In 2018, I published the book Atlas of Religion in China: Geographical and Social Contexts, which offers the most up-to-date, comprehensive overview of the changed religious landscape in China. I used government census data, social survey data, fieldwork observations, and historical studies to describe various religions in the red, black, or grey markets. It includes many color maps, award-winning photos, and beautifully made charts. You can find many of the maps online at the Online Spiritual Atlas of the Global East.
To conclude, I’d like to turn briefly to the theme set out by the Religion Program of the Chautauqua Institution: Cooperation, Competition, and Confrontation. There is a lot of room for Chinese and American collaboration in evangelistic missions and social services around the globe. The experience that the American church has gained in these areas is much needed by the Chinese church. At the same time, there is an ideological competition between the Communist model and the American model about the way of life. Finally, confrontation is also inevitable. I think the US government, NGOs, and many individuals will continue to confront the Chinese Communist party-state about their human rights violations, especially concerning religious freedom. We Americans believe that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are inalienable rights endowed by the Creator. In the globalization era, if we do not fight for these rights globally, we may lose them at home as well.
Editor’s Note: This article, together with the others in the series, was originally a lecture, given at the Chautauqua Institute on June 29, 2021. The lecture has been lightly edited and reprinted with permission.
In the last four or five years, the party-state has imposed stricter restrictions, shut down hundreds of jiating churches, and jailed some prominent pastors and lay leaders. In spite of the suppression, many jiating church Christians have continued to evangelize in the streets and public squares, distributing Bibles, tracts, or leaflets, and inviting people to church gatherings. The police stop them and sometimes detain the most active leaders, but they are often released within 24 hours or within a couple of weeks. But as soon as they are released, most of them go back to the streets and public squares again. They have been fired up so much that they are unstoppable.
In short, repressive regulations have not reduced religions, but have complicated the religious market and resulted in the tricolor religious markets. In other words, the spiritual awakening and religious revivals are not containable or controllable, even though the party-state has been trying very hard to suppress them.
After the Cultural Revolution, five religions were given official recognition. Official documents have provided the numbers of believers in each religion. It is surprising to see that atheist education and political suppression during the Cultural Revolution did not reduce the number of Catholics. The number of Muslims remained the same as well. The number of Protestants increased three times, from about one million to three million, which is extraordinary and miraculous. Actually, this is an undercount because the party-state is unwilling to admit its failure. An American historian, Daniel Bays of Calvin College, estimated that there were about five to six million Protestants around 1980.
Then, after 1989, the growth accelerated. In 1979, churches, temples, and mosques began to reopen. The number of Catholics grew to 5.3 million by 2010. The number of Protestants grew to more than 23 million by 2010. In 2018, there were nearly 40 million Protestants. Again, these are underreports by the party-state. Some independent scholars in China and outside China have reported higher estimates.1 One scholarly book said that there were about 20 million Protestants by 1990. Another scholar said there were about 50 million in the early 2000s. The Pew Research Center estimated that there were 58 million Protestants and 9 million Catholics in 2010. Some Christian research centers and mission organizations have put out much higher estimates. The extraordinarily rapid growth of Christians in China has not been well studied or widely reported. This is perhaps the biggest hidden story in the twenty-first century.
If the growth of Christians continues at a modest rate, it is likely that within one or two decades there will be more Christians in China than in the United States. Meanwhile, Chinese Christians have been warming up for overseas missions. They have already sent hundreds of missionaries to countries along the Silk Road in Central Asia, Southeast Asia, and Africa. Some missions movements are preparing to send out twenty to thirty thousand missionaries by the year 2030. The increased suppression by the Chinese party-state may have slowed this down, but only to some degree and probably only for a short while. I think the Christian growth and missions drive have become uncontainable.
The Tricolor Religious Market and the Growth of Christianity The Great Awakening in China By YANG Fenggang · May 13, 2022 · Topic: Religion in China
Christianity has been the fastest growing religion during the Great Awakening in China. Beginning in 2000, I have interviewed several hundred Christians, including entrepreneurs and businesspeople, academic scholars in various disciplines, young professionals, lawyers who have defended people for their civil and human rights, journalists, writers, and artists. Our center at Purdue has organized several projects to document these different segments of the growing Christian population in China.
How is it possible to have such religious revivals under Communist repression? My book Religion in China offers a sociological explanation. Without getting into academic jargon, I would simply say that we may compare religion to a market. There are legally approved religious sites, organizations, and activities of the five major religions of Buddhism, Daoism, Islam, Catholicism, and Protestant Christianity. These religious organizations are in the red market. They are legally allowed and tolerated but are also colored red, the Chinese Communist color, and have to follow the party-state instructions.
The number of officially approved churches has increased. Because these officially approved churches are not allowed to spread their religion outside the church, many churches have tried to make the church more visible through erecting a big cross on top of the church, and often with a bright neon light in the night. After seeing many rooftop crosses, the Communist Party boss of Zhejiang Province became very upset, rhetorically asking his subordinates: Is this still the land under Communist authority, or has it become the land under the cross? He then ordered that all the churches must take down their rooftop crosses, or their churches would be demolished. From 2014 to 2016, more than 1,500 crosses were taken down from churches in Zhejiang Province. But this political campaign failed to remove all the crosses. More importantly, even if the cross was removed, the church could still hold worship services, although it would be under close surveillance. Many of these churches continue to baptize people into the church. This is in the red market of religion.
There is also a black market of religion. Some new religious movements or sects have been banned. The party-state has carried out severe crackdowns on them, but some of them have managed to survive and even expand. They cannot be wiped out.
Besides the red and the black, there is also a grey market of religion, where the activities are neither legal nor illegal, or marginal between legal and illegal. For example, according to the party-state regulations, preaching outside religious venues and teaching religion to children under 18 years old are not allowed, but what if people do it in their own homes with their own children? Or some relatives and friends join them as well? These home gatherings have been called house churches. In Chinese, they are called jiating churches. It is hard to say whether the jiating church is legal or illegal. It is in the grey area. The jiating church has been very effective in evangelism. Indeed, the Buddhists have also adopted this form of doing religion.
