Global Chinese Ministries Newsletter - November 2007

By Tony Lambert, Director for China Research, OMF International

1957 Isobel Kuhn

On March 20, 1957 Isobel Kuhn, China Inland Mission (CIM) missionary to China and Thailand, slipped peacefully into the presence of the Lord. She was only 55, but her ministry has left a lasting spiritual legacy among her beloved Lisu people in southwest China and among the tribes in north Thailand.

After her conversion, Isobel studied at Moody Bible College in Chicago, where she paid her way by working long hours as a waitress. Open air evangelism and prison visitation showed her the real world in all its fallenness and need. She applied to the China Inland Mission, but was initially rejected, as one character reference held a grudge against her and gave her a negative assessment. She arrived in China in 1928 where, after a year, she married John Kuhn, also a CIM missionary. For the next nearly 30 years together, they served the Lord faithfully. In 1934 they first worked among the Lisu, who then had the unenviable reputation as one of the most pagan and drunken tribes in the whole of Asia. Like James O. Fraser before her, Isobel regarded intercessory prayer as paramount in establishing a bridgehead for the gospel and as the foundation for all the evangelism and building up of the church which was to follow.

Fifty years after the death of Isobel Kuhn the gospel is thriving in the remote mountain valleys along the Salween River which are the home of the Lisu. In 1950 about one fifth of the total population of Fugong, which was 18,000, were Christian (about 3,400 souls). Today the population has soared to more than 70,000 of which 80-90 percent are believers—most are Lisu. This is a massive increase from a few thousand to more than 50,000. The total number of Lisu believers in Yunnan may well be 100-200,000. In China more than 75,000 Biblrd have been legally printed in Lisu to cater to the growing Lisu church.

Pray for God to provide well-trained pastors and preachers. Also pray for the many young people from Christian families who are lured from the simplicity of church-centered life in their mountain villages to find work in the cities.

GOSPEL WORK IN HONG KONG AND MACAU

OMF Hong Kong reports that at the end of May three teenagers and a single mother were baptized. Then over the summer a good “Summer English Adventure” was held. There were 270 students from seven churches and there were numerous conversions, including the mother of one of the students. Pray for them.

Another worker reports that the summer discipleship training course was a good time of learning, sharing and witnessing for God. Pray that these young people will keep their spiritual fire burning.

Pray and ask for new workers in Macau. Pray for students, some of whom are leaving Macau for further education in universities in Mainland China or Taiwan. Pray, too, for ministry to Macau’s notorious casinos where many lives are permanently ruined, and for neighborhood outreach.

AIDS PREVENTION

Most of the vast number of drug addicts in southwest China are also AIDS patients, so AIDS prevention usually goes hand-in-hand with drug rehabilitation. Some local churches have provided systematic training for co-workers, including a three-month theory course to teach them the basic facts about AIDS and relevant Bible teaching. They then spend six months in rural areas to learn about the situation first hand and to help local people. A further three months is spent setting up a work unit in the field to implement AIDS prevention and drug rehabilitation. The local governments have been very supportive and often pay for the school fees for AIDS orphans. Christian organizations from overseas are also fully involved by providing expert advice and working alongside local doctors and officials. Similar work is being done in Henan, where an entire village has been devastated by AIDS, after desperately poor villagers (some of them Christians) sold their blood and became infected (Christian Communications Ltd. [CCL], Hong Kong).

NEW DRIVE AGAINST UNREGISTERED CHURCHES

A long article by Associated Press (August 24) states that authorities have stepped up arrests on Christian groups operating outside China’s official government church following a crackdown ordered in July.
At least 15 leaders of unofficial house churches have been detained across six provinces and regions, according to the China Aid Association. They include seven church leaders arrested during a worship service in Inner Mongolia and six others detained for up to 10 days in neighboring provinces as well as Shandong and Jiangsu. In another case a Christian businessman was arrested while picking up an order of two tons of Bibles at a bus station.

These actions follow a crackdown on unauthorized religious activity ordered on July 5 as part of a drive against crime and economic chaos at the village level. The new directive seems based on remarks made by the vice minister for Public Security at a nationwide teleconference and posted on the government’s website. “Strike hard against illegal religious and evil cult activity, eliminate elements that affect the stability of village government,” said the new directive. Other crimes targeted ranged from kidnapping and gang activity to production of fake products, and the exploitation of the millions of children left behind in the villages by parents who migrate to work in the cities.

Some of those arrested had been conducting worship services or vacation Bible camps. One Bible class for young people run by Ms. Kong was interrupted by local officials on July 14. Determined to make her stop, they cut water and electricity to her home. They demanded she guarantee in writing she would not conduct classes in future, warning that until she does so, they would also cut power and water to the homes of anyone found meeting with her (Associated Press, August 24, 2007).

Urgent prayer is needed for many innocent house-church Christians who are in danger of being targeted as “evil cults.”

THE BIBLE IN MONGOLIAN

The China Christian Council has revealed that translation of the Bible into Mongolian is in progress. Mr. Xu, the head of the CCC Publications Department, recently stated: “The church in Hohhot, the capital of Inner Mongolia, has developed quickly and needs our assistance. The number of Christians is not necessarily high (some 100,000) but they are spread over a very large area. Because of the lack of churches, they have to attend services in neighboring provinces. Translation into Mongolian is needed as many Mongolians cannot read Chinese” (Amity News Service [ANS], March 2007). This is interesting evidence that although Mandarin is taught throughout China, many minority people are still unable to read it and prefer to use their own language.

Various translations of the Bible into Mongolian have been made ever since the London Missionary Society first sent missionaries to the Buryat Mongols in 1818. However, not all translations are suitable for Inner Mongolia. Outer Mongolia which moved into the Soviet sphere of influence after 1921, still uses Russian Cyrillic script, whereas the Mongols (more numerous by far) in Inner Mongolia still use the ancient Mongol script which is related to Syriac. It is good to see the CCC taking a proactive role in providing the Bible to the Mongolian people in their own tongue.

Copyright 2007 OMF International