Stephen Tong
Encyclopedia
Stephen Tong is a Chinese Indonesian
Reformed pastor
, evangelist
, theologian, philosopher
, and musician
of Hakka
ancestry. By Dr. Philip Teng of Hong Kong, he had been called "Billy Graham
of the east", for his major ministries in Asia, especially in south-east Asia, at that time. Moreover he had been admitted as a philosophical apologist in this era, like Francis Schaeffer
in cultural apology. As an evangelist
, Dr Tong has preached in Asia
, Europe
, Australia
, America
, and guest lectured at many theological seminaries. He is the founder and president of the Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministries International (STEMI) which has established offices in the United States
, European countries, Hong Kong
, Indonesia
, Malaysia, Singapore
, and Taiwan
. Tong, as one key figure among some notable Reformed theologian such as Gerald Bray
, A.T.B. McGowan, Peter Jones, and Samuel Logan, becomes member of Theological Commission at World Reformed Fellowship
to formalize Reformed Confession of Faith in the 21st Century.
, China
, to a wealth Chinese father and an Indonesian mother of Chinese descent. His father's ascendents had the important title and best regarded by Qing Government. but later on they had bankrupt, because of unceasing Warfare in China.
The family had seven sons (Tony, John, Peter, Caleb, Stephen, Joseph, Solomon), five of which would became Christian ministers later on. and one daughter (Mary).
When His father was passed away, he was just 3 years old. His mother struggled alone to foster all left of her families during years of Japan imperialism (about 1942-1945) in China as well as in East Java, Indonesia years later. All family migrated to Surabaya
, Indonesia when he was 9 years old in 1949, because of Chinese Revolution (1949). His mother was the best example in arrest of his spiritual life. He said of his mother, "When I was small, the first words I'd hear in the morning were those of my mother while she prayed. She prayed for each of us children by name, and asked God to guide us."
and Evolutionism of Charles Darwin
. Even adore them, as the most heroic in this era. Otherwise he had deep hatred and tried mocking Christianity as the foolish religion which came from devilish west and had illogical teachings.
However, at one day, he was forced with his mother to attend a youth conference on January 1957, served by Southeast Asia Bible School in Malang. With hard heart, he obeyed his mother's will - as chinese good son - to join in Christian activity for a last time. Following through the question-answer sessions and many the sermons for 3-4 days, finally on last day, January 9th, 1957, He dedicated his life to Jesus Christ after listening a sermon of Andrew Gih at a youth conference near Surabaya
.
(BTh) from Southeast Asia Bible Seminary (SABS) in Malang
, Indonesia
, where he later served on the faculty, teaching theology and philosophy from 1964 to 1988. He has also been invited to be guest lecturer in China Graduate School of Theology, China Evangelical Seminary, Trinity College, Westminster Theological Seminary, Regent College, and many others. In 1985, Stephen Tong was awarded an honorary
Doctor of Leadership in Christian Evangelism (DLCE) degree from the La Madrid International Academy of Leadership in Manila
, The Philippines. In May 2008, he received an honorary Doctor of Divinity
(DD) degree from the Westminster Theological Seminary
in Philadelphia, USA. Now, he is formally referred to as "The Reverend Stephen Tong, BTh, DLCE (h.c.), DD (h.c.)" or simply, and most commonly, "Rev. Dr. Stephen Tong".
as well as Liberalism
. It emphasizes on the importance of the Bible as the sole word of God and actively encourages evangelism. Tong also frequently mentions the need for churches to attend to the cultural mandate
. Besides this, he is also a fervent creationist, having promoted his creationist ideas in rallies held in Taiwan and Singapore.
Among his listeners, Stephen Tong is known to possess a unique flair of rhetoric in his preaching, often linked to influences of George Whitefield
and Charles Spurgeon
. Many of his sermons have been published into books.
on the Gospel of John
, Romans
, Hebrews
, James
and other topics in Jakarta
, Singapore
, Kuala Lumpur
, Hong Kong
, and Taipei
every week. Every year, Christmas and Easter mark the occasions for evangelistic rallies in these cities, in addition to other rallies in these cities and others which he visits less frequently. These rallies are conducted by Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministries International (STEMI), which was founded by Tong in 1979. As an evangelist, he is said to have influenced hundreds of thousands to become full-time ministers of the Gospel
.
