conversation.

Protestantism and the Future of China

Tremendous political and social reforms are taking place in China. The current round of reforms is sometimes believed to be the continuation of Deng Xiaoping’s reforms. In fact, according to the view of economist Zhang Jun of Fudan University, reform of the economic system had already been finalized after Deng Xiaoping’s inspection tour of the south in 1992. However, because of Deng’s “do not argue” stance, political reform was temporarily shelved.

The result is a “transitional” political system: one that is not yet a modernized system of government, and no longer a Soviet system or the system in place during the Cultural Revolution.

According to popular perception, this type of system is designed to benefit influential officials, or those in control (权贵体系). In other words, a small number of people rely on their power to obtain resources; they exploit the market to get rich. This highlights the incomplete nature of the Deng-era reforms. The current reforms of Zeng Qinghong (曾庆红) and Xi Jinping (习近平) are to a large extent a new set of reforms, as opposed to a continuation of Deng’s reforms.

‪The starting point for Deng’s reforms was the system in place during the Cultural Revolution. While it is true that there are still voices that harken back to the pre-Cultural Revolution era, they are few and lack influence. What is true is that those governing society, that is, those with vested interests, certainly do not want a return to the old system of central planning. That system benefits no one.

The power to block political reform lies in the hands of those people who benefit the most within the incomplete system of Deng’s political reforms. Zeng and Xi’s new overhauling reforms are presently being carried out with uncommon authority and political wisdom. Even though in the public domain it is very difficult to see these “being carried out,” however, to those in an academic or political “vocation,” the speed at which these are “being carried out” is not at all slow.

‪Furthermore, during this period of political modernization, the Chinese society and economy are rapidly integrating with the international systems. This should also facilitate modernization. The national slogan of the previous decade was “harmonious society and new countryside.” In this decade, the national slogan has been replaced with “the Chinese Dream and new urbanization.” The former, due to its having specific, practical indicators that could be manipulated, turned into a poisoned institution of bloated and embarrassing social burdens. Looking at the current “Chinese Dream” slogan, it can hopefully detoxify those specific indicators of social stability. In addition, this corresponds to market economics and the global trend of urbanization, echoing America’s second industrialization strategy, and is a tremendous action to pull Chinese society into the global system.

‪Furthermore, there is another matter related to the founding of the “Contemporary Weber Institute.” That is, the growth in the number of Chinese Christians is predicted to reach 150 million by 2020 and by 2030 will have grown to over 249 million people. And if the Communist Party were to abandon its official “atheist” position, the growth in the number of Christians as well as other religions could increase. Although currently maturing, Christianity in China is still not prepared to greet a fresh, new China; at the same time, society as a whole also has not formulated a necessary response to the rise of Christianity.

‪But there are problems. The first that we need to be aware of is that many are not yet prepared to understand the fundamental distinctive features of modern society or modern Chinese-speaking societies. In Weber’s Germany, people were faced with the rise of a post-war Weimar government and in the eyes of most Germans the Weimar government became known as a symbol of “defeat and humiliation.” In other words, a standard constitutional and independent political entity turned into a symbol of humiliation. Part of this lies in the fact that after the 1848 revolutions in Europe, when the Holy Roman Empire dissolved, German society experienced big changes that would surpass even the changes in China today. These transformations forced German society to give up its rosy ideals of “ancient society” and embrace “modernity.” Unfortunately, the German people were not able to adapt. This was embodied in their inability to “play” politics, their inability to concretely implement political life in the public sphere. Parliament’s endless debates stopped short of actually addressing the bitter lives of the nation’s people, causing Weber to start thinking deeply about German society’s “separation of ancient and modern.” He suggested that there needed to be reflection on what modern society should look like. In addition, there needed to be an examination of bureaucratic patterns of modern society. Since this new system was “untested,” implementation would need to be done incrementally, so as to ensure success.

‪Chinese society is very likely to follow in the footsteps of the Weimar government. One reason is that there are already large numbers of “political romantics” gathering on the edges of power, waiting to once again contend following a political vacuum. This time, however, they are depending on the tools of “natural rights” and “democracy.” When the power of society needs to be mobilized, “natural rights” is always a good call to arms. Yet, the current standards in Chinese-speaking society are most likely to suffer harm there. Weber naturally regarded “modern society” of his time in this way. He did not pass judgment on ancient and modern, rather in a pertinent and practical way he spoke out on the modes and rules of behavior operating in society. Adopting these modes and rules would prevent people from being used by the “scum of society” (troublemakers). The majority of Weber’s social analysis has applicable lessons to draw on for today. Because of its analysis of the advancement of “history” in Chinese society, it helps us to accurately find our individual place among various means of political mobilization from a rational standpoint.

‪The second problem we must be aware of is that we need to build the structures of a modern rational society, particularly civil society organizations such as the church. At present, Chinese-speaking Christians do not possess a notion of “modernized governance” because, according to Weber’s definition, Chinese-speaking Christians at best are believers ruled by charismatic leaders rather than looking towards God; in the absence of a bureaucratic polity, there is rule by charisma. Therefore it can be asserted that Chinese-speaking Christianity is situated within an organizational pattern similar to that of pre-16th century Europe. Such an assertion is not an exaggeration, because a rational and predictable Christian organization that runs in accordance with certain rules can become a tremendous force for social stability. If not, it will be “separated from heaven” and taken advantage of beforehand by people. However, rational organizations are not a panacea. How does one know the secrets of success to an “administrative organization?” This is what Chinese society needs to learn.

‪With this awareness of the problem, the study of Weber and Chinese society will carry real meaning. A number of years ago, people widely believed the growth of Christianity to be God’s “eclectic talent,” a “blessing” for the growth of Chinese civilian society. The expansion of civil society and the middle class is the real pillar needed to transform a great power. Yet, as Xi and Li launch their new policies, the strength of Christianity is far from being evident. Instead of promoting political reform, it has created conflicts, such as the   PX event,* which allowed for the denunciation of intellectuals. This confrontation between two parties (the urban middle class and the state) within a one-party system was a pivotal moment sociologically and politically.

‪Weber’s importance for post-transformational Germany is just as important as the study of Christianity and society for China today. The goal of China’s modernization is to thrust China into the modern world. Under this reasoning, various “isms” have taken hold in civil society. However, civil society remains just a politically created double-edged tool. The power of the tool may still be weak, but it cannot be ignored. Chinese-speaking societies have long enjoyed making political proposals for future social development. What Christianity can deliver at the present time is a covenant constitutional government. These “-isms” are already granted around the world, but in today’s Chinese-speaking society they repeatedly suffer at the hands of people using them as “tools,” which is just like post-war Germany. With such a challenging problem as this, Weber helps us view it all. However, If we really understand Weber we would have expected to see Weber teach us to first understand this society, including the true internal nature of politics. In this way, aside from “teaching people to be bad (教人学坏),” people could experience the study of and teachability of virtues.

Original article: 新教与中国的未来 (translated and posted with permission)

*This refers to a protest against the relocation of a chemical plant in Dalian, China, an event which was significant because the protesters were urban middle class residents.