Chinese Independent Churches
Encyclopedia
The Chinese Independent Churches are a major category of churches of Chinese people.
During Missionary Council Meetings in the mid to late 19th century several Western missionaries started advocating for the Chinese Christians to become independent instead of relying on outside support and funds. This idea was supported and accelerated after the disastrous Boxer Rebellion
. During the incident, 48 Catholic missionaries and 18000 members were martyred while 182 Protestant missionaries and 500 Chinese Christians were martyred.
Although this incident led to the downfall of the Qing Dynasty, Western missionaries encouraged Chinese Christians to be self-sufficient economically, Self Preaching, and Self Pastoring even if it meant breaking away from their original Protestant denominations.
The earliest known Independent Church existed in 1862 with the title, "Minnan Church". Little is known about this church since most of the records were recorded in the local Minnan dialect rather than in Mandarin. Information regarding this church is slowly being ‘discovered’ and translated.
From the early 1910s and the formation of the China Continuation Committee after the Edinburgh World Missionary Conference of 1910, this goal was pursued gradually, reaching a watershed in the National Christian Conference (NCC) of 1922, out of which came the ecumenical Church of Christ in China
, a sino-foreign body with a significant degree of Chinese leadership and responsibility. The National Christian Council, a national Protestant coordinating and liaison body, was also a product of the conference and was operating by the mid 1920s.
Not all denominations or mission groups joined the Church of Christ in China and/or the NCC. Some of them, like the Anglicans and Lutherans, pursued their own forms of Sino-foreign unity and nurturing of Chinese leadership.
Others, like the China Inland Mission
, continued basically a foreign-dominated operation at the top but tried to promote sensitivity to and encouragement of Chinese Christians' aspirations to responsibility and autonomy at the local level.
(CCC) was the largest Protestant organization in Nanjing
. The church's history goes back to 1922, when several Protestant denominations in China decided to unite. At the first meeting of its General Assembly in 1927, the CCC could claim to represent close to a quarter of China's Protestants, making it the largest Protestant church in China during the 1920s, and the most powerful member of the National Christian Council (NCC).
Union and independence were the twin goals enshrined in the constitution of the CCC: "to unite Christian believers in China, to plan and promote with united strength the spirit of self-support, self-governance, and self-propagation, in order to extend Christ's Gospel, practise his Way of Life and spread HIs Kingdom throughout the world." Church union had been the goal of the CCC's founder Cheng Jingyi
(誠靜怡). The CCC committed its member churches to replacing foreign missions as the dominant partner in the church-mission alliance.
as well.
It is a diverse sector, made up of a combination of organized church groups (some nationwide with hundreds of congregations) and of individual congregations or even individual Christian workers who made their mark in a more local setting.
Some of the these coexisted with and interacted with the mission churches; others were quite separatist and had almost no contacts with other Christians, Chinese or foreign.
began before 1910 with headquarters in Shanghai. By the 1920s, this church had well over one hundred congregations affiliated with it. These churches usually remained on fairly good terms with mission groups, participated in some ecumenical activities, and retained their original denominational creeds and practices, often a variety of Presbyterianism
.
or Grace Evangelical church was founded at Shandong
by Xi Sheng-Mo (席胜魔) in 1881. In 1906, Yu Zong-Zhou (俞宗周) established this church in Shanghai. These were some of the early indigenous churches established by local Chinese Christians.
(山东中华基督教自立会) was founded in Qingdao
province by the Protestant Christian Liu Shoushan (劉壽山, 1863–1935) in 1915 . Their main method of evangelizing was through the provision of medical support and providing education to people.
(重庆中华基督教自养美道会) was established by Liu Ziru (劉子如, 1870–1948) in 1915. Liu, originally a member of the Methodist church, established this Chinese church which aimed to be self-supporting, self-governing and self-propagating 。
, took shape. This was a dynamic movement drawing upon one of the "new" Protestant currents that came to China after 1900, Pentecostalism
. Pentecostalism stresses the "Baptism of the Holy Spirit" and the use of supernatural spiritual gifts such as prophecy
, healing
, and speaking in unknown tongues, and is fired by a strong millennialism
(expecting the return of Christ
at any moment; this feature was also characteristic of many others of the newer mission groups (especially Holiness
and Adventist
ones).