, Tong, together with Rev. Benyamin Intan, founded the Reformed Center for Religion and Society in 2006.
Stephen Tong founded the Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia in 1989 to establish a Reformed theology-based church and congregations who are committed to evangelism. Tong is currently the Head of Synod of the Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia. The church subscribes to the Reformed confessions
generally accepted by Reformed churches, but it has its own unique confession of faith.
The Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia has expanded to include branches in various parts of the world including Germany, North America, Asia and Australia. In 2008, a new building for the Reformed Evangelical Church in Jakarta called Reformed Millenium Center of Indonesia (RMCI), which includes The Messiah Cathedral (a 4800-seat auditorium), was finished. It took 16 years to persuade the Indonesian government to issue a permit to build the church. The church building was personally designed by Tong himself. It is one of the largest Chinese Christian evangelical
church facilities in the world, with 600000 square feet (55,741.8 m²) of space. The building also includes a theological seminary, STT Reformed Injili Internasional, founded by the Synod of Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia in cooperation with Reformed Institute for Christianity and the 21st Century (Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministries International). The seminary has a strong relation with Westminster Theological Seminary
. In 2011, the Stephen Tong Chair of Reformed Theology was endowed in Westminster Theological Seminary
.
The Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia and its affiliated institutions have female evangelists, lecturers, and church council members. They are allowed to preach and assume authoritative roles, although they are not ordained.
as its artistic consultant has performed regularly in the concert hall. He is also known to have interest in classical music
especially in Baroque era, watches, and antiques
. In 2011, Sofilia Fine Art Center in RMCI, which contains numerous antiques, was opened.
, Indonesia
. He is married to Alice Tong. They have one son and three daughters.
These are his songs with descriptions of the city where they were performed at the first time:
Chinese Indonesian
Chinese Indonesians, also called the Indonesian Chinese, are an overseas Chinese group whose ancestors emigrated from China to Indonesia, formerly a colony of the Netherlands known as the Dutch East Indies...
Reformed 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"....
, evangelist
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
, theologian, philosopher
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, and musician
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
of Hakka
Hakka people
The Hakka , sometimes Hakka Han, are Han Chinese who speak the Hakka language and have links to the provincial areas of Guangdong, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan and Fujian in China....
ancestry. By Dr. Philip Teng of Hong Kong, he had been called "Billy Graham
Billy Graham
William Franklin "Billy" Graham, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian evangelist. As of April 25, 2010, when he met with Barack Obama, Graham has spent personal time with twelve United States Presidents dating back to Harry S. Truman, and is number seven on Gallup's list of admired people for...
of the east", for his major ministries in Asia, especially in south-east Asia, at that time. Moreover he had been admitted as a philosophical apologist in this era, like Francis Schaeffer
Francis Schaeffer
Francis August Schaeffer was an American Evangelical Christian theologian, philosopher, and Presbyterian pastor. He is most famous for his writings and his establishment of the L'Abri community in Switzerland...
in cultural apology. As an evangelist
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
, Dr Tong has preached in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, America
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
, and guest lectured at many theological seminaries. He is the founder and president of the Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministries International (STEMI) which has established offices in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, European countries, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Malaysia, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, and 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...
. Tong, as one key figure among some notable Reformed theologian such as Gerald Bray
Gerald Bray
Gerald L. Bray is an English theologian and church historian. From 1993 to 2006 he taught at Beeson Divinity School, where he is now a research professor. He is the editor of the Churchman journal. His book, Biblical Interpretation: Past and Present was one of Christianity Today's books of the...
, A.T.B. McGowan, Peter Jones, and Samuel Logan, becomes member of Theological Commission at World Reformed Fellowship
World Reformed Fellowship
The World Reformed Fellowship is an ecumenical Christian body which promotes unity between conservative Reformed churches around the world.It was formed on October 24, 2000 through the union of the World Fellowship of Reformed Churches and the International Reformed Fellowship .It is similar in...
to formalize Reformed Confession of Faith in the 21st Century.
Early Life
Stephen Tong was born in 1940 in XiamenXiamen
Xiamen , also known as Amoy , is a major city on the southeast coast of the People's Republic of China. It is administered as a sub-provincial city of Fujian province with an area of and population of 3.53 million...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, to a wealth Chinese father and an Indonesian mother of Chinese descent. His father's ascendents had the important title and best regarded by Qing Government. but later on they had bankrupt, because of unceasing Warfare in China.
