PC(USA) China Network

Call to Order
The meeting was called to order by Dr. Walt Conser, who welcomed all the friends who have come from afar. He hoped that we "would be mutually encouraged by each others' faith." He hoped that the Church can be used to facilitate partnerships between China and the USA. His goals were for us to learn more about the contemporary situation in China and to explore the best practices and model partnerships as we support the church in China.

Devotion
Rev. Ernie Thompson, pastor of the host church, gave the opening devotion based on Romans 1:8-12. He emphasized three ideas from this passage:
• "for me to come to you" - the difficulty and cost of coming versus the importance of coming, recognizing where many of the conference's attendees had travelled from; modern communication is wonderful but physical presence is also vital at times
• "long to see you" - the advantages of learning, understanding, and relating to people when we actually see them
• "mutually encouraged" -our faith is strengthened when we see each other; the divine "Friend" who draws near through our friends; we serve a God who comes and sees and sends us. He is not a distant God, he is a personal presence.
He closed his devotion with a bidding prayer in which participants prayed for the Chinese Church and God's guidance for them and for us.

Introductions
The other participants briefly introduced themselves:
Pam Bowman, Liberty Corner, NJ - a participant in The Outreach Foundation's (TOF) English Exchange Camps.
Janet Conser, Wilmington, NC - a participant in TOF's Heritage Tour to Jiangyin.
Mike Parker, Louisville, KY - PCUSA's coordinator of the office of international evangelism
David Fung, Bel Air Pres. Church, Los Angeles - leader of two trips to Harbin through auspices of TOF; also recruits PhDs for Scholars International in East Asia
Ken McFadyen, Richmond, VA - faculty member at Union Presbyterian Seminary
Alex Monroe, Wilmington, NC - has travelled on mission and business trips to China
Clancy Thompson, Wilmington, NC - son of chaplain who served in China and father of a daughter formerly living in Suzhou
Susan Thompson, Wilmington, NC - mother of daughter formerly in Suzhou, fascinated by the growth of Christianity in China
Bin Wang and wife Vivid Zhang - Bin is a graduate of Nanjing Seminary currently studying
at Princeton Seminary
Jimmy Quinn, Houston, TX - has made 3 trips to China via TOF; China Network's webmaster
Justine Lerch, Wilmington, NC - chairman of Global Missions Committee at host church
Dayna Pray, Wilmington, NC - a participant in TOF's Heritage Tour to Jiangyin.
Sam Markley, Wilmington, NC - a participant in TOF's Heritage Tour to Jiangyin.
Lucy Worth, Durham, NC - granddaughter and daughter of missionaries to China and former traveler to Jiangyin
Julia Worth, Wilmington, NC - granddaughter and daughter of missionaries to China, and wishes to go to China in the future
Connie Richards, Wilmington, NC - a participant in TOF's Heritage Tour to Jiangyin.
Joan Ruden, Wilmington, NC - a participant in TOF's Heritage Tour to Jiangyin.
Abigail Mann, Wilmington, NC - a participant in TOF's Heritage Tour to Jiangyin; excited to see God at work in China
David Bridgman - son and nephew of missionaries to China, associate director of Presbyterian Frontier Fellowship, has made 14 mission trips to China
Claire Gibbs, Melbourne, FL - has taught English in China via the Amity Foundation.
Catherine Coleman, Alameda, CA - has volunteered in China many times via Amity Foundation
Hugh Wire, Berkeley, CA - wife was born in China and has taught New Testament at Nanjing Seminary, he has taught English there with Amity Foundation, believes a connection with China is important for the future of the planet
Peter Lim, Spokane, WA - China Specialist for the Outreach Foundation
Elder Ou Enlin, Shanghai - Director of the Overseas Relations Department of the China Christian Council
Jeff Ritchie, Franklin, TN - Associate Director for Mission of the Outreach Foundation has made 20 trips to China, former missionary to Korea
Buck Roney, Wilmington, NC - involved in mission work for over a decade in the host church
Helen Faller, Wilmington, NC - involved in mission work for over a decade in the host church; a participant in TOF's Heritage Tour to Jiangyin