In the first decade of the twenty-first century, many jiating churches grew too big to meet at people’s apartments. Therefore, they rented large halls at hotels or office buildings. Some congregations even purchased commercial real estate and renovated them into sanctuaries. They continued to be called jiating churches because they refused to join the official Christian association that is in the religious red market. Some of the jiating churches began to form new denominations.
Christianity in China Christianity in ChinaChristianity in China took root after Robert Morrison, a missionary and sinologist with the London Missionary Society, arrived in 1807 and translated the first Chinese Bible in 1819.
During the 200 years since then, Christianity in China was tested and grew through fiery trials, including the Taiping Rebellion (1850-1664), Mao's Cultural Revolution (1966-1976, see Project Pearl), and persecution by the Chinese Communist Party (1948-present).
How many Christians are in China today? Christians in China tend to attend either government-controlled Three Self churches or underground churches. Official statistics are sparse for both but still sufficient to deduce the number of Christians in China today.
In 2004, the Chinese Communist Party reported 18 million baptized Christians in China's Three Self churches. During the World Council of Churches Executive Committee meeting held in China November 17-23, 2016, China's Three Self Patriotic Movement and China Christian Council reported that that number had risen to 38 million.
Eighteen million in 2004 growing to 38 million in 2016 represents an annual growth rate of 6.5%, based on which there are 43.5 million baptized Three Self church Christians in China in 2018.
This 43.5 million figure excludes the Christian children of Three Self church Christians because the Chinese government forbids baptism until 18 years of age. Using a conservative ratio of 1 Christian under 18 years of age for every 8 baptized adults brings the total number of Three Self church Christians in 2018 to 49 million
What is the total number of Christians in China including the underground church? At a closed-door meeting at Peking University in 2006, Xiaowen Ye, the then head of the Chinese Communist Party's Religious Affairs Bureau reported that Protestants in China numbered 110 million.
Applying the same 6.5% annual growth rate to this figure for the 12 years since 2006 indicates 234 million* as the total number of Protestants in China in 2018.
Why do surveys report figures below 100 million? Chinese Christians are persecuted for their faith that ask about their faith are far less reliable than the numbers compiled by the Chinese government's intelligence services for their internal use.
It is generally accepted that China has between 2 to 4 times more underground church Christians than Three Self church Christians. Ratios of 2, 3 and 4 underground church Christians for every Three Self church Christian yield 147 million, 196 million and 245 million, respectively, as the total number of Christians in China in 2018 (the 234 million figure above indicates this ratio to be 3.8 to 1)."
What’s behind Boom of Christianity in China? Theology scholars and a global network of researchers are using big data to map religion’s history in China and explain its rapid growth FEBRUARY 2, 2023
MARC CHALUFOUR CYDNEY SCOTT Over the past four decades, Christianity has grown faster in China than anywhere else in the world. Daryl Ireland, a Boston University School of Theology research assistant professor of mission, estimates that the Christian community there has grown from 1 million to 100 million. What led to that explosion, centuries after the first Christian missionaries arrived in China? The BU scholars behind the China Historical Christian Database aim to find out.
The project, which allows researchers to visualize the history of Christianity in modern China, links web-based visualization tools with a database packed with the names and locations of missionaries, churches, schools, hospitals, and publications. Hosted by BU’s Center for Global Christianity & Mission, the project launched in 2018 and version 2.0 of the database is scheduled for release in 2023. The new version will double the amount of data previously available, providing approximately four million data points—names, occupations, locations, dates, and more—spanning four centuries (1550–1950).
The database began as a relatively modest class project. Alex Mayfield (STH’21) charted early 20th-century Pentecostals in Hong Kong for a history class taught by Eugenio Menegon at the BU Graduate School of Arts & Sciences. When Mayfield mentioned his research to Ireland, the pair began thinking about how to expand the work—by several centuries and across China. Mayfield, Menegon, and Ireland are now the principal investigators for the China Historical Christian Database.
Ireland spoke with The Brink about how the database could help scholars understand the relationships between China and the Western world.
Over the past four decades, Christianity has grown faster in China than anywhere else in the world. Daryl Ireland, a Boston University School of Theology research assistant professor of mission, estimates that the Christian community there has grown from 1 million to 100 million.Feb 2, 2023
In 1929, against all his friends' advice, Singh wished to make one last journey to Tibet. He was last seen on 18 April 1929 setting off on this journey. In April he reached Kalka, a small town below Simla, a prematurely aged figure in his yellow robe among pilgrims and holy men who were beginning their own trek to one of Hinduism's holy places some miles away. Where he went after that is unknown. Whether he died of exhaustion or reached the mountains remains a mystery.
In the early 1940s, Bishop Augustine Peters, another converted missionary from South India, sought out Singh's brother Rajender, led him to the Christian faith and baptised him in Punjab. Rajender Singh referred to many reputed miracles performed by Singh and people converted to Christ under his ministry.
Singh is revered by many as a formative, towering figure in the missionary conversions of the Christian church in India.
Recognition by other Christians Singh is respected in the Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church and the Coptic Church, although neither officially recognizes him as a saint. He was invited to address the Mateer Memorial Congregation (now the Mateer Memorial CSI Church) when he arrived in Travancore on 12 February 1918.
Sadhu is remembered in the Church of England with a commemoration on 19 June. In 2022, Singh's story was dramatized as a two-part broadcast through Pacific Garden Mission's Unshackled! radio ministry, airing as programs 3725 and 3726.
I personally would not be surprised if Sadhu really spend many years praying for others' Salvation For people, all around the world as he had seen the state so many were in. Lukewarm Christians....jenny Singh, reminds me of the Apostel Paul
Converting others Stories from those years are astonishing and sometimes incredible and full of miracles that helped in conversion. Indeed, there were those who insisted that they were mystical rather than real happenings. That first year, 1912, he returned with an extraordinary account of finding a three-hundred-year-old hermit in a mountain cave—the Maharishi of Kailas, with whom he spent some weeks in deep fellowship. This Maharishi told Singn that he spends his days praying for people all around the world
The secret Missionaries group is alleged to have numbered around 24,000 members across India. The origins of this brotherhood were reputed to be linked to one of the Magi at Christ's nativity and then the second-century AD disciples of the apostle Thomas circulating in India. Nothing was heard of this evangelistic fellowship until William Carey began his missionary work in Serampore. The Maharishi of Kailas experienced ecstatic visions about the secret fellowship that he retold to Sundar Singh, and Singh himself built his spiritual life around visions.