This independent church is an offshoot or breakaway from the first wave of the Pentecostal movement in the United States during the early 1900s. Early workers include Paul Wei
, Ling-Sheng Zhang
, Peter Wang and others.
The early workers believed, through the revelation of the Holy Spirit
, that they were establishing a reformed true church which was to correct all the mistakes in doctrines and interpretations made by other denominations. They believed that all the teachings of the gospel must have biblical references to back it up in order to avoid misinterpretations or false teachings.
In the 1920s, this new church grew rapidly in central interior provinces, especially Henan
and Hunan
. It was highly exclusivist; that is, it insisted that Chinese Christians renounce their old churches and acknowledge the sole legitimacy of the The Jesus Church and its unique dogma
. (a mix of "unitarian
" Pentecostalism, Seventh-day worship, and intense millenarianism). The General Coordination Board was established in Nanjing
which was later moved to Shanghai. Its proselytizing efforts were widely felt, and thoroughly resented, by mission churches . The True Jesus Church was almost certainly the largest of the independent Protestant churches from the 1920s to the early 1950s, when it was banned as counterrevolutionary
and its leaders jailed, only able to recommence openly in 1980. Its headquarters are today in United States; it is very active there and in Chinese communities around the world.
Christians. Founded by Ni Tuosheng
, Zhou-An Lee, Shang-Jie Song and others when they started holding family services in 1922. This was a strongly proselytizing church influenced by Plymouth Brethren
ideas of church polity, rather exclusivist and often in conflict with denominational and mission churches.
They began arranging “small group hymn singing” sessions in Shanghai so many Chinese refer to them as the “small group”.
Their early message to people was, “Walk out your denominations and return to the Bible
”, since during the 1920s and 30s there were numerous church denominations that existed in China so many people were confused and did not know which one they should actually choose from. So the church’s early founders were against church denominationalism and believed that churches should stick closer to the Bible
teachings instead.
Their early important contributions to society were “The Revival Times” newspaper publication and several gospel bookstores which still survive till this day. By 1949 the Church Assembly Hall had approximately seven hundred churches around the country.
Watchman Nee's name is familiar to many Christians around the world because several of his talks and a few of his writings have been translated and published abroad since the 1930s; many are still available, and widely read today. From the mid-1920s onward Watchman Nee, strongly influenced by Plymouth Brethren
ideas (especially premillennialism
) but also by a stress on the Holy Spirit
derived from the Holiness
tradition, was an inspiring and compelling teacher. His evangelistic meetings were not usually large and were often held in homes. But he had a gift of revealing the importance in the Christian life of a deeper spirituality; this, and his eloquence, drew many followers. Antagonism towards missions and foreign Christians often characterized his ministry. Seldom invited by or working within established congregations, his followers usually formed themselves into strongly proselytizing new groups, in effect forming a new nationwide denomination with headquarters in Shanghai. Like the True Jesus Church
, the Church Assembly Hall was dispersed in the 1950s, and Ni was jailed as a counterrevolutionary
; he died in prison in 1972. But the church migrated to Taiwan
under the leadership of Li Changshou, one of Ni's lieutenants, under whom it became prominent and controversial; it is now a worldwide church, with joint headquarters in Taipei
and Anaheim, California
.
(耶穌家庭) is a unique Pentecostal communitarian church first established in Shandong
province in the late 1920s. It is a more distinctive type of the independent churches in China. Founded and established by Jing Dianying
(敬奠瀛) http://ricci.rt.usfca.edu/biography/view.aspx?biographyID=1581 near Mazhuang, they are located mostly in rural areas.
At that time, their main message was, “Leave your old family and enter the new family”. What they meant was that converts were to break away Leave your old family and your old world, enter the new family and new world from their original family system and enter the new ‘Family of Jesus’. The new converts were also required to bring out all their possessions and share it out with all its members.
After they have left their previous families or societies and joined the Jesus Family, the next step was, “Change to a new life, Jesus is our Lord”, which meant that the new converts must adopt new lifestyles and that their behaviours of should change. Jesus Christ was to be the Head of the household.
Step three was to “Break down food, clothing and shelter; fulfil food, clothing and shelter”. This is a vivid description of the Jesus Family lifestyle which meant that the new members must change their old habits on food, clothing and shelter. For example if you like wearing flash clothes, eating delicious buffets, and living in luxurious mansions (which is what everyone craves for), then it is time give up all these habits by stop being materialistic and start living a more simplified life.