PCUSA's Work in China
Mike Parker gave a brief outline of PCUSA's mission activities in China. Early work beginning in the 1800s gradually built to a maximum of 2147 missionaries there in the 1920s. In the 1930s, the number of people and programs began to decline for five reasons:
1. After the tragedy of WWI, Americans wanted to solve their own problems at home and cooperate with other religions to do social service work
2. The concept of religious relativism took hold - "there are many paths up the mountain"
3. Controversies between fundamentalists and moderates distracted Presbyterians
4. Many people shifted their view of the world from a religious to a secular viewpoint.
5. The Great Depression limited the funds available for missions.

He noted that even as late as the 1920s, the idea of "the evangelism of the world in this generation" still was popular, and that we are building today on the valuable work done by those missionaries. He noted that the PCUSA's strategic plan recognizes the decline in the amount of money available to PCUSA for missionaries. People are giving the same amount of money (to other organizations) just not to the Church. Mission personnel reductions are:
• 1927 - 2147 missionaries
• 1960 - 1900 missionaries
• 2000 - 600 missionaries
• 2010 - 200 missionaries

We now have 360 partner relationships in 80 countries, and send our own missionaries to 40-50 countries. The Church's goal is to do a few things well.

He stated three critical global issues around which PCUSA organizes its mission efforts:
1. Justice - especially for women and children in the areas of social issues, slavery, and economic justice
2. Helping local partners to share the Gospel in local communities, specifically evangelism through building the capacity of local people to do evangelism. One-quarter to one-third of missionaries teach in local seminaries
3. Reconciliation in cultures of violence - including our own. Also recognition that some parts of our culture can cause problems in other cultures.

In China, most of PCUSA's work is in the second topic - promoting and supporting evangelism by the Chinese Christians themselves. The PCUSA would very much like to become more involved in central and southeast Asia because of the historic roots of mission work there and popular support for it. PCUSA is now working toward three projects:
1. Support of the three seminaries in Hong Kong as a platform to inspire Christians on the mainland
2. Support of Nanjing Union Theological Seminary (NJUTS) - Only annual visas are available for professors to go there, renewals are highly questionable. However housing is available for visiting professors and Pittsburgh Seminary is encouraging its faculty to go there on sabbaticals.
3. Revitalizing a moribund relationship with the Amity Foundation to support/provide English teachers. These would be volunteers, not mission co-workers, and would need to raise their own funds. A 2-year term might be the minimum. He noted that returning English teachers are good salesmen for this effort. They might also send someone to work in the Amity Foundation or NJUTS.

Parker reported that the Rev. Mienda Uriarte has been chosen as the new coordinator of the PCUSA mission work in Asia and the Pacific. She has 25 years of experience working in the PCUSA, especially with refugees from Asia and southwest Asia as well as with Youth and Young Adult Ministries.

Parker noted that PCUSA holds real property in Japan and Korea and cannot sell it for legal reasons in those countries. However it is revenue-producing property and they are looking at how to use the revenues, perhaps elsewhere in Asia where it is more needed. They also have endowments (much of it from wills and memorials related to former missionaries and defunct mission stations) amounting to several hundred thousand dollars which could/should be repurposed.

Discussion followed Parker's presentation: Peter Lim suggested an exchange of faculty with NJUTS, not just sending ours there. Parker agreed, noting that Columbia Seminary has a partnership. Clancy Thompson asked about the need to educate American congregations about mission work. Parker said that American seminaries are independent of PCUSA and can sometimes be hard to work with, but are nevertheless good possibilities. Ken McFayden noted that a 90-day tourist visa would be a possibility for an American professor to work in China for almost one semester. Ernie Thompson noted the need for help at the pastoral training centers also, where the education is less academic and more practical. David Fung emphasized that the Chinese need their own leaders and that they might be able to use a greater variety of ideas, such as from evangelists in Brazil, Africa, etc.

