In this fifth and final session of ChinaSource summer school, we turn toward the Chinese believers who are called to go out and share the gospel cross-culturally. While they may draw on the methods and missiology of Western workers, they also must face unique challenges and develop unique answers and methods to their circumstances. Below you’ll find an extensive list of articles, series, and issues of the ChinaSource Quarterly which offer a variety of viewpoints on missions beyond China’s borders.
Concerns of Cross-Cultural Workers from China
Working cross-culturally is a challenge, no matter the worker’s passport country or mission field. However, Chinese workers have particular challenges that have to be addressed in order for them to be successful. Lisa Tsai, a family therapist from China, analyzes several of the most important issues.
There’s so much to learn about Chinese workers who are sent out to other countries. The winter 2016 issue of CSQ, Cross-Cultural Missions from China, is a treasure trove of articles, testimonies, and resources. Get a sense of how far the Chinese missions movement has come by taking a look at Training Cross-Cultural Workers in China, the spring 2006 issue of CSQ.
Serving China’s Missionary Church
Brent Fulton addresses some of the challenges facing China’s gospel workers and looks at the ways Western missions leaders and agencies can change their perspectives to better support their Chinese colleagues.
Who Will Be China’s Issachar Tribe?
WU Xi, an experienced Chinese worker, asks the question, “What kind of missiology does China need today?” He examines several different approaches to missiology and calls on workers and researchers to develop a new framework.
This article is from a 2018 series called Research and the Indigenous Chinese Church. WU Xi contributed several posts, as did Peony Tang, Mary Li Ma and LI Jin, and Zoe Zhou.
WU Xi also co-edited the spring 2013 issue of the CSQ, China’s Indigenous Mission Movement. Though it’s an older issue, it’s well worth reading through the academic articles and personal reflections.
Recent Trends Among Chinese Missionaries: Toward Contextualization
Cross-cultural workers from China have lots of energy and commitment to the gospel but have sometimes struggled due to inadequate training before going out to work in foreign mission fields. In this article, GJ and Si Shi (四石) look at more recent developments, including better cross-cultural and language training, which leads to better progress in advancing the kingdom.
It’s also the first article in a 2017 series called Missions from China—A Maturing Movement. The many articles offer insight into Chinese culture, missions methods, and ways other global workers can contribute to their Chinese co-workers.
Is “Back to Jerusalem” Biblical?
The Back to Jerusalem movement (BTJ or BTJM) is the concept in Chinese Christianity that the church should send out missionaries from China, through Central Asia, to Jerusalem. In the article, Brent Fulton reviews Back to Jerusalem with All Nations, which seeks to lay a biblical foundation for the BTJ movement.
A Chinese Missionary to Nepal (Part 1)
In this moving testimony, a Chinese worker in Nepal describes his growing up, education, coming to Christ, relationships, and missionary calling. Read the follow-up in part two.
For further reading about Chinese workers in cross-cultural contexts, see the autumn 2019 CSQ, China and Africa.
An Update on Indigenous Missions in the New Era (series)
In the end of 2022, Julie Ma, a regular ChinaSource contributor, sat down for an interview with TT, the founder and director of one of China’s most mature sending structures. He described the effect of the loss of Western workers due to the regulations of the New Era, as well as COVID-19 regulations. He also discusses how Western Christians can truly support and mentor Chinese missionaries.
Understanding the Challenges of Cross-cultural Workers from China
Tabor Laughlin published his dissertation in 2020 with the title China’s Ambassadors of Christ to the Nations. The publisher describes the book this way: “This book focuses on missionaries sent from one non-Western country, analyzing the experiences of Chinese missionaries on the mission field.” In 2022, the book was translated into Chinese under the title 影响中国跨文化工人 文化调整和留任工场的因素. The translation is available to download for free on our website.
That’s a wrap! Summer school is officially over. We hope this deep dive through our archives has been a good learning experience for all our readers and that you have gotten a deeper sense of the depth and breadth of the Chinese church, and, especially, of the many ways that God works in and through his people in China.
Image credit: Arthur Edelmans via UnSplash.
Rachel Anderson
Rachel Anderson serves as the Assistant Content Manager at ChinaSource. Though she has never been to China, her ancestors were missionaries in East Asia and passed on a deep love and respect for those cultures. Rachel lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their five delightful children. View Full Bio
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