Whether he won many continuing disciples on these hazardous Tibetan treks is not known. One reason why no one believed his version of this story was because Singh did not keep written records and he was unaccompanied by any other Christian disciples who might have witnessed the events.
Travels abroad; During his twenties, Sundar Singh's gospel work widened greatly, and long before he was thirty, his name and picture were familiar all over the Christian world. He described a struggle with Satan to retain his humility, but people described him as always human, approachable, and humble, with a sense of fun and a love of nature. This character, with his illustrations from ordinary life, gave his addresses great impact. Many people said, "He not only looks like Jesus, he talks like Jesus must have talked." His talks and his personal speech were informed by his habitual early-morning meditation, especially on the gospels. In 1918 he made a long tour of South India and Ceylon, and the following year he was invited to Burma, Malaya, China, and Japan.
Some of the stories from these tours were as strange as any of his Tibetan adventures. He claimed power over wild animals. He claimed even to have power over disease and illness, though he never allowed his presumed healing gifts to be publicized.
For a long time Sundar Singh had wanted to visit Britain, and the opportunity came when his father, Sher Singh, who was converted too, gave him the money for his fare to Britain. He visited the West twice, travelling to Britain, the United States and Australia in 1920, and to Europe again in 1922. He was welcomed by Christians of many traditions, and his words searched the hearts of people who now faced the aftermath of World War I and who seemed to evidence a shallow attitude to life. Singh was appalled by what he saw as the materialism, emptiness and irreligion he found throughout the West, contrasting it with Asia's awareness of God, no matter how limited that might be. Once back in India he continued his gospel-proclamation work, though it was clear that he was getting more physically frail.
Final trip; In 1923, Singh made the last of his regular summer visits to Tibet and came back exhausted. His preaching days were apparently over and, in the following years, in his own home or those of his friends in the Simla hills, he gave himself to meditation, fellowship, and writing some of the things he had lived to preach.
He was referred to as "the apostle with the bleeding feet" by the Christian communities of the north. He suffered arrest and stoning for his beliefs and experienced mystical encounters.
In 1908, he crossed the frontier of Tibet, where he was appalled by the living conditions. He was stoned as he bathed in cold water because it was believed that "holy men never washed."
In 1908 he went to Bombay, hoping to board a ship to visit Palestine, but was refused a permit, and had to return to the north.
During his mission stay, he concluded that Western civilization had become the antithesis of original Christian values. He was disillusioned with the materialism and colonialism of Western society and tried to forge an Indian identity for the Indian church. He lamented that Indian Christians adopted British customs, literature and dress that had nothing to do with Christianity and Christ.
Formal Christian training; In December 1909, Singh began training for Christian ministry at the Anglican College in Lahore. According to his biographers, he did not form close relationships with fellow students, meeting them only at meal times and designated prayer sessions. He was ostracised for being "different".
Although Singh had been baptised by an Anglican priest, he was ignorant of the pastoral culture and conventions of Anglicanism. His inability to adapt hindered him from fitting in with the routines of academic study. Much in the college course seemed irrelevant to the gospel as India needed to hear it. After eight months in the college, Singh left in July 1910.
His biographers have claimed that Singh's withdrawal was due to stipulations laid down by Bishop Lefroy. As an Anglican priest, Singh was told to discard his sadhu's robe and wear "respectable" European clerical dress, use formal Anglican worship, sing English hymns and not preach outside his parish without permission. As an ardent devotee of Christ who was interested only in spreading his message, he rejected the mixing of Jesus Christ and British culture.
Sadhu Sundar Singh experienced numerous miracles in his life saving him from grave dangers. Once when he was in Tibet in a place called Risar, he was arrested for preaching a foreign religion and ordered to be cast into a dry well outside the village. The well-pit was foul with rotten bodies and the top cover was locked. For two nights he was in such a despairing situation without any hope of survival. But the third night he saw the cover open and rope being let down and he was pulled up. The Sadhu was convinced that it was an angel of the Lord who helped him. Similarly, he experienced divine help many times when he was beaten up and persecuted.
Sundar Singh also experienced the visions of the spirit world. His spiritual life was in constant communion with Christ. He received ecstatic gifts from God when he saw visions as frequently as eight to ten times a month which lasted an hour or two. They were not in a dream state and the Sadhu was conscious of what was happening. His spiritual eyes were opened to see the glory of the heavenly sphere and walk there with Christ and converse with angels and spirits. This resulted in severe criticism and he was even called as an impostor and his imaginations as product of a diseased mind. But those who knew the Sadhu personally and witnessed his spiritual life never doubted his sincerity.
In 1923, Sundar Singh bought his own house in Subathu where he rested for almost three years because of heart attacks, trouble in eyesight, ulcers and several other complications which confined him to his home. The busy tours abroad and constant travel and preaching engagements had its toll on him. The Sadhu started contributing to articles in magazine and also writing his own books which amounted to seven thin volumes written in Urdu and translated into English with the assistance of his friends. The bulk of his writings contained messages that he received through visions. His writings were influential and touched the lives of many people.
The Sadhu had a burning desire in his heart to visit Tibet again. He was strongly advised not to do so because of his ill health. When he attempted to go to Tibet in 1927, he suffered from severe hemorrhage of the stomach and had to be brought back. In April 1929, at the age of 39, Sundar determined to make another attempt to reach Tibet. He left instructions about his will and bid farewell to his friends. It was his last journey to Tibet and he was never to be seen again. Anxious friends made the efforts to trace him but to no avail. His death added one more mystery to a life which few people completely understood. We remember him on this day, although no one knows when he died.
Sundar Singh was always convinced that the water of life should be offered in the Indian cup. His short stint to equip himself with theological training at St. John’s Divinity College in Lahore in 1909 was largely unfruitful. Sundar considered that religious knowledge of the highest kind is acquired not by intellectual study but by direct contact with Christ. He even surrendered his preaching license from the Anglican church as he did not want to be constrained in a diocese. His call was to be a free agent without holding any office and take the message of Jesus Christ to all churches and people of all faiths.