After the new Jesus Family members have adopted a very simple lifestyle, the statement “fulfil food, clothing and shelter” means that everything is to be shared among its Family Members including all the food produce and income earned.
The Jesus Family was basically imitating the example of the early Apostolic
Church in Jerusalem that was recorded in the book of Acts
. The early church also lived a communal lifestyle of giving and sharing and loving each other.
Of course, this type of farming lifestyle is obviously easier to fulfil in the countryside so the Jesus Family followers are mainly situated in rural areas rather than cities.
The last step of their message was to: “Live and die for the Lord with all your heart”, which clearly shows the Jesus Family mentality of living everyday for the Lord and being willing to die for the Lord’s sake if and when persecution arises.
The Jesus Family Church is considered quite unique and stood out among the other independent churches in China. In reality, this type of Communal
lifestyle can also be found in Israel
today (The Israeli “Kibbutz
”).
province in the late 1920s and 1930s, and is perhaps best seen as a Pentecostal movement, not an ecclesiastically organized body. The movement encompassed Chinese churches and pastors who broke away from denominations which refused to accept their Pentecostal doctrines and practices, and also touched foreign mission communities as well, making the famous Shandong Revival of the early 1930s a joint Sino-foreign experience. This Revival spilled over into church splits, with denunciations of heresy on one side and jeremiads against indifference on the other .
The Chinese pastors and their followers who left their old churches, many of them from the U.S. Presbyterian mission, found a new home, at least temporarily, in this loosely structured movement. The Spiritual Gifts Church did not develop institutionally and this church did not survive past the 1930s since no publications or records indicated that it ever went beyond this informal stage of development.
(CCiC) was founded without the help of any foreign missionary so it was essentially Chinese Christians preaching to Chinese people. They also self administer and are self efficient economically.
Wang Mingdao was especially tight on church entry. During the sixteen years from 1933-1949 only 570 believers received baptism
since every new believer must bring another convert to the church before baptism was allowed.
He said, “The sheep must have life, your behaviour of giving birth to more sheep shows that you have life”. Therefore being able to bring people to believe in the faith is evidence that indeed you are quite clear of the path to salvation. Although it does not mean that you have already received salvation, it shows that you are worthy to become one of their church members.
Once Wang Mingdao's strict entry requirements have already been satisfied, both the new convert’s behaviour and lifestyle will be closely observed or examined by church members for a period. This is done in order to confirm that the new believer really is behaving as a Christian ought to behave and that his faith truly has a solid foundation.
, also known as Ling Liang Church, was founded in Shanghai, China by Pastor
Zhao Shiguang (趙世光) in 1943 . In 1954, the headquarters were moved to Taipei
. Today there are currently 168 churches all over the world . Since 1990, the Hong Kong Bread of Life Church operates independently of the organization in Taiwan.
The current ‘House Churches’ in China are also independent churches because after 1949, with the arrival of Communist control and departure of all foreign missionaries, all Chinese Christian denominations had become independent and had to stand on their toes. Therefore the original independent churches flourished during and after the severe persecutions and their standards and experiences will provide good role models for other Chinese churches to learn. The Chinese independent churches will most certainly play an important role for Christianity in China
in the near future.
During Missionary Council Meetings in the mid to late 19th century several Western missionaries started advocating for the Chinese Christians to become independent instead of relying on outside support and funds. This idea was supported and accelerated after the disastrous Boxer Rebellion
Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer Rebellion, also called the Boxer Uprising by some historians or the Righteous Harmony Society Movement in northern China, was a proto-nationalist movement by the "Righteous Harmony Society" , or "Righteous Fists of Harmony" or "Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists" , in China between...
. During the incident, 48 Catholic missionaries and 18000 members were martyred while 182 Protestant missionaries and 500 Chinese Christians were martyred.
Although this incident led to the downfall of the Qing Dynasty, Western missionaries encouraged Chinese Christians to be self-sufficient economically, Self Preaching, and Self Pastoring even if it meant breaking away from their original Protestant denominations.
The earliest known Independent Church existed in 1862 with the title, "Minnan Church". Little is known about this church since most of the records were recorded in the local Minnan dialect rather than in Mandarin. Information regarding this church is slowly being ‘discovered’ and translated.