Parker closed by emphasizing the importance of long-term resident missionaries since they can learn the local language, understand the local culture, and build local relationships. The loss of Don Snow is a tragedy and we need a significant number of people who can fill those kinds of positions. He also emphasized the importance of giving to our denomination. Many Presbyterians give generously to other sorts of related causes, but the denomination needs its own "boots on the ground" in more places. He hoped that Presbyterians will stop their movement toward congregationalism. Local involvement is good, but the denomination as a whole is suffering.

Historic Roots of Current Work
Jeff Ritchie reminded the group that the first Presbyterian missionary in China arrived there in the 1840s. Much of the population of China is in the eastern third of the country and our mission efforts have been focused there. Tommy Brown, son of missionaries to China, wrote Earthen Vessels, Transcendent Power, the definitive history of Presbyterian missions in China. After the communist takeover in 1949 (& expulsion of the last missionary in 1951) there was no foreign mission work for several decades. In 1982 the government's "new openness" allowed churches to be reclaimed & reopened and Tommy Brown led a trip of former missionaries there then. In the mid 1980s, the Amity Foundation was formed by Christians in China to build up the church there.

The Outreach Foundation helped rebuild the seminary in Hangzhou. In 1998 they led a trip to Harbin, site of an important former mission station. In 2001 because of the large number of lay leaders without training or resources Presbyterian Women and the Outreach Foundation donated many sets of Bibles and commentaries to these lay leaders. Shortly thereafter they hired Peter Lim with full time responsibilities for their China efforts.

He noted that teaching English is one of the most effective ways for Americans to get closer to Chinese Christians as individuals, thus TOF's English Exchange Camps. They support the shift from big projects to personal connections.

The Bible Ministry Exhibition of the Protestant Church in China opened in Washington
D. C. on September 28 with leaders of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement and the China Christian Council as well as many leaders of American Protestant churches in attendance.

Discussion followed: Clancy Thompson noted that the TOF does mission support that is no longer mediated through PCUSA headquarters in Louisville - they have their own contacts. He noted the need for a mission initiator both with churches & for PCUSA. It is not ecclesiastical, it is independent of the General Assembly, etc. No connections with other Churches, but we are "rubbing shoulders" with them through the Amity Foundation.

Presbyterian Frontier Fellowship
David Bridgman stated that his organization's primary focus is the evangelism of minority populations and other unreached peoples, many of whom live in the western provinces of China. They often have to start in places where they have no local partners. He showed a video of PFFs work in west China.

The Church in China Today
Elder Ou Enlin of the China Christian Council spoke and reminded the group that the Church in China is in a post-denominational period. The PCUSA is a sincere friend and a treasured friend. He appreciates the good relation and cooperation they have experienced with us, and thanks us for our time and hospitality. The Chinese Christian Church has experienced rapid growth since the early 1980s: they now count 23 million Christians, thirty times more than in the early 1950s. This is because of the Three-Self Principle of self-administration, self-support, and self-propagation of the Gospel. Leadership of the church is through the China Christian Council and they work in concert with the Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM) and have seven departments covering training, research, social services, etc.

Chinese Christians love the Bible. Their distinguishing characteristics include good behavior and Christian testimony, the reason for their growth from within and respect from others. They thank God for miracles in recent times: 36 thousand registered churches and meeting points, and "their numbers are added to daily."

They experience three main challenges:
1. Trained workers - they need more seminaries and training centers; leadership in the countryside continues to be a problem
2. More widely serving people in society - until recently they had focused mostly on church work, but now have more meaningful ministries such as orphanages, work with autistic people, rehabilitation centers, and medical clinics. They need more workers and more funding for these.
3. Other opportunities include deep theological thinking to adapt the Christian faith into Chinese society and culture.
He has been with the China Christian Council since its founding in 2002. His duties include:
1. Maintaining relations between Christians in China and overseas. He encourages mutual respect with foreign churches ranging from evangelical to mainline.
2. They coordinate visits from foreign Christians which average 600 per year from ordinary people to theologians
3. Paying courteous visits to counterparts at international conferences
4. Assist other governmental departments with overseas visitors

He invites us to visit and experience China. He appreciates the good works from us such as TOF's mini-library projects, PFF's ministry to minorities, and assistance to the Jiangsu Provincial Bible College. He knows that this collaboration is a token of friendship and fellowship. They appreciate the precious fellowship we share in the Lord Jesus Christ and hopes that God will bless the work of all of our hands.