Tibet had always been a closed land for Christian missionaries as it was a strong Buddhist nation. Sundar Singh had a special burden for ministry in Tibet. It became his mission field and between 1908-1920 he reportedly made up to twenty risky trips to the country. In spite of stubborn opposition from the Lamas, his message was received in the important town of Tashigang. It was during his travel to Tibet he met members of the Sanyasi Mission who were a secret Christian brotherhood numbering around 24,000.
By 1918 Singh’s fame had spread far and wide and he was flooded with offers to preach all over South India. Thousands of people flocked to his meetings with a keen desire to hear him. He went on to Ceylon and conducted spiritual meetings of great power for six weeks. He was greatly disturbed by the caste system prevailing in these regions and condemned it severely. His ministry extended to Burma, Malaya, Penang, Singapore, China, and Japan.
Sundar Singh had the joy of leading his father to Christ in the year 1919. His father sponsored him for his first journey to Europe. Sundar Singh was eager to find out the truth of the accusation that Christianity in the West had lost its splendor. He set off on a tour to England in January 1920. He stayed in England for three months and went to America and Australia. He addressed huge gatherings everywhere to crowds of all denominations. Sundar Singh found the West to be indifferent to spiritual values and materialistic in their worldview. While some people criticized him for his frank judgments, many were challenged and converted by his preaching. Sundar Singh made a second trip to Europe and visited Palestine to satisfy his long-cherished dream of seeing the Holy Land. He preached in most of the European countries to big audiences. It is indeed noteworthy to see an Indian presenting the message of the gospel to the Western world. However, Sundar Singh was disillusioned by the nominal Christianity and immorality of large sections of people in Europe. The Sadhu preferred the hardships of Tibet to the adulation of the Christian countries of the Western world.
Sadhu Sundar Singh was born on September 3, 1889 into a rich Sikh family in Punjab. His mother was a pious woman who had a strong influence in his life. Her prayer was that her youngest son, Sundar, would renounce the world and become a Sadhu (or saintly wise man). She nurtured Sundar Singh in the Sikh and Hindu holy books. Her death when Sundar was only fourteen dealt her son a severe blow. He desperately searched for peace and began reading all sorts of religious books and practicing Yoga. His father put him in a Christian mission school in his village where Sundar developed a profound hatred for Christians. He went to the extent of tearing up a Bible and burning it into pieces.
Sundar made a despairing resolve to commit suicide if he failed to get a revelation of the living God. Early in the morning on Dec 18, 1904, he begged God to show him the way to salvation and determined to end his life on the railway track if his prayers were unanswered. At half past four a bright light shone in his room and he had a vision of Jesus. Sundar heard Christ speaking to him, “How long will you persecute me? I died for you, I gave my life for you.” Sundar Singh fell down in worship and surrendered his life to Christ. This vision forever convinced him that he had seen the true God and it sustained him during the coming persecution. When he cut his long hair to renounce his religion, it was considered as a shame on the whole Sikh race and an unforgivable disobedience. His family poisoned the food he ate and sent him out of the house. He was miraculously saved by the grace of God and timely treatment given by nearby Christian villagers.
Thirty-three days after his baptism at sixteen years old, Sundar Singh began his life as a Christian sadhu. He was distressed to see the Indian church inculcating Western culture, imitating its customs and failing to present the gospel in Indian terms. Sundar Singh knew that a life of a sadhu was the best way to present the gospel message of Christ to Indians. His yellow robe won him admission into many villages and people listened to him. He wandered barefoot, Sundar felt he was not worthy to walk in his sandals as Jesus did. Without any possessions except his thin linen garment, a blanket, and a New Testament in Urdu. He preached the Gospel in villages near his home, then he traveled through Punjab to Afghanistan and Kashmir, lands where Christian mission work had hardly begun. On his travels, Sundar Singh met Samuel Stokes, a wealthy American who came to India for missionary work and joined him for some time in ministry. He learned from him the ideals of Francis of Assisi; his life as a preaching friar inspired him.
The Church of North India, the Church of Pakistan, and the Church of South India are united Protestant Churches that were established as a result of evangelism and ecumenism by Anglicans, Methodists, and other Protestants in India who flourished in colonial India.
Christians were active in the Indian National Congress and the Indian Independence movement. The All India Conference of Indian Christians advocated for swaraj (self rule) and opposed the partition of India.
Along with native Christians, small Eurasian Christian communities such as Anglo-Indians, Luso-Indians, Armenian Indians, and others had also existed in the subcontinent. There are also reports of a sizable number of crypto-Christians of Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Jain backgrounds living in India in recent years, due to fear of religious persecution
Christianity in India; From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Saint Thomas Christian cross from the 9th century Kadamattom Church Total population 26 million (2.3%) (2011) Regions with significant populations The largest Christian population in Kerala at 6.14 million (18.4% of the state population), Majority in Nagaland at 88%, Mizoram at 87% and Meghalaya at 75%. Plurality in Manipur at 42% and Arunachal Pradesh at 30%. Significant populations in Goa at 25%, Pondicherry at 6.3% and Tamil Nadu at 6.2%. Religions; Protestant (59.22%), Catholic (33.19%), Syrian Orthodox (7.44%), Others (0.15%) etc. Languages; Malayalam, Syriac, Latin, Bengali, Punjabi, English, Tamil, Hindi, Bodo, Khasi, Karbi, Mizo, Rabha, Mushing, Naga, Kuki, Garo, Hmar, Nepali, Assamese, Odia, Gujarati, Marathi, Kokborok, Konkani, Kadodi, Kannada, Telugu and various Indian languages Names in native languages include Esai, Kristhava, Masihi-Qaum, Nasrani Part of a series on Christianity in India
Christianity is India's third-largest religion with about 26 million adherents, making up 2.3 percent of the population as of the 2011 census. The written records of the Saint Thomas Christians state that Christianity was introduced in the Indian subcontinent by Thomas the Apostle, who sailed to the Malabar region in the present-day Kerala state in 52 AD.