The family had seven sons (Tony, John, Peter, Caleb, Stephen, Joseph, Solomon), five of which would became Christian ministers later on. and one daughter (Mary).
When His father was passed away, he was just 3 years old. His mother struggled alone to foster all left of her families during years of Japan imperialism (about 1942-1945) in China as well as in East Java, Indonesia years later. All family migrated to Surabaya
Surabaya
Surabaya is Indonesia's second-largest city with a population of over 2.7 million , and the capital of the province of East Java...
, Indonesia when he was 9 years old in 1949, because of Chinese Revolution (1949). His mother was the best example in arrest of his spiritual life. He said of his mother, "When I was small, the first words I'd hear in the morning were those of my mother while she prayed. She prayed for each of us children by name, and asked God to guide us."
Crisis Age
When he was around 15-17 years old, He was realized that he had been committed in Communist's ideology, as good as in Dialectical Materialism of Karl MarxKarl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, historian, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. His ideas played a significant role in the development of social science and the socialist political movement...
and Evolutionism of Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
. Even adore them, as the most heroic in this era. Otherwise he had deep hatred and tried mocking Christianity as the foolish religion which came from devilish west and had illogical teachings.
However, at one day, he was forced with his mother to attend a youth conference on January 1957, served by Southeast Asia Bible School in Malang. With hard heart, he obeyed his mother's will - as chinese good son - to join in Christian activity for a last time. Following through the question-answer sessions and many the sermons for 3-4 days, finally on last day, January 9th, 1957, He dedicated his life to Jesus Christ after listening a sermon of Andrew Gih at a youth conference near Surabaya
Surabaya
Surabaya is Indonesia's second-largest city with a population of over 2.7 million , and the capital of the province of East Java...
.
Turning Point
Afterward he began dedicated himself to preach and teach small children in Christian Schools and served many things; especially, evangelizing every people he met. For 3 1/2 years, studying, teaching, and evangelizing, with hard working, finally he dedicated all whole life to Jesus Christ, after he gave up having suffer for uncured unknown disease. he entered seminary in 1960.Education
Stephen Tong obtained his bachelor degree in theologyBachelor of Theology
The Bachelor of Theology is a three to five year undergraduate degree in theological disciplines. Candidates for this degree typically must complete course work in Greek or Hebrew, as well as systematic theology, biblical theology, ethics, homiletics and Christian ministry...
(BTh) from Southeast Asia Bible Seminary (SABS) in Malang
Malang
Malang is the second largest city in East Java province, Indonesia. It has an ancient history dating back to the Mataram Kingdom. The city population at the 2010 Census was 819,708. During the period of Dutch colonization, it was a popular destination for European residents. The city is famous for...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, where he later served on the faculty, teaching theology and philosophy from 1964 to 1988. He has also been invited to be guest lecturer in China Graduate School of Theology, China Evangelical Seminary, Trinity College, Westminster Theological Seminary, Regent College, and many others. In 1985, Stephen Tong was awarded an honorary
Honorary degree
An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
Doctor of Leadership in Christian Evangelism (DLCE) degree from the La Madrid International Academy of Leadership in Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, The Philippines. In May 2008, he received an honorary Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....
(DD) degree from the Westminster Theological Seminary
Westminster Theological Seminary
Westminster Theological Seminary is a Presbyterian and Reformed Christian graduate educational institution located in Glenside, Pennsylvania, with a satellite location in London.-History:...
in Philadelphia, USA. Now, he is formally referred to as "The Reverend Stephen Tong, BTh, DLCE (h.c.), DD (h.c.)" or simply, and most commonly, "Rev. Dr. Stephen Tong".
Foundation and Style of Theology
Stephen Tong named his brand of theology as Evangelical Reformed, which is said to be aimed at meeting the challenge of the Charismatic movementCharismatic movement
The term charismatic movement is used in varying senses to describe 20th century developments in various Christian denominations. It describes an ongoing international, cross-denominational/non-denominational Christian movement in which individual, historically mainstream congregations adopt...
as well as Liberalism
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
. It emphasizes on the importance of the Bible as the sole word of God and actively encourages evangelism. Tong also frequently mentions the need for churches to attend to the cultural mandate
Cultural mandate
The cultural mandate or creation mandate is the divine injunction found in Genesis 1:28, in which God , after having created the world and all in it, ascribes to humankind the tasks of filling, subduing, and ruling over the earth...