Within Mission Churches
One category of independence was that pursued within the general structure of the foreign mission churches in China. This had a slogan: the "three-self" aim of Chinese Christians being responsible for "self-management, self-support and self-propagation" in the churches. Many foreign missionaries, and Chinese Christian leaders working within the mission-related structures of the day, promoted this goal.From the early 1910s and the formation of the China Continuation Committee after the Edinburgh World Missionary Conference of 1910, this goal was pursued gradually, reaching a watershed in the National Christian Conference (NCC) of 1922, out of which came the ecumenical Church of Christ in China
Church of Christ in China
The Church of Christ in China was the largest Protestant organization in Nanjing. The church's history goes back to 1922, when several Protestant denominations in China decided to unite...
, a sino-foreign body with a significant degree of Chinese leadership and responsibility. The National Christian Council, a national Protestant coordinating and liaison body, was also a product of the conference and was operating by the mid 1920s.
Not all denominations or mission groups joined the Church of Christ in China and/or the NCC. Some of them, like the Anglicans and Lutherans, pursued their own forms of Sino-foreign unity and nurturing of Chinese leadership.
Others, like the China Inland Mission
China Inland Mission
OMF International is an interdenominational Protestant Christian missionary society, founded in Britain by Hudson Taylor on 25 June 1865.-Overview:...
, continued basically a foreign-dominated operation at the top but tried to promote sensitivity to and encouragement of Chinese Christians' aspirations to responsibility and autonomy at the local level.
Church of Christ in China
The Church of Christ in ChinaChurch of Christ in China
The Church of Christ in China was the largest Protestant organization in Nanjing. The church's history goes back to 1922, when several Protestant denominations in China decided to unite...
(CCC) was the largest Protestant organization in Nanjing
Nanjing
' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
. The church's history goes back to 1922, when several Protestant denominations in China decided to unite. At the first meeting of its General Assembly in 1927, the CCC could claim to represent close to a quarter of China's Protestants, making it the largest Protestant church in China during the 1920s, and the most powerful member of the National Christian Council (NCC).
Union and independence were the twin goals enshrined in the constitution of the CCC: "to unite Christian believers in China, to plan and promote with united strength the spirit of self-support, self-governance, and self-propagation, in order to extend Christ's Gospel, practise his Way of Life and spread HIs Kingdom throughout the world." Church union had been the goal of the CCC's founder Cheng Jingyi
Cheng Jingyi
Cheng Jingyi was an articulate pastor of an independent church in Beijing who came to hold every high office in the mainstream Sino-foreign Protestant establishment in the 1920s and 1930s. He was also the founder of the Church of Christ in China. Cheng was born in a Christian family of Manchu...
(誠靜怡). The CCC committed its member churches to replacing foreign missions as the dominant partner in the church-mission alliance.
Extra-Mission Indigenous Sector
There was, however, an altogether different sector of Chinese Christianity which came into being in the 1900-1937 period, one which was to a high degree independent of foreign missions, autonomous in operations, and truly indigenous in ideas and leadership. This sector of Christianity has been sorely neglected by scholars of Chinese history and of the History of ChristianityHistory of Christianity
The history of Christianity concerns the Christian religion, its followers and the Church with its various denominations, from the first century to the present. Christianity was founded in the 1st century by the followers of Jesus of Nazareth who they believed to be the Christ or chosen one of God...
as well.
It is a diverse sector, made up of a combination of organized church groups (some nationwide with hundreds of congregations) and of individual congregations or even individual Christian workers who made their mark in a more local setting.
Some of the these coexisted with and interacted with the mission churches; others were quite separatist and had almost no contacts with other Christians, Chinese or foreign.
China Christian Independent Church
The China Christian Independent ChurchChina Christian Independent Church
The China Christian Independent Church , began before 1910 with headquarters in Shanghai. By the 1920s, this church had well over one hundred congregations affiliated with it...
began before 1910 with headquarters in Shanghai. By the 1920s, this church had well over one hundred congregations affiliated with it. These churches usually remained on fairly good terms with mission groups, participated in some ecumenical activities, and retained their original denominational creeds and practices, often a variety of Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism refers to a number of Christian churches adhering to the Calvinist theological tradition within Protestantism, which are organized according to a characteristic Presbyterian polity. Presbyterian theology typically emphasizes the sovereignty of God, the authority of the Scriptures,...
