Confronting the Cults
The editor's point of view...
宗教
探讨华人处境下的多元宗教传统与当代宗教生活，包括佛教、道教、伊斯兰教、民间信仰，以及它们与基督教的互动。
最新文章
The War against Cults in China
Lambert writes: “China has been experiencing a major revival of religious faith…at the same time there has been an upsurge in cults, many of them quite bizarre.” He traces a brief history of China’s cults and then deals with how a cult is defined in China. He goes on to look at the difficulties that emerge when applying unclear and subjective definitions of what constitutes a cult and concludes with an overview of Eastern Lightning.
China and Hong Kong’s Heresy
A Mandarin Language PowerPoint Course
Combating the Cult Almighty God Church
The author takes an in-depth look at Almighty God Church (formerly Eastern Lightning) and its impact on China’s house churches. He looks at early house church responses to this cult as it began infiltrating congregations as well as later responses as it became a greater problem. Yu shares with us a portion of the biblical Christology he developed to refute the erroneous teachings of this group.
Discerning a Cult
How can a cult be identified? This article alerts the reader to characteristics that can serve as warnings for the possible need to make a further examination of a church or group. It discusses specific issues related to authority and exclusivity, control and submission, secrecy and darkness, and abnormal changes in goals and conduct.
A Field Study of “The Church of Almighty God” Cult
The authors did a field study of The Church of Almighty God over several years. In their report they include excerpts from the writings of the “female Christ” found in The Scroll That the Lamb Opened. There are also quotes from several individuals they interviewed who had dealt directly with the cult. They conclude with comments regarding churches adopting either an “open or closed” policy.
Folk Thinking among Rural Christians
Christianity in rural China is heavily influenced by concepts of Chinese folk religion and functions in many ways like a folk religion. This is due to the influence of traditional religious concepts and the limited education among most rural people. Folk concepts observed in rural Christianity include predilection for the mysterious including evidence of supernatural power, obsession with objects (the evil of unspiritual objects as well as the benefit of spiritual objects like pictures of Jesus or crosses), an intuitive desire for ritual to express one's faith and other aspects to be discussed below.
Eastern Lightning Eschatology
The following eschatological scheme is what I have pieced together from scattered statements in Eastern Lightning writings. It does not seem altogether consistent, and it may not reflect the common understanding among the cult's rank and file.
Where Did Eastern Lightning Come From?
A brief discussion of the origins and evolution of the Eastern Lightning cult, an introduction
Where Did Eastern Lightning’s Ideas Come From?
Section three of "Where did Eastern Lightning Come From?" This section looks at the origins of Eastern Lightning's ideas.
Where Did Eastern Lightning’s Leaders Come From?
Section two of "Where Did Eastern Lightning Come From?"
Brief Look at Some of Eastern Lightning’s False Teachings
Section four of "Where Did Eastern Lightening Come From." This section looks at some of the teachings of Eastern Lightening.