The Acts of Thomas mentions that the first converts were Malabarese Jews, who had settled in India before the birth of Christ. Thomas who was a Jew by birth came in search of Indian Jews. Following years of evangelizing, Thomas was martyred and his remains were buried at St. Thomas Mount in Mylapore. A scholarly consensus exists that Christian communities had firmly established in Malabar by 600 AD at the latest. These communities were composed mainly of Nestorians, belonging to the Church of the East in India, that used the East Syriac Rite.
Following the discovery of a sea route to India by the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama in the 15th century AD, Western Christianity was established in the European colonies of Goa, Tranquebar, Bombay, Madras, and Pondicherry in the form of the Catholic Church (particularly its Latin Church) and Protestants Christian missionaries introduced the western educational system to the Indian subcontinent to spread Christianity and campaigned for social reforms.
For the next few years that God gave him, every spare moment was spent in this labor of love; for it he received great strength and remarkable powers of endurance. Rising at four in the morning, he would pray, first alone, then with his wife, before eating breakfast and setting out for work. Instead of resting in the evening, he would take his tea, go on his knees for half an hour, then wind his way through the Wynds with his precious Bible in his hand. Many were the occasions when, exhausted by the day’s work, he would run to Lochee, a few miles away, and conduct a service. Moved with compassion for the lost, he would then spend half the night pleading for them with God. How like his Saviour . . .
Robert also wrote many letters commending Christ to others. One such letter, sent to a man who was trying to plant one foot in the world and the other in Christ, tells the man frankly that ‘men who set their affections on the earth have lean souls. Their Christianity is doubtful. If they are Christians, they will be punished by God for serving other gods. They will be saved so as by fire. They will, like Lot, get a taste of Hell before they enter Heaven. I hear, for example, of “Christians” who have spent six or seven hours dancing, and never spent an hour with God in prayer. I would not give a straw for their chances of Heaven.’
Last Days and Death On Wednesday 24th July 1867, Robert was standing on a raft floating on the River Tay. Suddenly he felt the presence of God so near that he bowed his head in awe. He understood this experience as an intimation that his own death was near; so he told Christian friends: ‘Don’t wonder if you hear some strange thing about me one of these days!’
Over the years, Robert had saved eleven people from drowning in the Tay, including his brother Ebenezer and a poor prostitute who was contemplating suicide. In recognition of these heroic exploits, Dundee Humane Society had presented him with a silver medal and a parchment.
Lord’s Day morning, 28th July, found him at his usual preaching stance in Couttie’s Wynd. He began the unofficial service by singing: Forever with the Lord! Amen, so let it be! During the sermon he referred to his experience on the raft. He told his hearers what a great salvation they missed by living without Christ, and reminded them of the uncertainty of life. ‘In fact,’ he added, ‘I may never have another opportunity of preaching to you. Before next Sunday I may be in heaven.’
After this he went to the church service, then to a Gypsy camp in the afternoon. Early in the evening he preached again at Lilybank and Couttie’s Wynd, before returning to the Gypsies to sing and preach again. On Wednesday 31st July, he rose early for prayer, ate breakfast, and then did something very unusual. He hung two boards outside his house, reminding passers-by of two roads through this life – one a broad road leading to hell, the other a narrow road leading to heaven. He concluded with the solemn question: ‘Where will you spend Eternity?’ He then took a piece of chalk and wrote on his gate the word DEATH, and on the pavement ETERNITY
The Prodigal Returns; Dejected and confused, he was led by the invisible hand of God to attend ‘revival meetings’ being held in the Kinnaird Hall (1860-61). Dundee was being awakened, and many souls had already been effectually called by grace to the Saviour. During these meetings, Robert knew that God was speaking to him, but he refused to be drawn. His ‘time of love’ had not yet arrived. One evening, however, a young man bade him ‘Good Night’ and added: ‘We shall meet at the Judgment Seat.’ In turmoil, Robert sought guidance from others but found God’s door closed. ‘Am I shut out of salvation forever?’ he cried. At midnight, in great distress of mind, he visited his minister’s manse, but again received no liberty. Then he went straight to Dundee Law, a great hill in the city, in a dreadful state of mind. There he heard the voice of Satan telling him to go to Camperdown Woods and put an end to his life; but he dared not, for fear of falling into hell. Then he felt the urge to go to Reres Hill and seek pardon, but he never went. Utterly disconsolate, he returned to a hayloft near his home, and for thirteen hours lay wrestling with God for the salvation of his soul. This intense and protracted struggle was interrupted only by his anxious parents, who were seeking him. For three days he neither ate nor slept. A pastoral visit from his minister, however, pointed him to Christ our Mercy Seat, and at last, he found peace with God. This was the great turning point of his life. Through bitter experience, he had tasted the shame and degrading power of sin. Now he was to discover the invincible power of grace.
New Life; After the storm came the calm of joy and peace in believing; but Robert Annan knew that he had been saved to serve God and others. With the same thoroughness that had marked his unregenerate life, he gave himself whole-heartedly to the work of evangelism. He began by distributing gospel tracts in Hilltown. Many never read them, but everyone noticed his changed character and habits. Only two nights after his conversion he spoke at an informal meeting. His voice was harsh, and his manner was rough, but no one doubted his sincerity. Soon his zeal aroused opposition, yet nothing now mattered to him but the salvation of souls. Along with a few other young men he formed an Evangelistic Association, which met weekly for prayer and Bible study. In the day he worked as a stone mason; at night he went street preaching. All his savings were now poured into evangelistic tours. Once, in Fifeshire, where he had been widely known as a drunkard and brawler, folk marveled when they heard him preach. In 1862 Robert married and joined the North East Coast Mission, stationed at Stonehaven. Here he was often physically assaulted while preaching, but nothing could deter him.
Two years later he returned to Dundee. Though the whole town felt the effects of his preaching, he was drawn mainly to the down-and-outs, to whom he could relate best. He neither sought nor pastored a settled congregation, but was always busy in the Wynds of Old Dundee, jeered, mocked, and driven from one alley to another. Every Lord’s Day morning he would preach in Fish Street, or Couttie’s Wynd, or Tyndal’s Wynd. In the bitterest weather, he never missed an opportunity to preach Jesus Christ and him crucified. On several occasions, through his gentleness, those who intended to harm him became his friends. Once he was called on to stop a drunkard beating his wife. He rescued her, but instead of condemning the husband, he told him of the love of God for sinners.