He then showed a video produced by the TSPM and CCC covering the history of Christianity in China and its great growth in the last few decades. "God is able to do far more abundantly than we ask."

After the video he explained that there is unity in Chinese Christian worship, with variation for example in the types of baptism and communion offered.

The Bible is the Word of God and our spiritual food. Amity Printing Company in Nanjing is the biggest Bible printer in the world. They have printed over 54 million copies of the Bible in Chinese, as well as other copies in languages other than Chinese for international distribution. The CCC & TSPM have produced 300 religious books sold through churches in addition to the free Bibles. Their magazine has 100,000 subscriptions.

Regarding training, NJUTS has completed a new building in 2008 and their quality is improving. More, better, & larger training centers are needed to meet the urgent needs of churches.

The CCC & TSPM promote teaching that Christians are not to be served but to serve. They are salt, light, and love. They promote a more harmonious society through operation of orphanages, rehab centers, kindergartens, wheelchair donations, and disaster assistance.

They expect partnerships to be characterized by openness, frankness, and respect for the legal requirements of Chinese law.

Discussion followed: Susan Thompson asked if there was any pressure to "redenominate" & Elder Ou said that most foreign churches understood that that was not going to happen. Ken McFayden asked if there was any difficulty in getting qualified seminary candidates, to which Elder Ou stated that this was generally not the case since so many candidates become lay leaders before being trained as pastors/preachers. In response to a question about church registration requirements, he said that one requirement is that there be a qualified trained leader for the proposed church. He stated that all Chinese Christians are "brothers and sisters", even though some people have different theological thinking and some receive support from foreign churches. He personally is the son of a Baptist mother and a Presbyterian father. Churches have two baptism styles from which believers can choose - either is OK. Two thousand pastors now serve in China, many of whom serve several churches. Hugh Wire said that his experience is that he is not often welcome to get involved at Chinese churches - that a "screen" is put up by the local members. He wanted to know if [resident] "outsiders" can ever be fully involved. Ou noted that such situations are more likely to occur in smaller places rather than in large cities, though there is variety everywhere. In response to a question about how the TSPM and CCC can promote relationships, he stated that Provincial Councils should be the starting point for such relationships. Ernie Thompson reiterated his church's "social faux pas" by not contacting Jiangsu Christian Council before his church's first trip to China. Jeff Ritchie asked about his definition of "harmonious". Ou stated that it is when people get along together, have a peaceful life together with no conflict, including no class conflict. McFayden noted that his experience is that the Chinese people wants no class conflict because they want no more revolution. Ou stated that their goal is to restore harmony between God and man, between man and man, and between man and nature.

Supporting Organizations/Outreach Foundation
Representing the Outreach Foundation, Peter Lim briefly introduced the State Administration for Religious Affairs (SARA). He then discussed the TOF's goal of connecting people to do God's work. Their work has three aspects: people, programs, and partnerships. He noted the great loss of Don Snow to another job, but Snow does want to maintain contact with PCUSA. He complimented Walt Conser's work as a "great convener" for the China Network, and Jimmy Quinn as its webmaster.

Lim noted that since China has about 1 pastor per 10,000 believers, they have developed the 2:7 Curriculum to help with faith development. The title refers to Colossians 2:7 which talks about believers who are taught the faith, are rooted in it, and give thanks for it. Published in Hong Kong, it presents Bible teachings in a Chinese context. The CCC has assisted in its distribution. Lim asked for the group's prayers for the pending in country printing of the new series. Lim noted that this is one example of how TOF responds to requests from local Christians, rather than assuming what local groups most need or want. They are also supporting an effort in developing discipleship materials for younger generation, which will be published by CCC. He further explained how TOF seeks to build partnerships, citing how Bel Air Presbyterian Church asked for a way to partner with Chinese Christians, and was matched to Christians in Harbin. Bel Air now regularly assists with 140 to 200 students in language school, among other projects. Lim emphasized that language camps are not just language instructions; they are the means for Americans to pick up some Chinese language skills, are a critical means of cultural exchange between ordinary Americans and Chinese, and are a wonderful tool for mutual faith exchanges.

