The Church In China Persecuted, Pentecostal, And Powerful

Click to join the conversation with over 500,000 Pentecostal believers and scholars

Click to get our FREE MOBILE APP and stay connected

Book Reviews / Pneuma 29 (2007) 131-178

169

Luke Wesley, The Church in China: Persecuted, Pentecostal, and Powerful (Baguio City, Philippines: AJPS Books, 2004), xv + 123 pp.

The book under review is the first monograph, albeit a very short one, devoted exclusively to the Pentecostal and Charismatic expressions of Chinese Christianity. It is equally divided into three parts, following the subtitle Persecuted, Pentecostal, and Powerful, to deal with the repressive policy of the Chinese government, the growth of “Pentecostal” churches, and their impact on Christians as compared to the mainstream “official” churches belonging to the China Christian Council/T ree-Self Patriotic Movement.

The persecution of house churches, or of all forms of religions not recognised by the State, is well documented in many other studies. For the sake of caution, the author writes under a pseudonym to protect his sources. However, what is original about this book, and its main thesis, is the claim that the majority of Chinese Christians (Protestants) are Pente- costal, or Pentecostal-like. It is therefore surprising that only about 55 pages of a 123-page book is devoted to it, and only half of these pages are actually used to present the author’s research data and analysis. Five house church groups were chosen as case studies, all of which are found in two provinces: Henan and Anhui. It is a little puzzling why only these five in a limited geographical area are given prominence in the author’s study, while large house churches in Fujian, Zhejiang, Sichuan, and Northeast China are neglected. Some of these, such as the Jesus Family and the True Jesus Church, well documented in their history and beliefs, are clearly Pentecostal in character and would make interesting comparisons. On the other hand, large non-TSPM churches — not necessarily underground — are clearly not Pentecostal, such as the Little Flock, the huge following of Wang Mingdao and of other independent leaders. If, as other established researchers in the field maintain, these are as numerous as the Pentecostals, then the author’s claim that “90 percent of house church Christians and perhaps 80 percent of the total Christian population in China” are of Pen- tecostal orientation looks like an overoptimistic exaggeration.

Turning to the case studies themselves, the author’s presentation of his research data is disappointingly sparse, although the author claims to have researched the churches thor- oughly. T ere is little description of the emergence, social context, history, or faith and practice of these groups. Of the five churches, the Word of Life Church led by Peter Xu (45-48) is non-Charismatic, as the author admits. The Lixin Church (44-45) is dealt with in two short paragraphs. In most cases the groups’ “Pentecostal” affiliation is dependent on the word of the leader(s), or of uncorroborated researchers, without any documentation and analysis of their beliefs and practice. Witness accounts are also lacking. In the only participant observation of the Christmas worship of the China Gospel Fellowship (42-43), it is hard to find any Pentecostal or Charismatic manifestations in the service itself.

The author gives a simplistic picture of the Chinese house churches as if they constitute a coherent movement, ignoring the internal division and differences. The Statement of Faith by four house leaders in 1998 (48-51) is known to be a compromise that hides deep differences in their theologies. Samuel Lam, a house church leader from Guangzhou in South China, has said that some of the northern groups, that is, the five in this study, are probably heretical. Other non-Pentecostal house churches are suspicious of the “Christians from Henan.” Tese differences, including the worrying aberrations and heterodox tenden-

© Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2007 DOI: 10.1163/157007407X178472

PPNEU 29,1_f9_131-178.indd 169NEU 29,1_f9_131-178.indd 169

33/30/07 8:48:28 PM/30/07 8:48:28 PM

1

170

Book Reviews / Pneuma 29 (2007) 131-178

cies among grassroots believers, as anyone talking to house church leaders will hear about, are perhaps too easily forgotten in the author’s enthusiasm.

The author’s generalization of the dull and lifeless TSPM churches is also nothing short of caricature and does not square with the reports and eyewitness accounts of frequent visitors and knowledgeable observers of Chinese Protestant Christianity. Indeed, as the author says in chapter 4, there are many gifts of the Spirit in TSPM churches; otherwise why should they publish a book (analyzed by the author in chapter 4) cautioning their congregations? It may not be necessary to be Pentecostal and driven underground to be open to the Holy Spirit.

It is not possible to discuss other methodological problems of the book in a short review. It is perhaps worth suggesting that the author should have consulted a wider range of sources and more theoretical studies. In dealing with the correlation between persecution and “Pen- tecostal power,” it is worth looking at sociological explanations in other contexts, including the sympathetic but academically critical studies by authors such as David Martin, Allan Anderson, and so forth. The author has also ignored important publications in Chinese — for example, the seminal works on house churches and rural Christianity by Jonathan Chao and Leung Ka-lun. Tese books are readily available and the author is fluent in Chinese.

In short, the book succeeds in challenging us to look seriously at the growing Charis- matic manifestations of Chinese Christianity, but as a serious study of Chinese Christianity it is trapped in facile stereotyping and lacks rigor or depth. The questions raised are thought provoking, but the evidence and arguments are far from convincing.

Reviewed by Edmond Tang

PPNEU 29,1_f9_131-178.indd 170NEU 29,1_f9_131-178.indd 170

33/30/07 8:48:28 PM/30/07 8:48:28 PM

2