Robert Annan never founded a church, wrote a book, or entered a Christian pulpit. His sphere of influence was not among the learned or cultured but among the down-and-outs of 19th-century His mission was to seek out the lost of his native town – living in squalid closes, often drunk and asleep in their dark hovels, their raggedly-clad children playing in the gutters outside – and bring to them the glorious truths of a Saviour able to save the most degraded prodigals and bring them back to God. In God’s kind providence, Dundee had already produced Robert Murray M’Cheyne, the pastor who wept over the city, and Mary Slessor, the young Christian woman who took the love of Christ to Africa. Now it was to produce Robert Annan, a prodigal snatched from the depths of sin largely for the sake of others.
Birth and Early Life Robert Annan was born in Dundee on 5th October 1834. His minister, John Macpherson, or ‘hell-fire Jock’, was feared for his fiery preaching and strict discipline. As a boy, Robert’s chief pleasure was swimming. He would regularly wake early, run down to the River Tay and plunge into its swirling waters. Sometimes he was known to break the ice before taking his customary dip. Soon he became known as ‘The Water Dog.’
The Prodigal Son Being without God, and impatient of all restraint, Robert grew up to be very unruly. Refusing a good education and a respectable office job, he became a stone mason under his father (who incidentally built Annan Terrace, now remembered for its link with his son), but wasted his wages on liquor. The taverns of Dundee soon came to know him as the ringleader of a drunken, fighting, swearing mob. Inevitably he landed up in prison, where he resolved in vain to change his ways. On his release, he sailed for America, which he reached only after surviving a shipwreck. There he plunged into a whirl of sinful pleasure. Once he fell asleep on a railway line and escaped death by only a few minutes.
Eventually, he wandered into Canada, where he found work tending pigs; but seeking a more adventurous life, he joined the army, and was posted to Aldershot in England. The strict discipline there was used by God to restrain his wild nature, but it proved too much for his self-will, and he deserted. Disguised as a peasant, wearing a tattered jacket, a boot on one foot and a shoe on the other, he made his way to London. There he joined the marines for the sake of the bounty money, and was posted to Gibraltar, where to his alarm he found his old regiment. Every time he saw a redcoat, he imagined he would be arrested and flogged for desertion. To banish his dread, he gave himself up, and was punished.
Having learned by experience that ‘the way of transgressors is hard’, he returned home, and decided to turn over a new leaf. In the ‘strength’ of this self-reformation he visited an inn to try and persuade a former drinking companion to give up the habit, but finished up drunk himself. He woke next morning with his resolution shattered and the question haunting him: ‘Am I past redemption? Surely I’ve sold myself to Satan.’
Jenny, Jenny He didn't do it. I looked under my bed and there was nothing for me. I struggled to clear my mind as I had been in a deep sleep, when Monica woke me. I wondered what she was talking about. What are you trying to say, honey? There is no doll Jenny, there is no doll under my bed.
Ah now I did remember. Monica wanted very much to have a dolly. I had told her to pray and ask the Lord for it. She had done so and now believed that He had not delivered as she thought He would, by putting the doll under her bed.
I tried to explain to her that God was not Santa Claus, that He works through people. I could tell that this was too much for her to understand, she was only five years old.
That very afternoon her girlfriend, who lived next door, came over to the house. Lisa was very excited. Monica, my dad just came home from a trip and look at what he brought me, a new doll, and if you want to, you can have my other doll.
Now Monica's eyes lit up and she looked at me with wonder, for she now understood that indeed, God works through people.
A very famous preacher, Hudson Taylor once said, Lord, that you will answer my prayer, I know! What fascinates me every time is, How you are going to answer.
Johannes, another Iranian, left Tehran for Vienna. Born into a Muslim family, the 32-year-old – who was previously called Sadegh – began questioning the roots of Islam at university. “I found that the history of Islam was completely different from what we were taught at school. Maybe, I thought, it was a religion that began with violence.
Converts or not, letting them in is the Christian thing to do Giles Fraser “A religion that began with violence cannot lead people to freedom and love. Jesus Christ said ‘those who use the sword will die by the sword’. This really changed my mind.”
Johannes began the process of converting to Christianity in Iran. He was ambushed with a group of others leaving a bible class but managed to escape and went into hiding. When the Austrian visa he had already applied for came through, he left the country.
Now waiting for the outcome of his asylum application, he has not told his parents of his conversion: only his sister knows his “secret”. Where in the world is the worst place to be a Christian?
Authorities say there are about 90,000 Christians in Iran, though some human rights organizations put their number as high as 500,000. While Iranian law does not order the death penalty for converting from Islam to another faith, courts have handed down death sentences based on interpretation of Sharia law and legal opinions issued by religious leaders.
Last year, the Austrian bishops’ Conference published new guidelines for priests, warning that some refugees may seek baptism in the hope of improving their chances of obtaining asylum.
“Admitting persons for baptism who are during the official procedure classified as ‘not credible’ leads to a loss in the church’s credibility across the whole of Austria,” the new guidelines say.
European churches say a growing flock of Muslim refugees is converting Anecdotal evidence suggests rising pattern of Muslims becoming Christians, with some churches conducting mass baptisms
A growing number of Muslim refugees in Europe are converting to Christianity, according to churches, which have conducted mass baptisms in some places.
Reliable data on conversions is not available but anecdotal evidence suggests a pattern of rising church attendance by Muslims who have fled conflict, repression, and economic hardship in countries across the Middle East and Central Asia.
Complex factors behind the trend include heartfelt faith in a new religion, gratitude to Christian groups offering support during perilous and frightening journeys, and an expectation that conversion may aid asylum applications.
At Trinity church in the Berlin suburb of Steglitz, the congregation has grown from 150 two years ago to almost 700, swollen by Muslim converts, according to Pastor Gottfried Martens. Earlier this year, churches in Berlin and Hamburg reportedly held mass conversions for asylum seekers at municipal swimming pools.