In the discussion, Susan Thompson asked if the 2:7 curriculum was available in regular Chinese bookstores. Lim replied that it is only available through churches.

Supporting Organizations/Presbyterian Frontier Fellowship
David Bridgman showed portions of a video where minority Chinese people gave their faith stories in western Yunnan Province. He noted that western China is far less populated in general, but has more ethnolinguistic minorities. PFF's goal is "for every indigenous people, a Church" and "for every Church a vision." Worldwide there are 20,000 ethnolinguistic groups. India alone has 1900. China has 55 officially, but maybe as many as 95. Many are concentrated in Yunnan, which is the size of California. Most people there are very poor, but Christianity is thriving. He firmly believes that with the right relationships, one can do anything in China - relationships are critical. This is a difficult point for some Americans who are more task-oriented rather than relational. He reminded the group that Mission is God's work. Yunnan Seminary is actually a Bible training center, but because of the still low number of professional evangelists, the Gospel is primarily spread by word of mouth.

China Network Conference
Oct. 1, 2011
First Presbyterian Church
Wilmington, NC

Devotion and comments by Preacher Bin Wang Text: John 21 15-19
Note: Bin Wang, who graduated from Nanjing Seminary in 2005 is serving as Preacher in the St John Christian Church in the old city part of Suzhou, China
Preacher Bin reflected on his call to a Christian life and call to ministry
Key points:
• Raised in a Christian family ( Pentecostal)
• Not baptized until enrolled in Seminary
• Reflected on the China Christian Council
• Love of Christ, Love of country
• Goal: While encompassing social and material needs of the country...the church serves China's conscience

Recognition and challenge of China being in the midst of a great transition
In a personal sense he stated that it was not where he wanted to go but where God wants him to go which he concluded was back to China as a preacher.
After the devotion Preacher Wang gave a pictorial tour of the 6 major Protestant Churches in Suzhou the serve over 10,000 members. (Suzhou is a community of 6 million with 16 Universities, a huge expat community and 1.6 million migrant workers)

He concluded by re-emphasizing the need to know the way culture works and, if used thoughtfully, there was great room for building relationships and achieving real progress.

Teleconference with John McCall from Taiwan
John has served in Taiwan for 14 year as a mission co-worker in the PCUSA.
A lot of his work has concentrated on the native minority population.
In this capacity he set up the Center for Spiritual Formation where he has taught for 10 years.
Currently he is working in four key areas:
• Setting up small groups, involving local pastors in pastoral leadership and development
• Teaching theology and ministry for third year students at Seminary
• Continuing his work with Aboriginal and other minority groups especially those in urban areas.
• Spiritual work with College chaplains, women's groups and pastor-to-pastor support.
John emphasized that he was a guy on the road serving the church in East Asia.

Claire Gibbs: Amity Teacher Workshops
The Amity Foundation was organized by the Chinese and founded after the Cultural Revolution.
The foundation works in a variety of areas:
• Disaster relief
• Rural development via micro loans
• AIDS outreach
• Medical and social services
• Teacher training especially supporting rural English teachers in spoken English.

A typical summer session would include 50-70 students who gather in Nanjing from all over the world for training workshops to prepare them to fan out in teams of 4 to serve Chinese English teachers in rural regions. Typical workshops are three weeks. Subject matter was open. Clare offered the following as topics used in refining spoken English in the field: China traffic, trains, ping pong diplomacy, marriage, and then, after trust and rapport had been established some ventures into areas including law and order, ethics (i.e., lending money to relatives) social problems (comparisons of social issues in American and China) and allocation of funds for education and medical care.

Students were encouraged to journal and participate in continuing letter exchanges.
She concluded with a Christian call for serenity, courage, peace and witnessing and building lasting relationships and quoted from a Chinese teacher: In answer to "What do you want Americans to know about China?" The teacher responded: "Because of the power of both US and China we have a shared duty to keep the world peaceful and prosperous and the Chinese will help to keep the world in harmony."
Information at www.amityfoundation.org

Conclusion of the conference:
David Bridgman invited people to join him in his upcoming trip to China with the Presbyterian Frontier Fellowship.

