We can learn so much about history by looking at maps. Spend some time poring over a map of Minnesota (my home state), and you’ll discover many Ojibwe place names and that, despite being noted for its large population of immigrants from Scandinavia, there are numerous place names that are French. If you were interested in the religious landscape of the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, you’d see a larger concentration of Catholic churches in St. Paul and a larger concentration of Lutheran churches in Minneapolis. There are, of course, historical and social reasons for all of these factors.
Similar patterns emerge as we look at maps of China. In 2018, Professor Fenggang Yang, Professor of Sociology at Purdue University and the Director of the Center for Religion and the Global East, published his book Atlas of Religion in China: Geographical and Social Contexts.
I love the book because it’s full of maps! And among other things these maps reveal where there are concentrations of Catholic churches and concentrations of Protestant churches.
Why is that?
On Thursday, June 16, we will be hosting an online webinar presented by Professor Yang titled Where Are the Churches in China? And Why? The event is part of the joint lecture series we co-host with the US-China Catholic Association and the China Academic Consortium.
Professor Yang will present the geographical distribution of Catholic and Protestant churches in China, discuss several characteristics, and trace some of the historical and social patterns of church development. This will be based on the research he conducted for his book Atlas of Religion in China: Geographical and Social Contexts. You can find many of the maps included in the book online at the Online Spiritual Atlas of the Global East. If you are able, visit the site and look over some of the maps to orient yourself before the lecture.
The lecture will be held via Zoom at 7:00 PM US (CDT).
We would love to have you join us. Please note that we plan to record the webinar and make a video publicly available.
Introducing Our Co-Hosts
Since this lecture is part of the collaborative public lecture series co-hosted by ChinaSource, the US-China Catholic Association (USCCA), and the China Academic Consortium (CAC), I would like to introduce these two partner organizations.
The US-China Catholic Association
The USCCA was founded in 1989 to help educate the American public and inform the American Catholic Church of the situation of the Catholic Church in China. Its mission is to “build bridges of friendship and dialogue between people of China and the United States by offering educational, service, and cultural programs in support of the Church and the larger society.” Under the leadership of Father Michael Agliardo, the USCCA’s activities include hosting national conferences and study tours, speaking in local parishes, providing resources through their website, and collaborating with other organizations to serve the needs of the church in China.
The China Academic Consortium
The China Academic Consortium is a part of ERRChina. Founded 25 years ago by Martha Chan, the CAC nurtures and cultivates Chinese and Western scholars, facilitates scholarly exchange and research, and helps educate the general public to better understand China and Chinese Christianity.
We are honored to partner with these two esteemed organizations, and value the personal and organizational friendships with Father Michael Agliardo and Martha Chan.
We hope that you can join us for the lecture by Professor Yang on June 16, and we invite you to visit the USCCA event page to see all of the past lectures in this series.
Image credit: From Dr. Yang’s book Atlas of Religion in China: Social and Geographical Context
Joann Pittman
Joann Pittman is Vice President of Partnership and China Engagement and editor of ZGBriefs. Prior to joining ChinaSource, Joann spent 28 years working in China, as an English teacher, language student, program director, and cross-cultural trainer for organizations and businesses engaged in China. She has also taught Chinese at the University …View Full Bio
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