The Austrian Catholic church logged 300 applications for adult baptism in the first three months of 2016, with the Austrian pastoral institute estimating 70% of those converting are refugees.
At Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral in the UK, a weekly Persian service attracts between 100 and 140 people. Nearly all are migrants from Iran, Afghanistan and else where in central Asia.
One in four confirmations conducted by the bishop of Bradford, Toby Howarth, over the past year, were of converts from Islam. Most were Iranian and most of those were asylum seekers.
Mohammad Eghtedarian, a curate at Liverpool Cathedral and a refugee from Iran who converted to Christianity and was later ordained, said the church was helping people to develop their faith and to apply for refugee status. “These two are intertwined. Most people apply for asylum on the basis of their religion,” he said.
Maybe, I thought, Islam was a religion that began with violence Johannes, an Iranian refugee His own journey, from the Iranian city of Shiraz to the UK, took him through half a dozen European countries, by truck, train, and on foot. Destitute and terrified, he was offered practical and emotional support from Christians along the way.
Before being granted asylum, Eghtedarian spent four months in the Tinsley House detention centre, near Gatwick Airport. “Every day was challenging and beautiful. Challenging because I didn’t know if they would deport me; beautiful because I was in the Lord’s hands. I promised the Lord: if you release me, I will serve you.”
Now he devotes himself to helping other refugees. “People are desperate. They spend a lot of money and waste a lot of money. They are vulnerable, abused and sometimes [they have been] raped.” The experience of being a refugee was degrading and dehumanizing, he said.
Johannes, another Iranian, left Tehran for Vienna. Born into a Muslim family, the 32-year-old – who was previously called Sadegh – began questioning the roots of Islam at university. “I found that the history of Islam was completely different from what we were taught at school. Maybe, I thought, it was a religion that began with violence.
Converts or not, letting them in is the Christian thing to do “A religion that began with violence cannot lead people to freedom and love. Jesus Christ said ‘Those who use the sword will die by the sword’. This really changed my mind.”
Johannes began the process of converting to Christianity in Iran.
Ephesians 2:8-10 For by grace, you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.
We were sitting at the dining room table we had not yet started our study. We were waiting for a few others to come. Chuck joined us at the table when he said to me; “may I ask you something? Last week I smashed my basement up, I mean I really smashed it” He asked me if I thought it was demonic.
I told him that I didn’t know him from Adam and that it could have been that he just had a bad temper. He looked at me, then at his cousin, “this is embarrassing,” he said; “my cousin does not even know about this” About six months ago he told us, he had said to Satan that if he existed, to show himself.
No one dared to breathe, I felt numb and taken aback I never expected this, nor did I have experience in how to deal with something like this. I silently prayed for help from above. I asked him if he now knew that Satan existed. He said that indeed he now knew.
"Well, the first thing that happened was that my wife was in a car accident, she is now in a wheelchair. My daughter has prayer beads, a Rosary. They are so strong that I could never break them. They are broken now. Doors and cabinets started to open and close by themselves. I am an ex-policeman. I have studied martial arts for six years. I am only telling you this to show you that I am not a wimp. But I am also telling you, that I am scared!"
“Chuck, you have good reason to be scared. When you came in tonight, the first thing you told us was, that you wanted nothing to do with Christianity, I am afraid that there is really nothing that I can do for you now.”
I looked at Chuck and the way he looked at me, made me ask; “Or do you want Christianity, Chuck?" To everyone's relief, he said that he did.
I felt that even though I was doing the talking, the others were silently praying. I explained that I would say the prayer, and if Chuck agreed with what I prayed, he would repeat it after me.
First renounced the works of Satan and bound his power, and then I said the sinner’s prayer, where Chuck asked Jesus to be his personal Saviour. Apparently, Chuck had a short fuse by nature, but when his immediate family saw the change in him, they also gave their hearts to the lord, and then his brothers and sisters came, the whole family!
Chuck came to see me one day to thank me. I said; “Chuck, you were supposed to be here that night at the Bible study that was no accident. I was only the medium that the Lord used, for; “He works through people”.
He went on to tell me that his wife was now out of the wheelchair, she had not miraculously jumped out but was slowly being healed. No more doors or cabinets were mysteriously opening or closing. Satan was indeed bound in his house.
Later I found out from Chuck's cousin, that he and a brother had started their own church..................................
So I have moved up in the world, living on the 15th floor. It had a fantastic view of Mount Baker. I felt like I lived on top of the world. One day I had the idea to start a Bible study and decided to put up an ad on the bulletin board in the foyer.
It read; “you don't like religion but you would like to learn more about the Bible? Then join us every Wednesday, from 8-10, o'clock.”
After I had posted this, I got scared, who was I to start this? I was not a teacher. Well maybe nobody would come. I was wrong!
To my surprise, that first evening five people showed up. Well, I had said "A" and now I had to say "B". It went very well I must say. At ten o’clock I made coffee and by twelve, I had to tell everyone to go home. They told me that they enjoyed the fellowship, but we all had to go to work the next day.
At the next meeting, one of the fellows brought his cousin Chuck. He said that he would be staying with him for a while and that he came along, as he did not want to be alone. The first thing Chuck told us was that he did not want anything to do with Christianity. I told him that this would not be a problem, to go sit on the sofa and grab a book, if that is what he felt like doing.
I dreamt that I went to Heaven and an angel was showing me around. We walked Side-by-side inside a large workroom filled with angels.
My angel guide stopped in front of the first section and said, "This is the Receiving Section. Here, all petitions to God said in prayer are received."
I looked around this area, and it was terribly busy with so many angels sorting out petitions written on voluminous paper sheets and scraps from people all over the world.
Then we moved on down a long corridor until we reached the second section. The angel then said to me, "This is the Packaging and Delivery Section. Here, the graces and blessings the people asked for are processed and delivered to the living persons who asked for them."
I noticed again how busy it was there. There were many angels working hard at that station, since so many blessings had been requested and were being packaged for delivery to Earth.
