Management Issues in the Rural Church
This article, from the Christian Times, highlights some of the issues facing the rural churches, which have been and are feeling the effects of urbanization.
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China Opens its First Church for the Blind
This article, translated from the website Kuanye, reports on the opening of a church for the blind in the city of Shenyang, in China's northeastern Liaoning Province.
Training and Discipleship Methods in Chinese Churches
A pioneering pastor in Beijing talks to a reporter from the Christian Times about the importance of church membership as a means of ensuring that believers receive proper spiritual nurture. The goal of church growth is not simply more people attending the church, but more disciples. He also addresses the phenomenon of lateral movement, or believers moving from one church to another, often due to dissatisfaction with their former church. His own approach of letting go and encouraging one of his congregations to become independent may seem surprising, particularly to those who believe a pastor should keep a tight reign on his flock.
Bishop K. H. Ting (1915-2012)
Bishop K. H. Ting, the most influential leader of the State-controlled Protestant church in China over the last 50 years, died peacefully in Nanjing on November 22, aged 97.
Testimonies from a Women’s Retreat
These two testimonies are taken from the website of the Quan Nan Church, in Quanzhou, Fujian Province. Quan Nan Church is a registered church, affiliated with the Chinese Christian Council/Three-self Patriotic Movement (CCC/TSPM).
Jesus: The Best Christmas Gift Ever
Even though it is not an official holiday in China, Christmas has become extremely popular as a commercial/consumer event. Stores put up trees and clerks don Santa hats. However, most people in China do not know the real story behind Christmas -- the story of Jesus. The popularity of Christmas presents Christians with a unique opportunity to share the gospel. This article, from the Christian Times, is about a pastor in Beijing encouraging his congregation to tell their friends and family about Jesus this Christmas season.
Key Issues for the Church in China: A Local Perspective
If you asked most Christians in the west to identify the major issues facing the Chinese Church, the answer would probably be persecution and lack of Bibles. But what about Chinese Christians? What challenges do they see?
Change Brought about by the Cross
In the online Christian magazine Kuanye, a contributor who had experienced a horrific car accident testifies how church members rallied to show support. The writer's own response to the incident is contrasted with how the writer probably would have responded had it happened before knowing Christ.
Keys to Effective Leadership Training in China
Decades of overseas involvement in equipping Chinese church leaders have shown that training involves much more than unloading knowledge on a classroom of eager students. In discussions with dozens of experienced trainers over the course of several years, the following have emerged as essential factors for effective training.
Chinas Leadership Shuffle and the Church
"Shiba Da," the 18th Party Congress, concluded last week with the seven (not nine!) members of the reconstituted Politburo Standing Committee appearing together for the first time on the red carpet in Beijing's Great Hall of the People. Many have asked what implications the Congress has for Christians in China. While it is known that religious policy was on the agenda this year, only time will tell how the closed-door discussions on this topic will play out in terms of actual policy.
Healthy Partnering
A recent and still ongoing ChinaSource survey of Chinese Christians, who have experience in working together with foreign partners, provides insight for those seeking to partner with and serve the church in China.
Chinese Creating Pastoral Training Tools for China’s Churches: A Case Study
In their desire to create authentic, pastoral training materials, early on this team of foreigners resolved to work toward putting their national staff in posts of increasing influence and authority while they stepped into self-restricted roles of coaching, and eventually, cheering from the stands. The author describes this work which is still in process.