After the brainstorming session, Peter Lim closed the meetings with a prayer in which he asked for God's blessings on the Chinese church and for the strengthening of partnerships between the church in China and in the United States.

Dr. Sharon Taylor and I were privileged to travel to China as representatives of Shadyside Presbyterian Church in October. Sharon and I were part of a larger delegation of ten people traveling with the Outreach Foundation. Outreach is a Presbyterian organization which helps churches pair with missions all over the world, working especially in leadership development and evangelism.  We traveled with Outreach’s Executive Director, Rev. Dr. Rob Weingartner.  It was Rob’s first visit to China and so we had many doors opened to our group.  Our group leader was Dr. Peter Lim, the China Mission Specialist for Outreach Foundation.  Peter has numerous friends in leadership positions in China so we were blessed by meeting more officials than we had planned. We learned a lot from Peter during our two weeks together. We visited the cities of Shanghai, Jinan, Weifang, Beijing, Nanjing & Hangzhou. Three members of our group split off to visit Jiangyin to see the progress of a learning center their church, First Presbyterian of Wilmington, NC, helped to build.  The official dedication of the building was celebrated. 

Shadyside Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, PA was part of the Presbyterian Mission of Shantung Compound built in the1920’s.  Our church specifically built the Shadyside Hospital.  The Presbyterian Mission is located in Weifang, Shandong Province.  We visited with seminary and church officials in Jinan, where Shandong Seminary is located, and then drove to Weifang, where the Shandong Compound is located. We saw Shadyside Hospital surrounded by Shadyside Park. The beauty of Shadyside Park and the care given to the upkeep of the buildings certainly is in contrast to the horrors of war, disease and detainment that is the history of Japanese occupation in the 1940’s of Shandong Compound.  The care given to the landmarks shows the historical importance that lasts even today in Weifang.

Our tour group was well received by each delegation in China from the Religious Affairs Bureau to the rural churches. The government and church officials were found to be sincere about their support of the church in China.  The Chinese government is more open to church work than ever in the past.  The government realizes the social benefit of the church especially in regard to social programs for the church community.  The recent economic development of China brings also a shift from a “family/clan” based society to a “community” based society because so many of the rural dwelling Chinese are moving to larger cities and leaving their families.  The newcomers are attracted to the sense of community that a church can offer.

I am encouraged by what we witnessed in China. Christianity is growing, the government is supportive and the Christians are willing to partner with our churches to have mutually beneficial relationships. We have much to learn and much to teach.  Please continue to pray for God’s hand to guide us and our Chinese brothers and sisters to a better understanding of our cultures and Christ centered partnerships.

Blessings,

Wanda H. Sowell, Elder

Shadyside Presbyterian Church

Pittsburgh, PA

The 2008 Outreach Foundation Trip to China

Jeff Ritchie and Peter Lim, Co-Leaders

This year’s Outreach Foundation trip to China was billed as a “Presbyterian Heritage Tour” of China. Some twenty participants from nine states travelled from Shanghai through Jiangsu and Shandong Provinces, journeyed as far west as Xi’an in Shaanxi Province, and concluded with a couple of days in Beijing.

In Jiangsu and Shandong we saw the fruit of the Presbyterian mission enterprise, both in the growth of the church in these provinces and in the ways the church is developing leaders to shepherd this growth.  In Xi’an we saw the original place to which Christianity came during the Tang Dynasty (635 AD). Finally, in Beijing the group saw what all tourists in 2008 want to see—the “Bird’s Nest” stadium, where the Olympics were held, and the Great Wall.

The group was most congenial and, since it was composed of seasoned travelers, handled the occasional unpleasant—and in one case, potentially dangerous--situations with grace, flexibility, and prayer. For example, on a foggy day in northern Jiangsu Province we were almost part of a multi-vehicle accident chain reaction. We were saddened to see that several of those involved in the accident were injured and even killed. We thanked God for our bus driver’s skill in keeping us from being caught up in the tragedy.