.
Gospel of Grace Church
Gospel of Grace ChurchGospel of Grace Church
The Gospel of Grace Church also known as Grace Evangelical Church is an independent Chinese Christian church founded in Shandong by Xi Sheng-Mo in 1881. In 1906, Yu Zong-Zhou established this church in Shanghai. These were some of the earliest indigenous churches established by local Chinese...
or Grace Evangelical church was founded at Shandong
Shandong
' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...
by Xi Sheng-Mo (席胜魔) in 1881. In 1906, Yu Zong-Zhou (俞宗周) established this church in Shanghai. These were some of the early indigenous churches established by local Chinese Christians.
Shangdong Chinese Independent Christian Church
The Shangdong Chinese Independent Christian ChurchShangdong Chinese Independent Christian Church
The Shangdong Chinese Independent Christian Church is an independent Chinese Christian church founded in Shandong by Liu Shoushan in 1915. Their main method of evangelizing was through the provision of medical support and education to people.These were some of the earliest indigenous churches...
(山东中华基督教自立会) was founded in Qingdao
Qingdao
' also known in the West by its postal map spelling Tsingtao, is a major city with a population of over 8.715 million in eastern Shandong province, Eastern China. Its built up area, made of 7 urban districts plus Jimo city, is home to about 4,346,000 inhabitants in 2010.It borders Yantai to the...
province by the Protestant Christian Liu Shoushan (劉壽山, 1863–1935) in 1915 . Their main method of evangelizing was through the provision of medical support and providing education to people.
Chongqing Chinese Self-supporting Methodist Church
The Chongqing Chinese Self-supporting Methodist ChurchChongqing Chinese Self-supporting Methodist Church
The Chongqing Chinese Self-supporting Methodist Church is an independent Chinese Christian church founded in Chongqing by Liu Ziru in 1915. They were one of the earliest indigenous churches established by local Chinese Christians.-External links:*...
(重庆中华基督教自养美道会) was established by Liu Ziru (劉子如, 1870–1948) in 1915. Liu, originally a member of the Methodist church, established this Chinese church which aimed to be self-supporting, self-governing and self-propagating 。
The True Jesus Church
Between 1917 and 1919 a very different Christian movement, the True Jesus ChurchTrue Jesus Church
The True Jesus Church is a non-denominational Christian church that originated in Beijing, China, in 1917. The current elected chairman of the TJC International Assembly is Preacher Yong-Ji Lin. Today, there are approximately 2.5 million members in fifty three countries and six continents...
, took shape. This was a dynamic movement drawing upon one of the "new" Protestant currents that came to China after 1900, Pentecostalism
Pentecostalism
Pentecostalism is a diverse and complex movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal experience of God through the baptism in the Holy Spirit, has an eschatological focus, and is an experiential religion. The term Pentecostal is derived from Pentecost, the Greek...
. Pentecostalism stresses the "Baptism of the Holy Spirit" and the use of supernatural spiritual gifts such as prophecy
Prophecy
Prophecy is a process in which one or more messages that have been communicated to a prophet are then communicated to others. Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of conditioned events to come as well as testimonies or repeated revelations that the...
, healing
Healing
Physiological healing is the restoration of damaged living tissue, organs and biological system to normal function. It is the process by which the cells in the body regenerate and repair to reduce the size of a damaged or necrotic area....
, and speaking in unknown tongues, and is fired by a strong millennialism
Millennialism
Millennialism , or chiliasm in Greek, is a belief held by some Christian denominations that there will be a Golden Age or Paradise on Earth in which "Christ will reign" for 1000 years prior to the final judgment and future eternal state...
(expecting the return of Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
at any moment; this feature was also characteristic of many others of the newer mission groups (especially Holiness
Holiness movement
The holiness movement refers to a set of beliefs and practices emerging from the Methodist Christian church in the mid 19th century. The movement is distinguished by its emphasis on John Wesley's doctrine of "Christian perfection" - the belief that it is possible to live free of voluntary sin - and...
and Adventist
Seventh-day Adventist Church
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ...
ones).
This independent church is an offshoot or breakaway from the first wave of the Pentecostal movement in the United States during the early 1900s. Early workers include Paul Wei
Paul Wei
Paul Wei , previously known as Wèi Ēnbō , was born in Hebei province, China. He was a farmer from a poor family background and had very little education. In 1902 he migrated to Beijing where he later became a prosperous silk and merchandise dealer.By his own accounts, he was previously a...
