China’s NGO Policy: Iron Cage or Ladder to Success?
Rather than seeing government regulations as a constraint, the authors urged NGO leaders to take these regulations as a guide on their journey toward greater opportunities.
傅邦宁博士是华源协作的创办人,并担任首任总裁,直至 2019 年卸任。
傅邦宁博士曾于 1995 年至 2000 年担任惠顿学院(Wheaton College)中国研究所执行主任;1987 年至 1995 年担任中国福音会(China Ministries International)美国分会创会主任;1985 年至 1986 年则任职于香港中国教会研究中心,负责英文出版物的编辑工作。
傅邦宁博士拥有南加州大学(University of Southern California)政治学硕士及博士学位,以及弥赛亚学院(Messiah College)广播、电视与电影学士学位。
傅邦宁博士长期关注中国发展,对中国教会及中国社会与政治现象有深入研究,并广泛撰文及授课。他著有 China’s Urban Christians: A Light That Cannot Be Hidden,并与 Luis Bush 合著 China’s Next Generation: New China, New Church, New World。
2006 年至 2017 年间,傅邦宁博士与妻子 Jasmine 居住于香港,目前定居美国加州北部。
傅邦宁博士目前负责协调一个宣教士关顾专业人员网络,为从中国差派至海外的宣教士提供支持。他也为其他机构提供咨询,帮助他们理解中国宗教政策所带来的影响。
Rather than seeing government regulations as a constraint, the authors urged NGO leaders to take these regulations as a guide on their journey toward greater opportunities.
Deeply committed Syrian Christians traveled thousands of miles to plant a church in China, enjoyed a season of imperial favor during which the gospel took root and spread, and succeeded in communicating the essential message of Christ’s suffering for the salvation of the world and his resurrection from the dead.
As with many Christian China narratives, the questions we ask shape the storyline. If “Who’s in charge?” is not the right question, attempts to answer it will undoubtedly prove unsatisfactory. Perhaps a better starting point would be, “How shall we lead together?”
Addressing his readers in China, Ren Xiaopeng asks, “If American evangelicalism is in such an intellectually vacant state, where would Chinese Christianity, deeply influenced by American evangelicalism and fundamentalism, go next?” Their answer will be critical for the future of the Chinese church—and, if we are willing to listen, for the church in America as well.
Today it is difficult to talk about the church in China without referencing China’s church outside China. Many leaders operate with one foot on Chinese soil and the other abroad, either by virtue of their frequent international travel or via offshore organizations through which their voices are amplified, making them spokespersons for a movement that transcends China’s borders.
The changing migration patterns discussed in this issue of the Quarterly take on eternal significance when viewed in light of the great repositioning taking place within the global Chinese church. The Lord of the Harvest is sovereignly at work, raising up laborers and sending them into new fields for his glory.
“If the… global body of Christ can be there and say, ‘We are together here with you. I have my struggles, and you have your struggles, but we are together, praying to God together and seeking his guidance and help together,’…that can be very comforting and can be an encouragement.”
The cultural and political aspects of the Sinicization campaign go hand in hand. At its core, the campaign is all about political control. Yet, given China’s culture of political dominance, it is also very much about culture—a culture of obedience in which religion serves the interests of the state…
Perhaps in the glow of Bethlehem’s star we can begin to see the sheer incongruity of the China narratives we had come to take for granted. The reliance on cultural or political influence, the ability to project power through financial resources, the desire to win, the need to make ourselves relevant—these belie our core identity as followers of Christ…
Mountains today no longer symbolize separation, but rather strength, as suggested by another phrase, tieda de Jiangshan (铁打的江山). Literally meaning “rivers and mountains forged in iron,” it is commonly translated “iron-clad country,” a fitting description of the seemingly unshakeable state power being exerted throughout Xi’s China.
By forcing the global church to be less reliant on the press or on social media, these surveillance measures could potentially encourage more meaningful engagement with Chinese believers. As E.F. Gregory points out, there is no substitute for personal relationships. Rather than trying to gather more information on the church in China, outside observers can deepen their existing friendships…
Today China’s officials are much less likely to turn a blind eye toward unauthorized Christian activity. Under the rubric of national security, Xi Jinping has shifted the government’s emphasis from aggressive economic growth to social control.