Beyond the logistics and itinerary of the trip, a couple of themes stood out. First of all, The Outreach Foundation’s commitment to long-term relationships with the church in a few provinces was affirmed in place after place, as we were greeted by the leaders of the church in each place, “lao peng you,” which means “old friends.” The fact that we return to the same provinces year after year has built trust among our Chinese friends to the point that we are now able to consider more direct people-to-people involvement with the church in these places. We hope, for example, to have a couple of week-long “English camps” in two provinces next summer.

Secondly, we saw the fruit of our investment in leadership training wherever we went. The Jiangsu Provincial Bible College has added more land to its campus thanks to gifts from Outreach Foundation partners. A lay training center in Xu Yi County in northern Jiangsu Province was another project supported by The Outreach Foundation. Two years ago it was only a shell of a building. Now it is complete, and we saw both the building and sixty-three lay leaders in the middle of a three-week course of training. It was so encouraging to see how our investments in the church in China are bearing fruit as more leaders are trained and equipped for service.

Finally, we saw the people resources that God is bringing together from the PC(USA) to bless the church in China and to resource American Presbyterians who want to be engaged in China. Don Snow, the PC(USA)’s Regional Liaison for China, was an invaluable guide to the group as we began our trip, both for his overall orientation to Chinese history and culture and for his lucid explanations of the church in China today. Scott Sunquist, Professor of Mission and World Christianity at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, joined the group a week into the trip. Once he joined us, he provided insights into the historical significance of Shandong Province for Presbyterian mission, and he gave an excellent talk on the introduction of Christianity into China when we were in Xi’an.

Above all, the value of Peter Lim as our Outreach Foundation’s China Mission Specialist, was proved in place after place as he served as a helpful and necessary bridge between American and Chinese mission partners. Even though we were provided with a guide from the National China Christian Council, Peter often had to translate for talks and individual conversations. He also helped the group understand culturally appropriate ways to work in China.  It is great having a new team member for China.

As the rest of the group was preparing to depart China, Peter flew to Nanjing to represent The Outreach Foundation at the tenth anniversary of the founding of the Jiangsu Provincial Bible School in Nanjing. Walter Lewis and I also remained in China for a few more days, as we flew to Harbin to see our friends, Pastor Li Meilan and Pastor Lü Dezhi, as well as the teachers and students at the Heilongjiang Provincial Bible School.

Pastors Li and Lü are building a prayer and continuing education retreat center they are calling the “Mount of Olives.” It is ambitious faith venture, but the work is proceeding swiftly. They plan to dedicate the new retreat center next summer. Walter and I saw the progress of the construction on a snowy Saturday, and had several opportunities to hear this dynamic couple share their dreams and visions for ministry.

We were also impressed by the brand-new classroom and library building of the Heilongjiang Bible School. It has been a long time in the planning stage, but now it is almost ready to move into. It will expand the student capacity of the seminary by 25%, and provide space for other continuing education opportunities for the rural pastors and lay leaders.

Walter and I spent time with both faculty and students at the Heilongjiang Bible School, enjoyed a lively worship at the Korean-Chinese Emmanuel Church where Pastor Li Meilan serves, and saw an English Bible Study at yet another church which was led by  a Nigerian Christian graduate student. Harbin is truly an amazing center for ministry.

Next year The Outreach Foundation will have at least two China opportunities to visit China.  May 12-23, 2009 will be the official trip led by Rob Weingartner and Peter Lim. Participants will go to Shanghai, Hangzhou, Nanjing, and Beijing.

There will also be an English “camp” for Chinese church leaders in Jiangsu Province who have a working knowledge of English, but who need more practice in real-life settings. The date of this hands-on trip to Jiangsu is roughly July 23-August 5.

If you are interested in how you can be part of The Outreach Foundation’s work in China, you have options!  Contact our China Mission Specialist, Peter Lim: peterllim@yahoo.com; Jefferson Ritchie, Associate Director for Mission: jeff@theoutreachfoundation.org; or go to our website and follow the links to China: www.theoutreachfoundation.org.