. Besides this, he is also a fervent creationist, having promoted his creationist ideas in rallies held in Taiwan and Singapore.
Among his listeners, Stephen Tong is known to possess a unique flair of rhetoric in his preaching, often linked to influences of George Whitefield
George Whitefield
George Whitefield , also known as George Whitfield, was an English Anglican priest who helped spread the Great Awakening in Britain, and especially in the British North American colonies. He was one of the founders of Methodism and of the evangelical movement generally...
and Charles Spurgeon
Charles Spurgeon
Charles Haddon Spurgeon was a large British Particular Baptist preacher who remains highly influential among Christians of different denominations, among whom he is still known as the "Prince of Preachers"...
. Many of his sermons have been published into books.
Ministry
Tong has been preaching since he was 17 years old. He was ordained as pastor in 1982. Tong's ministry is mainly conducted among Mandarin and Indonesian-speaking audiences. Since 2000, Tong has preached expository sermonsExpository preaching
Expository preaching is a form of preaching that throws light upon the meaning of a particular text or passage of Scripture. As "throwing light," this term is more general than exegesis, which is used for more technical and grammatical exposition, a careful drawing out of the exact meaning of a...
on the Gospel of John
Gospel of John
The Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
, Romans
Epistle to the Romans
The Epistle of Paul to the Romans, often shortened to Romans, is the sixth book in the New Testament. Biblical scholars agree that it was composed by the Apostle Paul to explain that Salvation is offered through the Gospel of Jesus Christ...
, Hebrews
Epistle to the Hebrews
The Epistle to the Hebrews is one of the books in the New Testament. Its author is not known.The primary purpose of the Letter to the Hebrews is to exhort Christians to persevere in the face of persecution. The central thought of the entire Epistle is the doctrine of the Person of Christ and his...
, James
Epistle of James
The Epistle of James, usually referred to simply as James, is a book in the New Testament. The author identifies himself as "James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ", with "the earliest extant manuscripts of James usually dated to mid-to-late third century."There are four views...
and other topics in Jakarta
Jakarta
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, and 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...
every week. Every year, Christmas and Easter mark the occasions for evangelistic rallies in these cities, in addition to other rallies in these cities and others which he visits less frequently. These rallies are conducted by Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministries International (STEMI), which was founded by Tong in 1979. As an evangelist, he is said to have influenced hundreds of thousands to become full-time ministers of the Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
.
Reformed Evangelical Movement
Stephen Tong saw that many churches had been influenced by world philosophy and churches that are still loyal and consistent to the genuine teaching of the Bible can rarely be found. In response of his vision to reform Christianity, he started the Reformed Evangelical Movement in 1984. The mission of the movement is to restore the understanding of theology based on God's revelation in the Scripture and to burn the people with the fire of evangelism. Tong started the movement by conducting theological seminars , in Jakarta to introduce Reformed theology to the people of Indonesia. These seminars had been recorded and adopted into books (see Bibliography below). The theme of the first seminar is "Faith and Religion" and it was attended by 1200 people. The number of people attending his seminars grows rapidly, and more people wanted to learn deeper about Reformed theology. In 1986, together with Rev. Caled Tong and Rev. Yakub Susabda, Tong founded the Indonesian Reformed Evangelical Institution . Later, Tong founded the Reformed Evangelical School of Theology , for the laity in Surabaya (1986), Jakarta (1987), and Malang (1990). In 1989, Tong founded the Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia . In 1996, Tong founded the Reformed Institute for Christianity and the 21st Century in Washington DC and the Reformed Institute in Jakarta, which was renamed the International Reformed Evangelical Seminary in 2011. To answer the cultural mandateCultural mandate
The cultural mandate or creation mandate is the divine injunction found in Genesis 1:28, in which God , after having created the world and all in it, ascribes to humankind the tasks of filling, subduing, and ruling over the earth...
, Tong, together with Rev. Benyamin Intan, founded the Reformed Center for Religion and Society in 2006.
Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia
Reformed Christian confessions of faith
Reformed Christian confessions of faith are documents of the faith of various Reformed churches. They express their consensus of faith in various creeds. A few creeds are shared by many denominations, which have made their choices from among the various creeds for primarily historical reasons...
generally accepted by Reformed churches, but it has its own unique confession of faith.
The Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia has expanded to include branches in various parts of the world including Germany, North America, Asia and Australia. In 2008, a new building for the Reformed Evangelical Church in Jakarta called Reformed Millenium Center of Indonesia (RMCI), which includes The Messiah Cathedral (a 4800-seat auditorium), was finished. It took 16 years to persuade the Indonesian government to issue a permit to build the church. The church building was personally designed by Tong himself. It is one of the largest Chinese Christian evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
church facilities in the world, with 600000 square feet (55,741.8 m²) of space. The building also includes a theological seminary, STT Reformed Injili Internasional, founded by the Synod of Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia in cooperation with Reformed Institute for Christianity and the 21st Century (Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministries International). The seminary has a strong relation with Westminster Theological Seminary
Westminster Theological Seminary
Westminster Theological Seminary is a Presbyterian and Reformed Christian graduate educational institution located in Glenside, Pennsylvania, with a satellite location in London.-History:...
. In 2011, the Stephen Tong Chair of Reformed Theology was endowed in Westminster Theological Seminary
Westminster Theological Seminary
Westminster Theological Seminary is a Presbyterian and Reformed Christian graduate educational institution located in Glenside, Pennsylvania, with a satellite location in London.-History:...
.
The Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia and its affiliated institutions have female evangelists, lecturers, and church council members. They are allowed to preach and assume authoritative roles, although they are not ordained.
Other activities and interests
Tong has composed numerous Indonesia, English, and Mandarin hymns and chorus, popular among many Christians. Other than preaching and teaching, his activities revolve around conducting choirs and orchestras, and educating the church in the appreciation of sacred music. In 1986, he founded Jakarta Oratorio Society, a choir specialized in sacred music. His other interests include arts and architectural design, having contributed to the design of many church buildings in Indonesia. In 2009, a 1200-seat concert hall designed by Tong called Aula Simfonia Jakarta was opened as part of RMCI. Since then, the Jakarta Simfonia Orchestra with Tong as its music director and Jahja LingJahja Ling
Jahja Ling is an orchestra conductor. He is of Chinese descent and is now an American citizen. He began to play the piano at age 4 and studied at the Yayasan Pendidikan Musik School of Music. At age 17, he won the Jakarta Piano Competition and, one year later, was awarded a Rockefeller grant to...
as its artistic consultant has performed regularly in the concert hall. He is also known to have interest in classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
especially in Baroque era, watches, and antiques
Antiques
An antique is an old collectible item. It is collected or desirable because of its age , beauty, rarity, condition, utility, personal emotional connection, and/or other unique features...
. In 2011, Sofilia Fine Art Center in RMCI, which contains numerous antiques, was opened.
Personal life
Stephen Tong currently resides in JakartaJakarta
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. He is married to Alice Tong. They have one son and three daughters.
Composed Songs
(Most of his songs were created in Indonesian Languages and implemented in his gospel rally)These are his songs with descriptions of the city where they were performed at the first time:
- Bila Kupernah Cinta Yesus (Semarang, in Indonesia, 1961)
- Api Zaman (Malang, in Indonesia, 1969), this song was composed with Mr. C.Yu
- Tuhan Ampuni Dosaku (Surabaya, in Indonesia, 1975)
- Kidung Agung (Manila, in Philippines, 1975)
- Aku Sedang Berjalan (Serawak, in Malaysia, 1977)
- Kemana Saja (Serawak, in Malaysia, 1977)
- Utus Aku Dalam Misimu (Singapura, 1981)
- Korban Hidup (Malang, in Indonesia, 1985)
- Bangkit Bagi Kristus (Jakarta, in Indonesia, 1986)
- Sukacita Tuhan Penuhiku (Hongkong, in China, 1998)
- Yesus Kristus Juruselamat Dunia (Jakarta, in Indonesia, 2003)
- Belum Pernah Ku Rendah Hati (Forthhope, in Canada, 1995)
- Siapakah Juruselamat (Jakarta, in Indonesia, 2003)
External links
Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministries International – Official website- Stephen Tong Resource – A website maintained by Elder Yong Teck Meng, Stephen Tong's translator in Singapore Indonesian Evangelical Reformed Church
- Momentum Christian Literature – The literature ministry of Evangelical Reformed Movement and Indonesian Evangelical Reformed Church
- GRII-Singapore site
- NEW → Gospel Rally in Jakarta 2011 - December 8-11, 2011