Tag: Chinese Culture
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.
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.
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."
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 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).
Prayer First
Sometimes God keeps graciously nudging our hearts as we pray, gifting us discomfort or a lack of peace until we make things right. Thank God for this nudging so our hearts can be set free, and relationships set right.
Indignation or Creativity?
One old-timer (a Bible-smuggler…) told me... “There is a lot possible when we function within the law. We can still head in all kinds of directions. There are always open doors in every country no matter how ‘closed’ they are. We just have to find them.”
The Benefits of Giving Face
Wu Chunhua described it in this way: “If you give a person face, that person will slowly relax and won’t be as confrontational and resistant in the relationship. The conflict will ease up. It won’t continue to get bigger.”
Chinese Culture and Christianity: Diving into the Archives
ChinaSource Summer School Session 1
Chinese culture is a rich and complex topic, and we’ve created a reading (and listening!) list from our archives for you to immerse yourself in this subject.
When a Gift Is Not Enough
When it comes to receiving an apology, we often want to hear a verbal apology. Yet, how often do we personally avoid giving a verbal apology when we have messed up?