Finally, at the farthest end of the long corridor, we stopped at the door of a very small station. To my great surprise, only one angel was seated there, idly doing nothing. "This is the Acknowledgment Section," my angel friend quietly admitted to me. He seemed embarrassed.
"How is it that? There's no work going on here?" I asked.
"So sad." the angel sighed. "After people receive the blessings that they asked for, very few send back acknowledgments."
"How does one acknowledge God's blessings?" I asked.
"Simple," the angel answered. "Just say, Thank You, Lord".
"What blessings should they acknowledge?" I asked.
"If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead, and a place to sleep. You are richer than 75% of this world."
"If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish, you are among the top 8% of the world's wealthy."
"And if you get this on your own computer, you are part of the 1% in the world who has that opportunity."
Also "If you woke up this morning with more health than illness. You are more blessed than the many who will not even survive this day."
"If you have never experienced the fear in battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or pangs of starvation .. you are ahead of 700 million people in the world"
"If you can attend a church meeting without the fear of harassment, arrest, torture or death. You are envied by, and more blessed than, three billion people in the world."
"If your parents are still alive and still married. you are very rare."
"If you can hold your head up and smile, you are not the norm. You are unique to all those in doubt and despair."
"Ok, what now?" How can I start?"
If you can read this message, you just received a double blessing in that someone was thinking of you as very special and you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world who cannot read at all.
Have a good day, count your blessings, and if you want, pass this along to remind everyone else how blessed we all are.
ATTN: Acknowledgement Department - Thank You Lord! -
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Using that passage of scripture as a foundation, James Montgomery composed the lyrics to “The Lord Is My Shepherd”. Born in 1771 in Scotland, Montgomery wrote 400 hymns during his life. “A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief”, “Prayer Is the Soul’s Sincere Desire”, and “Angels From the Realms of Glory” are some of Montgomery’s most recognizable pieces of work. James Montgomery Wrote “The Lord Is My Shepherd,” Which is Based on Psalm 23, As Well As Other Hymns You Sing weekly.
There was one thing my boss would not tolerate, not being able to make it to work because of car trouble. Calling in sick was okay but not car trouble. This was my reason for trying to find a place within walking distance of my job. Finding a place to rent was still very difficult so bad that some people resorted to paying a landlord as much as a thousand dollars under the table. I saw three towers 16 stories high and called at their office, Sorry, but we have no vacancies. Just when I turned around the landlady asked me where did I work. I told her and she said that she would love to find a job there too, I told her that every Wednesday was the day she could apply there. The next Tuesday I called her to remind her to apply the next day. The lady was so impressed that I had taken the trouble to remind her that she told me the next vacancy that she had would be mine. Thank you, Jesus, that is how I ended up on the 15th floor a few weeks later. A fantastic few of Mount Baker mine to enjoy every morning. I lived there for almost 5 years. The landlady I found out never did apply for a job where I worked. I am the King's kid......................
First the oil heater, there was no way to tell how much oil was left in the tank. Mona did not use the cottage much except to keep her papers dry. so it was guessing work then. Before refilling the heather had to be cleaned. I had come in August and it was now November, so far so good. Then, one day coming home so very tired, the oil heather was out and I discovered the new roof was leaking. Right above the toilet................Go ahead and laugh as you are visualizing me on the throne with my umbrella above my head. I went to sit on the sofa and a scripture came to mind. " I came to give you life and give it more abundantly" I totally lost it................I yelled, Lord if this is the abundant life, you promised, You can take it back. The Lord was so impressed by my outburst when I had coffee with a girl from the bakery a few days later, She told me that she was thinking of renting out her basement suite. You are? The Lord was not really impressed by my outburst but more likely with my honesty. Never be afraid, to be honest with your Savior........................
Vancouver and its surrounding areas are home to some of the most spectacular temperate rainforests in the Pacific Northwest. Did you know that 25% of the world's temperate rainforests are in British Columbia?
Vancouver is a beautiful city, I lived there for several years when I got married in '84, until 2001. But one thing, it rains a lot there. This is not a joke it rained one time for 7 weeks straight. Vancouverites are very touchy when talking about the weather. Many jokes are floating around, In Vancouver you don't tan, you rust. It only rained twice last week, once 4 days and once three days. I will take you later back to Mona and the cottage I got to live in and oh yah the rain.
My job was taken care, of ( I worked at that store for 5 years until I got married in "84) I now had to get the cottage ready for me. A towel took care of an old beat-up coffee table, not much I could do about the sofa. The bed was comfortable so that was a plus. No air conditioner, but my Ford Mustang did not have it either, and that in California? When crossing the border I found out that my '64 Mustang was now a collector item and was told I could not sell it for a year. Loved that car drove it for 16 years and ended up selling it for almost as much as I had bought it for) There was an oil heater for the winter but it was only August so we worry about that another time. It had a shower that worked just fine and Mona had assured me she had just put a new roof put on the cottage.
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What Makes Jesus Unique? No one else made the claims that He did, He is alive...............
In 2018, I published the book Atlas of Religion in China: Geographical and Social Contexts, which offers the most up-to-date, comprehensive overview of the changed religious landscape in China. I used government census data, social survey data, fieldwork observations, and historical studies to describe various religions in the red, black, or grey markets. It includes many color maps, award-winning photos, and beautifully made charts. You can find many of the maps online at the Online Spiritual Atlas of the Global East.To conclude, I’d like to turn briefly to the theme set out by the Religion Program of the Chautauqua Institution: Cooperation, Competition, and Confrontation. There is a lot of room for Chinese and American collaboration in evangelistic missions and social services around the globe. The experience that the American church has gained in these areas is much needed by the Chinese church. At the same time, there is an ideological competition between the Communist model and the American model about the way of life. Finally, confrontation is also inevitable. I think the US government, NGOs, and many individuals will continue to confront the Chinese Communist party-state about their human rights violations, especially concerning religious freedom. We Americans believe that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are inalienable rights endowed by the Creator. In the globalization era, if we do not fight for these rights globally, we may lose them at home as well.
Editor’s Note: This article, together with the others in the series, was originally a lecture, given at the Chautauqua Institute on June 29, 2021. The lecture has been lightly edited and reprinted with permission.