, Ling-Sheng Zhang
Ling-Sheng Zhang
Zhang Lingsheng , was born in Shandong county, China.In 1900, Zhang converted to Christianity at the age of thirty seven and became a member of the Presbyterian church for seven years and was then appointed as a Deacon for the following three years.On September 1909 after hearing a testimony from...
, Peter Wang and others.
The early workers believed, through the revelation of the Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
, that they were establishing a reformed true church which was to correct all the mistakes in doctrines and interpretations made by other denominations. They believed that all the teachings of the gospel must have biblical references to back it up in order to avoid misinterpretations or false teachings.
In the 1920s, this new church grew rapidly in central interior provinces, especially Henan
Henan
Henan , is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "豫" , named after Yuzhou , a Han Dynasty state that included parts of Henan...
and Hunan
Hunan
' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...
. It was highly exclusivist; that is, it insisted that Chinese Christians renounce their old churches and acknowledge the sole legitimacy of the The Jesus Church and its unique dogma
Dogma
Dogma is the established belief or doctrine held by a religion, or a particular group or organization. It is authoritative and not to be disputed, doubted, or diverged from, by the practitioners or believers...
. (a mix of "unitarian
Oneness Pentecostalism
Oneness Pentecostalism refers to a grouping of denominations and believers within Pentecostal Christianity, all of whom subscribe to the nontrinitarian theological doctrine of Oneness...
" Pentecostalism, Seventh-day worship, and intense millenarianism). The General Coordination Board was established in Nanjing
Nanjing
' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
which was later moved to Shanghai. Its proselytizing efforts were widely felt, and thoroughly resented, by mission churches . The True Jesus Church was almost certainly the largest of the independent Protestant churches from the 1920s to the early 1950s, when it was banned as counterrevolutionary
Counterrevolutionary
A counter-revolutionary is anyone who opposes a revolution, particularly those who act after a revolution to try to overturn or reverse it, in full or in part...
and its leaders jailed, only able to recommence openly in 1980. Its headquarters are today in United States; it is very active there and in Chinese communities around the world.
The Church Assembly Hall
The Church Assembly Hall (聚會處 or 聚會所), also nicknamed as the "Local churches" (:zh:地方教會) or "Little Flock" (小群), is a familiar and well-known church by most ChineseChristianity in China
Christianity in China is a growing minority religion that comprises Protestants , Catholics , and a small number of Orthodox Christians. Although its lineage in China is not as ancient as the institutional religions of Taoism and Mahayana Buddhism, and the social system and ideology of...
Christians. Founded by Ni Tuosheng
Watchman Nee
Watchman Nee was a Chinese Christian author and church leader during the early 20th century. He spent the last 20 years of his life in prison and was severely persecuted by the Communists in China. Together with Wangzai, Zhou-An Lee, Shang-Jie Song, and others, Nee founded The Church Assembly...
, Zhou-An Lee, Shang-Jie Song and others when they started holding family services in 1922. This was a strongly proselytizing church influenced by Plymouth Brethren
Plymouth Brethren
The Plymouth Brethren is a conservative, Evangelical Christian movement, whose history can be traced to Dublin, Ireland, in the late 1820s. Although the group is notable for not taking any official "church name" to itself, and not having an official clergy or liturgy, the title "The Brethren," is...
ideas of church polity, rather exclusivist and often in conflict with denominational and mission churches.
They began arranging “small group hymn singing” sessions in Shanghai so many Chinese refer to them as the “small group”.
Their early message to people was, “Walk out your denominations and return to the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
”, since during the 1920s and 30s there were numerous church denominations that existed in China so many people were confused and did not know which one they should actually choose from. So the church’s early founders were against church denominationalism and believed that churches should stick closer to the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
teachings instead.
Their early important contributions to society were “The Revival Times” newspaper publication and several gospel bookstores which still survive till this day. By 1949 the Church Assembly Hall had approximately seven hundred churches around the country.
