Tag: Chinese Culture

Blog Entries

Why Should Chinese Philanthropy Practitioners Read “Corporate Philanthropy in China and Beyond”?

I believe Chinese practitioners can learn from the altruistic ethos of viewing wealth as a trust from God. Adopting this perspective can free us from being disillusioned by institutional corruption, ungrateful beneficiaries, or inactive wealthy individuals.

Blog Entries

Slithering Into the Year of the Snake

Wisdom, Faith, and Festive Reflections

As we welcome the Year of the Snake, our team has prepared a short video to send heartfelt New Year’s blessings to all our readers! We also invite you to explore our archive of articles that delve into the spiritual and cultural dimensions of the Lunar New Year.

Blog Entries

Snake in the Chinese Culture and Serpent in the Bible

As the Year of the Snake is approaching, amidst the blessings of the Year of the Snake and the music of the “Dance of the Golden Snake”, Chinese Christians can meditate on the many snake-related verses in the Bible, and come to God in thanksgiving and prayer.

Blog Entries

Divine Dance

A Pathway to Declare and Display Christ

We need to go beyond dogma and statements to show and tell in more holistic, contextual and embodied ways. As the apostles declared and displayed Christ through prayer and worship (Acts 4:24; 16:25; Philippians 2:5-10), so can we find unique expressions that are embedded and empowered in our own cultures and tongues.

Blog Entries

The Double Ninth Festival

Honoring the Elderly and Embracing Spiritual Wisdom

Celebrated annually on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, the Double Ninth Festival (重陽節/重阳节) falls on October 11 in 2024. From a Christian perspective on traditional Chinese festivals, it provides an opportunity to reflect on biblical values like wisdom, longevity, and honoring elders, blending cultural heritage with faith.

Blog Entries

Crossing Cultures: Conveying the Gospel

Worldviews are extraordinarily resistant to change, and archetypical cultural and gospel metaphors shape how missionaries convey the gospel across cultural boundaries. That is why it is so important for Chinese missiologists to “understand and critically integrate” imported cultural and metaphor worldview presuppositions lest what they “staunchly affirmed as biblical may have had more to do with nurturing cultural mores…than with God’s eternal truth,” as Brent Fulton writes.

Chinese Church Voices

From Auspicious Dragon to Christian Devil

The Metamorphosis of Myth into Faith

In his reflection on cultural heritage, Rev. Chow acknowledges that while no one has physically seen a dragon, it stands as a potent spiritual symbol for the Chinese, embodying a complex and profound mix of emotions—a reverence filled with honor and dignity. Rather than dismissing the dragon for its mythical nature, Rev. Chow proposes that we "value it doubly, as an integral part of our treasured traditions."

Blog Entries

Taking Another Look at the Chinese Dragon

Chinese Christians are not only receivers of traditional culture but also reformers of contemporary culture and creators of emerging culture. When reflecting on the complex relationship between the gospel and culture, we need a grand and holistic Christian worldview, capable of carrying the gospel’s tolerance of, challenge for, and renewal of culture.

Chinese Church Voices

Chinese Christians and the Chinese Zodiac

Idolatry or a Cultural Artifact?

For Chinese Christians, embracing both church feasts and traditional Chinese festivals is a delicate balance. While adhering to biblical principles and avoiding idolatry, we are also called to live in harmony with all, showcasing God's goodness to unbelievers (Romans 12:18).