Mission History
China was the first overseas mission field for the Christian Reformed Church, and the denomination’s second mission field after work began in 1888 with Native Americans. It was in 1920 that the Synod of the Christian Reformed Church chose to begin mission work in China.
Political upheavals and wars frequently interrupted missionary service, however, and work in China was forced to relocate to Taiwan in 1950 after a communist government was established. Today, church development work among Chinese people continues through:
- A variety of leadership development programs accomplished mainly through seminary and Bible school teaching and literature production, and
- Evangelism to intellectuals accomplished through the witness of English teachers and other professionals working in mainland China.
Culture
China, the third largest nation in the world in terms of area (following Russia and Canada), is certainly one of the most populous nations in the world, with more than 1.2 billion people making up 23 percent of the world’s population. After centuries of dynastic rule, a republic was established in 1912. When Mao Zedong turned China into a communist nation in 1949, some Chinese fled to Taiwan.
In the past few years, communism as an ideology has been almost completely discredited in China. This has created a real crisis in values. If modern Chinese can not believe in communism, in what can they believe? Present day China is characterized by a casting about for a new belief system. This is one factor which makes Christianity appealing to many.
Within the last year certain elements in Chinese society have promoted nationalism, or the adoration of Chinese culture, as the new centralizing focus of Chinese society.
As China becomes more economically and militarily powerful, this renewed nationalism becomes more and more a force among the Chinese, a fact which has many throughout the world deeply concerned. China is a rising giant on the world scene, but whether or not she will be one which lives in harmony with other nations and societies remains to be seen.
Mission Vision
Within the context of rapid and profound changes within Chinese societies, World Missions seeks to witness to the universal Kingdom of God by strengthening the Chinese Christian church in her role as a segment of the body of Christ.
World Mission’s primary focus is to assist in the development of a Chinese church leadership which can responsibly fulfill its many-sided ministries to the whole of Chinese society. Through class-room teaching, seminars, literature production and other means, missionaries seek to pass on to Chinese church leaders a vision for a faith closely integrated with all of life and for a church fully involved in its world.
Secondly, Christian professionals focus on assisting the local church’s effort to witness to Chinese intellectuals by calling them to question their misunderstandings about the relation of religion and science and to encourage them to enter into a life of faith and service.
The vision of World Missions is to perform a small but significant role in assisting local Chinese churches to faithfully fulfill their calling among Chinese people in Asia.
Support
The most important gift you can give missionaries is a daily prayer for their lives and work. At any given time Christian Reformed World Missions supports about 300 long-term and short-term missionaries and about 200 missionary children located in over 30 countries around the world. These people have been called, commissioned, and sent by Christian Reformed churches to represent our devotion to Jesus Christ, and to urge others to accept His offer of salvation.
Here’s a partial list of items to pray for on behalf of missionaries:
- emotional needs
- physical needs
- relationships with other missionaries
- relationships with nationals
- relationship with God
- effective ministry
- family life
Financial support is also crucial for the ongoing work of bringing the Good News around the world. Support can be given for specific missionaries, or specific projects can be found in the “Project Giving Guide” at your church or available from the World Missions offices in either the United States or Canada.
World Missions is also involved in a variety of ministries throughout China. If you would like more information about our work in these areas, please contact Albert Hamstra at (616) 224-0717 or hamstraa@crcna.org.
Rugao, China
