On April 4, the western press began reporting on a church in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province that was surrounded by thousands of parishioners who were blocking a crew sent to demolish the church. As reported, local officials had initially ordered that the cross be removed from the church, and later said the church was built illegally and had ordered its destruction. The story was a hot topic both inside and outside of China, and has come to be known as The Sanjiang Church Incident.
ChinaSource Team
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April 13, 2014
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Stories
An interview with Dr. Fenggang Yang about a new exchange program at Purdue University.
Joann Pittman
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April 8, 2014
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Ideas
The orthodox doctrine of the Trinity (三位一体) is that there is one God (一神) in three persons (三个位个).
William Bennett
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April 7, 2014
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Scholarship
People often ask me for recommendations of books to read about Christianity and the church in China. There are a lot of books out there; some better than others.
Joann Pittman
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February 24, 2014
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Resources
At the Desiring God Conference for Pastors in Minneapolis last week, conference host John Piper spoke on the life of Hudson Taylor in a message titled, "The Ministry of Hudson Taylor as Life in Christ."
Joann Pittman
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February 12, 2014
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Stories
I recently came across a piece on PRI's "Here and Now" program about how the Tiananmen Square incident became a "watershed" for conversions to Christianity.
Joann Pittman
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February 6, 2014
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Ideas
In the historical news department, the Catholic news service UCA recently wrote about the discovery of a gravesite in Henan Province that is believed to be a burial site of the Nestorians, the earliest Christians to reach China in the Tang Dynasty.
Joann Pittman
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January 28, 2014
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Ideas
China's "official" churches (those operating under the auspices of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement) are fairly often associated with terms such as "restrictive," "government-sanctioned," or even "Communist-controlled." Granted, one does not have to look too far within China's religious bureaucracy and its associated policies and practices to find evidence that would justify such notions. Unfortunately, however, the perception of the official church which these labels create tends to mask much of what is actually happening on the ground in TSPM-affiliated churches.
Brent Fulton
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January 27, 2014
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Ideas
I'm already two weeks into my current episode of jet lag, so I know there is no excuse. However, I still find myself waking up in the morning and wondering, "What day is this anyway?"
Brent Fulton
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January 23, 2014
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Stories
An article that appeared last month in China's official press raises interesting questions about how the church in China is viewed by both the Chinese state and society.
Brent Fulton
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January 21, 2014
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Stories
The church in China is often viewed through two prevailing and related paradigms. The "persecuted church" paradigm positions the church and the Chinese government in perpetual opposition to one another, while the "Christian China" paradigm sees Christianity as bringing a new moral order to China and foresees the day when the church will usher in political change.
Brent Fulton
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January 15, 2014
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Ideas
This article looks at a few key events in the life of Victor Plymire, a pioneer missionary to Tibet in the early 20th century. My prayer is that this brief glimpse into his life will enlarge your view of God so that your faith would be strengthened and you might pursue God with renewed determination. Additionally, I hope that you would see the tremendous value of history and biography for the Christian life and the Church universal.
Mark Totman
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January 13, 2014
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Stories