A previous generation of Chinese Christians, cut off from all outside contact and separated from their leaders, was forced to rely upon the Lord alone as they sought the way forward. This seeking after God was an important part of their maturing process, and their testimonies bear witness to his faithfulness. While acknowledging that China and its church are at a much different place today, it is nevertheless worth considering whether outside intervention may unintentionally serve to short-circuit the process by which God seeks to mature the current generation of Chinese church leaders.
Brent Fulton
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July 31, 2014
"How many Christians in China?"
"Are believers still persecuted?"
Brent Fulton
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July 29, 2014
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Ideas
The rigid control structures comprising the "box" within which China's church currently operates are often assumed to be merely a function of China's Leninist political system. Were this system to be dismantled, one might argue, the "box" would come apart and China's Christians would enjoy genuine freedom of religion.
Brent Fulton
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July 22, 2014
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Stories
China is in the midst of an education explosion.
Brent Fulton
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July 21, 2014
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Ideas
Up until the beginning of this decade, China's elderly and young adult populations were growing at roughly the same rate.
Brent Fulton
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July 17, 2014
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Ideas
We live in an era when partnership between the church in China and the global church is both desired and increasingly possible. The challenges facing the church in China have evolved significantly in recent decades A survey of these challenges may lead some to conclude that church life in China today is not that much different from church life in the West or among overseas Chinese communities in Asia. Postmodernism, urbanization, secularization, and family breakdown are endemic to industrialized and post-industrialized societies the world over. The difference for China is that it has experienced in thirty years what in most other nations has taken place over a century or more.
Brent Fulton
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July 14, 2014
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Ideas
China's current policy on religion is spelled out in Central Party Document no. 19, "The Basic Viewpoint and Policy on the Religious Question during Our Country's Socialist Period," issued in March of 1982.
Brent Fulton
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July 9, 2014
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Ideas
According to a recent article in The Economist, over the past 25 years half a million non-governmental organizations have registered in China. Another 1.5 million social entities have not registered and are effectively functioning illegally. Many others are registered as businesses.
Brent Fulton
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July 7, 2014
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Ideas
As far as I know China's NGO sector doesn't have a theme song, but if it did it would likely be the U2 hit single "With or Without You."
Brent Fulton
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June 30, 2014
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Ideas
Along with the massive urbanization that has forever reshaped the social and cultural landscape of China, the church in China has itself undergone a major transformation. From a largely rural, peasant-led movement in the 1980s the church is now very much an urban phenomenon.
Brent Fulton
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June 23, 2014
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Ideas
Jeffrey Towson and Jonathan Woetzel, both professors at Peking University's Guanghua School of Management in Beijing, claim you can understand China in an hour. An excerpt from their new book on the McKinsey and Company website says getting a handle on China is a lot less about politics and a lot more about a handful of major economic and social trends that are shaping the country's future.
Brent Fulton
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June 16, 2014
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Ideas
The 2006 China Church Leadership Study, conducted jointly by ChinaSource and Geneva Global Research, identified seven types of Christian leaders in China. While three of these are in traditional church roles at various levels, the other four function largely outside the bounds of the local church and represent the growing role of Christians in China's larger society.
Brent Fulton
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June 9, 2014
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Ideas
