A Generational Moment in the Chinese Church
Raised in Beijing in the 1960s and 1970s, I have taught at a number of theological schools in Hong Kong, the US, and mainland China over the past 22 years. In my many years of service to the Chinese Church, ChinaSource has become a close partner that understands the strategic importance of connecting theological scholarship and training with the Church and its mission.
If you regularly read ChinaSource’s publications, you will surely note the Chinese Church is currently undergoing one of the most pivotal transformations in its entire history. The signs are many: a new social reality with its pressures and opportunities, new patterns and dynamics in church life in the mainland, the rapidly growing diaspora communities, and global outreach of Chinese Christians.
As someone deeply involved in theological education and Christian scholarship in the Chinese context, I am more sensitive to the changing dynamics of the academic world. This sensitivity is personal as well. As I have grown older in recent years, I have begun to see more and more of my former students establishing themselves as key researchers and faculty in theological schools. I also find that young scholars in their thirties and even twenties increasingly approach me for advice. Through my interactions with them, I have opportunities to hear their hopes and aspirations as well as their concerns and struggles. Just as the Chinese Church is undergoing a generational transition in church leadership, what I observe in the Chinese Christian academic world convinces me that an inevitable generational shift in intellectual leadership is coming.
The Rise of Christian Intellectuals in Urban China
As we know, the rise of urban churches in both registered and unregistered settings has been one of the highlights of church life in China from the late 1990s to the mid-2010s. One of the major features of these urban churches is their ability to attract a growing number of intellectuals and nurture their theological curiosity and prowess. It is fair to say that the effectiveness of ministry and mission in the early 21st century has a lot to do with urban churches’ theological sophistication and enthusiasm in engaging the public arena in the country.
These decades of amazing church growth and ministry expansion have, to a great extent, been led and driven by highly educated pastors and Christian intellectuals who were largely born in the 1960s and 1970s. While this generation is still very much in charge, a new generation of Chinese Christian intellectuals are emerging. Although they share the same theological traditions and outlook, they nevertheless have their own distinctives, needs, and challenges. Please allow me to point out a few of them.
A New Generation of Chinese Theologians
First, the old generation of Chinese Christian intellectuals mostly came to the faith during the early years of China’s economic reform and opening-up to the outside world. Largely from social sciences and humanities backgrounds, the theologians of this generation received their theological training quite late in their academic careers. In contrast, the younger generation of Chinese theologians either grew up in Christian families or came to the faith at younger ages—their theological training begins much earlier in their education. As a result, they usually receive systematic training from MDiv level to PhD level in biblical studies, theology, church history, and other subjects in classical theological education mostly outside mainland China. Thanks be to God, the evidence shows that the number of young Chinese believers called and committed to theological education and Christian scholarship has been relatively steady from the 1980s to present. Domestically and internationally, their intellectual brilliance and scholarly achievements begin to make an impact. Even in a tough time, such an impressive pool of passionate and well-prepared young theological talents always gives us hope for the Church in the Chinese context.
Challenges Facing Young Chinese Theologians
Secondly, since the 1980s, the theological education in China has heavily depended on the West. Not surprisingly, Chinese theological scholarship is to a great degree Westernized. This reality only serves to aggravate the lingering skepticism of scholarship in the mindset of Chinese evangelicalism. Therefore, it is still an urgent challenge for Chinese theologians to contextualize their scholarship in Chinese society and church life, and to bridge the gap between intellectual pursuits and church ministry. Considering where the majority of younger Chinese theologians get their training, we have legitimate reasons to believe contextualization could well be a greater challenge and more urgent task especially for them.
Thirdly, nowadays, it is not hard to identify young Chinese PhD and PhD candidates in theology in various theological educational institutions ranging from prestigious universities in the West to Chinese seminaries in Southeast Asia. Appreciating their passion and dedication, we need to acknowledge their lives are never easy. Navigating lengthy and lonely years of study and research, they and their families often live on meager financial resources. Facing very bleak prospects for stable teaching jobs anywhere including their own home country, many of them find themselves with their families living an almost nomadic lifestyle in different post-doctoral and visiting fellowship programs. When life becomes too hard, quitting and switching careers would become necessary for some of them. On top of pastoral and personal care, these young Chinese theologians need companions and guidance as they discern God’s will for their lives and their roles in the ministry of the Chinese church.
Walking Alongside the Next Generation
Finally, I do believe the younger generation of Chinese theologians and Christian thinkers are gifts from God to the Chinese church. The existence of such a group of young people is one of the key reasons why I am still very confident of the future of the Chinese Church. If we care about the future of the Chinese Church, we should be very intentional in caring about this group—praying for them and walking alongside them. Over the past several decades, ChinaSource has demonstrated such intentionality. It is no wonder why ChinaSource is one of the most trusted platforms among young Chinese Christian intellectuals. I am confident that ChinaSource will continue to play a critical role in facilitating conversations and synergy between the Chinese Church—particularly its future intellectual leaders—and the global church in the decades to come.