Watchman Nee's name is familiar to many Christians around the world because several of his talks and a few of his writings have been translated and published abroad since the 1930s; many are still available, and widely read today. From the mid-1920s onward Watchman Nee, strongly influenced by Plymouth Brethren
Plymouth Brethren
The Plymouth Brethren is a conservative, Evangelical Christian movement, whose history can be traced to Dublin, Ireland, in the late 1820s. Although the group is notable for not taking any official "church name" to itself, and not having an official clergy or liturgy, the title "The Brethren," is...
ideas (especially premillennialism
Premillennialism
Premillennialism in Christian end-times theology is the belief that Jesus will literally and physically be on the earth for his millennial reign, at his second coming. The doctrine is called premillennialism because it holds that Jesus’ physical return to earth will occur prior to the inauguration...
) but also by a stress on the Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
derived from the Holiness
Holiness movement
The holiness movement refers to a set of beliefs and practices emerging from the Methodist Christian church in the mid 19th century. The movement is distinguished by its emphasis on John Wesley's doctrine of "Christian perfection" - the belief that it is possible to live free of voluntary sin - and...
tradition, was an inspiring and compelling teacher. His evangelistic meetings were not usually large and were often held in homes. But he had a gift of revealing the importance in the Christian life of a deeper spirituality; this, and his eloquence, drew many followers. Antagonism towards missions and foreign Christians often characterized his ministry. Seldom invited by or working within established congregations, his followers usually formed themselves into strongly proselytizing new groups, in effect forming a new nationwide denomination with headquarters in Shanghai. Like the True Jesus Church
True Jesus Church
The True Jesus Church is a non-denominational Christian church that originated in Beijing, China, in 1917. The current elected chairman of the TJC International Assembly is Preacher Yong-Ji Lin. Today, there are approximately 2.5 million members in fifty three countries and six continents...
, the Church Assembly Hall was dispersed in the 1950s, and Ni was jailed as a counterrevolutionary
Counterrevolutionary
A counter-revolutionary is anyone who opposes a revolution, particularly those who act after a revolution to try to overturn or reverse it, in full or in part...
; he died in prison in 1972. But the church migrated to Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
under the leadership of Li Changshou, one of Ni's lieutenants, under whom it became prominent and controversial; it is now a worldwide church, with joint headquarters in Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...
and Anaheim, California
Anaheim, California
Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...
.
The Jesus Family
The Jesus FamilyJesus Family
The Jesus Family was a unique Pentecostal communitarian church first established in rural Shandong Province in a village called Mazhuang, in Taian County about 1927. In later years, other Jesus Family churches were established in North and Central China, many of them in Shandong but others as far...
(耶穌家庭) is a unique Pentecostal communitarian church first established in Shandong
Shandong
' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...
province in the late 1920s. It is a more distinctive type of the independent churches in China. Founded and established by Jing Dianying
Jing Dianying
Jing Dianying was the founder of the second largest Chinese Pentecostal church movement known as the Jesus Family. Jing was born in Mazhuang of China's Shandong province, the fifth child of an impoverished landlord named Jing Chuanji . His family possessed of fertile land and scores of...
(敬奠瀛) http://ricci.rt.usfca.edu/biography/view.aspx?biographyID=1581 near Mazhuang, they are located mostly in rural areas.
At that time, their main message was, “Leave your old family and enter the new family”. What they meant was that converts were to break away Leave your old family and your old world, enter the new family and new world from their original family system and enter the new ‘Family of Jesus’. The new converts were also required to bring out all their possessions and share it out with all its members.
After they have left their previous families or societies and joined the Jesus Family, the next step was, “Change to a new life, Jesus is our Lord”, which meant that the new converts must adopt new lifestyles and that their behaviours of should change. Jesus Christ was to be the Head of the household.
Step three was to “Break down food, clothing and shelter; fulfil food, clothing and shelter”. This is a vivid description of the Jesus Family lifestyle which meant that the new members must change their old habits on food, clothing and shelter. For example if you like wearing flash clothes, eating delicious buffets, and living in luxurious mansions (which is what everyone craves for), then it is time give up all these habits by stop being materialistic and start living a more simplified life.
After the new Jesus Family members have adopted a very simple lifestyle, the statement “fulfil food, clothing and shelter” means that everything is to be shared among its Family Members including all the food produce and income earned.
The Jesus Family was basically imitating the example of the early Apostolic
Apostolic Age
The Apostolic Age of the history of Christianity is traditionally the period of the Twelve Apostles, dating from the Crucifixion of Jesus and the Great Commission in Jerusalem until the death of John the Apostle in Anatolia...
