Joann Pittman
Joann Pittman is Vice President of Partnership and China Engagement and editor of ZGBriefs.
Prior to joining ChinaSource, Joann spent 28 years working in China, as an English teacher, language student, program director, and cross-cultural trainer for organizations and businesses engaged in China. She has also taught Chinese at the University of Northwestern-St. Paul (MN), and Chinese Culture and Communication at Wheaton College (IL) and Taylor University (IN).
Joann has a BA in Social Sciences from the University of Northwestern-St. Paul (MN), and an MA in teaching from the University of St. Thomas (MN).
She is the author of Survival Chinese Lessons and The Bells Are Not Silent: Stories of Church Bells in China.
Her personal blog, Outside-In can be found at joannpittman.com, where she writes on China, Minnesota, traveling, and issues related to "living well where you don't belong."
You can find her on Twitter @jkpittman.com and on Facebook at @authorjoannpittman.
She makes her home in New Brighton, Minnesota.
A Numbers Game
I’m not the tidiest or most organized person in the world, so the expression luan qi ba zao (乱七八糟) was one I learned and took to heart early. A direct translation is “chaos seven eight in a wretched state.”
ZGBriefs | April 13, 2023
Mayflower Church members arrive in U.S. after Thailand deportation scare (April 11, 2023, Radio Free Asia) Dozens of members of a persecuted Protestant church in China have arrived in the United States after escaping the country via Thailand, where they were also detained by the immigration authorities amid fears of repatriation. The Mayflower Church members touched down in Dallas on Good Friday after a coordinated effort from advocacy groups and politicians to bring them to the country.
ZGBriefs | April 6, 2023
Chinese Christians Adapt Under New Restrictions (March 30, 2023, The Gospel Coalition) The Gospel Coalition asked Chinese pastor, Reformed theologian, and church network leader Zhang San about increasing restrictions, ways he’s seen God at work, and what worries pastors even more than registration apps or closing churches.
Lecture Video: New Civil Religion in China—Opportunity for Engagement?
Johnson talked about how China is using civil religion, which he defines as the government using religion and religious images to legitimize its rule. This has been most visible in the government’s more tolerant attitude towards what it considers to be indigenized religions.
Political Counting
An interesting feature of Chinese social and political discourse is propensity to label institutions or political campaigns using numbers… They are catchy and thus relatively easy to remember. Here are some of my favorites.
ZGBriefs | March 30, 2023
Easter and the Tomb Sweeping Festival Share a Nerdy Connection (March 27, 2023, Christianity Today) (registration required) An order known for astronomy and mathematics, the Jesuits drove the reforms in both the Western world and China that dictate how we plan our days, months, and holidays.
ZGBriefs | March 23, 2023
Xi and Putin pledge to shape a new world order as the Chinese leader leaves Russia with no peace in sight for Ukraine (March 22, 2023, NBC News) As Xi departed he told Putin: “Now there are changes that haven’t happened in 100 years. When we are together, we drive these changes.”
ZGBriefs | March 16, 2023
China reopening borders to foreign tourists for first time since Covid erupted (March 14, 2023, BBC) From 15 March, foreign offices can process applications for Chinese visas. Visa-free entry will also resume in Hainan Island and Shanghai for cruise ships. Tour groups from Hong Kong and Macau will also regain their visa-free privilege. In addition, valid visas issued before China closed to the world on 28 March 2020 will be honoured again.
National People’s Congress 2023
A Reading Roundup
There is no question that we are in a new era. To understand the recent National People’s Congress and National People’s Consultative Conference, read Joann Pittman’s roundup of news and analysis.
ZGBriefs | March 9, 2023
Xi Jinping Says He Wants to Spread China’s Wealth More Equitably. How Likely Is That to Actually Happen? (March 3, 2023, China File) After Xi began invoking “common prosperity” in 2021, a rash of new regulations and fines on private capital and technology companies suggested that rhetoric was translating quickly into action. But in the 18 months since, even as it continues to be invoked, common prosperity has seemed to play a much more minor role in policymaking.