Church in Jerusalem that was recorded in the book of Acts
Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles , usually referred to simply as Acts, is the fifth book of the New Testament; Acts outlines the history of the Apostolic Age...
. The early church also lived a communal lifestyle of giving and sharing and loving each other.
Of course, this type of farming lifestyle is obviously easier to fulfil in the countryside so the Jesus Family followers are mainly situated in rural areas rather than cities.
The last step of their message was to: “Live and die for the Lord with all your heart”, which clearly shows the Jesus Family mentality of living everyday for the Lord and being willing to die for the Lord’s sake if and when persecution arises.
The Jesus Family Church is considered quite unique and stood out among the other independent churches in China. In reality, this type of Communal
lifestyle can also be found in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
today (The Israeli “Kibbutz
Kibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
”).
The Spiritual Gifts Church
The Spiritual Gifts Church (靈恩會) was the least organized of the independent churches mentioned thus far. This was centred in ShandongShandong
' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...
province in the late 1920s and 1930s, and is perhaps best seen as a Pentecostal movement, not an ecclesiastically organized body. The movement encompassed Chinese churches and pastors who broke away from denominations which refused to accept their Pentecostal doctrines and practices, and also touched foreign mission communities as well, making the famous Shandong Revival of the early 1930s a joint Sino-foreign experience. This Revival spilled over into church splits, with denunciations of heresy on one side and jeremiads against indifference on the other .
The Chinese pastors and their followers who left their old churches, many of them from the U.S. Presbyterian mission, found a new home, at least temporarily, in this loosely structured movement. The Spiritual Gifts Church did not develop institutionally and this church did not survive past the 1930s since no publications or records indicated that it ever went beyond this informal stage of development.
The Christian Tabernacle
It originally was just a family service but was later established as a new church by Wang Mingdao (王明道) at Beijing in 1937. The Chinese Church in ChristChinese Church in Christ
The Chinese Church in Christ is an independent Chinese church founded by Wang Mingdao in Beijing in 1927. The Chinese Church in Christ was founded without the help of foreign missionaries so in essence it was Chinese Christians preaching to the Chinese populace...
(CCiC) was founded without the help of any foreign missionary so it was essentially Chinese Christians preaching to Chinese people. They also self administer and are self efficient economically.
Wang Mingdao was especially tight on church entry. During the sixteen years from 1933-1949 only 570 believers received baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
since every new believer must bring another convert to the church before baptism was allowed.
He said, “The sheep must have life, your behaviour of giving birth to more sheep shows that you have life”. Therefore being able to bring people to believe in the faith is evidence that indeed you are quite clear of the path to salvation. Although it does not mean that you have already received salvation, it shows that you are worthy to become one of their church members.
Once Wang Mingdao's strict entry requirements have already been satisfied, both the new convert’s behaviour and lifestyle will be closely observed or examined by church members for a period. This is done in order to confirm that the new believer really is behaving as a Christian ought to behave and that his faith truly has a solid foundation.
Bread of Life Church
The Bread of Life ChurchBread of Life Church
The Bread of Life Christian Church , also known as Ling Liang Church, is an independent Chinese church that was founded in Shanghai, China by Pastor Zhao Shiguang in 1943 . In 1954, the headquarters were moved to Taipei...
, also known as Ling Liang Church, was founded in Shanghai, China by Pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
Zhao Shiguang (趙世光) in 1943 . In 1954, the headquarters were moved to Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...
. Today there are currently 168 churches all over the world . Since 1990, the Hong Kong Bread of Life Church operates independently of the organization in Taiwan.
Summary
These six main churches are the most well known and representative of the many independent churches in China and which can still be found till this day.The current ‘House Churches’ in China are also independent churches because after 1949, with the arrival of Communist control and departure of all foreign missionaries, all Chinese Christian denominations had become independent and had to stand on their toes. Therefore the original independent churches flourished during and after the severe persecutions and their standards and experiences will provide good role models for other Chinese churches to learn. The Chinese independent churches will most certainly play an important role for Christianity in China
Christianity in China
Christianity in China is a growing minority religion that comprises Protestants , Catholics , and a small number of Orthodox Christians. Although its lineage in China is not as ancient as the institutional religions of Taoism and Mahayana Buddhism, and the social system and ideology of...
in the near future.