A critical anaylsis.
Thong, Chan Kei and Fu, Charlene L. Finding God in Ancient China: How the Ancient Chinese worshiped the God of the Bible. Zondervan Publishers, Grand Rapids, MI. 2009 Chapter 6: Magi from the West [pgs.182-216]
A pastoral friend of mine in our congregation invited me to choose from a larget number of books what I would like as a Christmas gift. After reading short summaries of all of them, I choose the above named book. I chose the chapter on 'Magi from the West' because its the Christmas connection and really enjoyed it, so I would like to share some of it with you.
Many of us recall the anticipation and fear of a new millenium, as cities all over the world prepared for celebration and techie geeks warned us that computers would come to a dead stand still bringing our societies to its knees. As the Chinese government struggled to not be left behind, their Millenium Monument in Beijing was hurried to completion. Along the monuments 386 feet, and 16.5 ft high relief the proud accomplishments of the Chinese people were displayed. What was displayed, but little recognized, or known, by the outside world is a Western face, a face that symbolized the 'three wisemen to China.' The author goes on to talk about the role that each of these wise men, Matteo Ricci - an Italian Jesuit, Johann von Bell - a German Jesuit, and Ferdinand Verbiest, a Jesuit assistant of von Bell. A distinguishing feature of all these Jesuits, in the face of China's disdain for Westerners and missionaires especially, is that there is this tribute to them in China's 5,000 yrs of historical acknowledgement. They loved the Chinese people, their desire was to serve them and where and when possible introduce Christ to them ..... but their great surprise and discovery God had already been at work making his presence known. What the great Monument, and probably most of the Chinese fail to understand is that these wise men, who loved them came to impart not just earthly knowledge and wisdom, although in many realms they did just that, but spiritual truths that can only be taught through lives lived in love; and the fact that God was already deeply embedded in China's history only increased these Jesuits love for the Chinese. A main argument against the Jesuits influence has been that they compromised their faith in their missionary endeavors yet nothing could be further from the truth.
I wonder if we, Christians, often compromise our faith, our witness to the world in ways that we think are inconsequencial, but in reality are disrespectful of the God-created desire in all his creatures to know him? The authors remind us that as the Hebrew prophet Daniel, thru his knowledge of the skies, brought God to the pagan eastern power Babylon; the Jesuits brought their love of Christ to China in the east. Among some of the best minds of their times, the Jesuits linked the West with the East in a spirit we have never experienced in modern times; they allowed God to lead and prepare for them the way to share him thru simple devotion and humble living.
Thong, Chan Kei and Fu, Charlene L. Finding God in Ancient China: How the Ancient Chinese worshiped the God of the Bible. Zondervan Publishers, Grand Rapids, MI. 2009 Chapter 6: Magi from the West [pgs.182-216]
A pastoral friend of mine in our congregation invited me to choose from a larget number of books what I would like as a Christmas gift. After reading short summaries of all of them, I choose the above named book. I chose the chapter on 'Magi from the West' because its the Christmas connection and really enjoyed it, so I would like to share some of it with you.
Many of us recall the anticipation and fear of a new millenium, as cities all over the world prepared for celebration and techie geeks warned us that computers would come to a dead stand still bringing our societies to its knees. As the Chinese government struggled to not be left behind, their Millenium Monument in Beijing was hurried to completion. Along the monuments 386 feet, and 16.5 ft high relief the proud accomplishments of the Chinese people were displayed. What was displayed, but little recognized, or known, by the outside world is a Western face, a face that symbolized the 'three wisemen to China.' The author goes on to talk about the role that each of these wise men, Matteo Ricci - an Italian Jesuit, Johann von Bell - a German Jesuit, and Ferdinand Verbiest, a Jesuit assistant of von Bell. A distinguishing feature of all these Jesuits, in the face of China's disdain for Westerners and missionaires especially, is that there is this tribute to them in China's 5,000 yrs of historical acknowledgement. They loved the Chinese people, their desire was to serve them and where and when possible introduce Christ to them ..... but their great surprise and discovery God had already been at work making his presence known. What the great Monument, and probably most of the Chinese fail to understand is that these wise men, who loved them came to impart not just earthly knowledge and wisdom, although in many realms they did just that, but spiritual truths that can only be taught through lives lived in love; and the fact that God was already deeply embedded in China's history only increased these Jesuits love for the Chinese. A main argument against the Jesuits influence has been that they compromised their faith in their missionary endeavors yet nothing could be further from the truth.
I wonder if we, Christians, often compromise our faith, our witness to the world in ways that we think are inconsequencial, but in reality are disrespectful of the God-created desire in all his creatures to know him? The authors remind us that as the Hebrew prophet Daniel, thru his knowledge of the skies, brought God to the pagan eastern power Babylon; the Jesuits brought their love of Christ to China in the east. Among some of the best minds of their times, the Jesuits linked the West with the East in a spirit we have never experienced in modern times; they allowed God to lead and prepare for them the way to share him thru simple devotion and humble living.
I recently finished Shadow of the Silk Road, in which the author finds evidence of early Christian influences all along the road (that ran from Turkey to China), especially sects like the Arians.
ReplyDeleteThose were the days of exciting discoveries. I can't imagine what it must have been like to wake up in China along the old Silk Road.
ReplyDeleteOne of the questions that troubles Christians is the thought that there are those with no access to the Word or God. While I certainly have nothing upon which to base the following assertion, I've nonetheless always believed that God provides a means to find Him if a person is seeking spiritual Truth. See, e.g.Jeremian 29:13. Thus, the author's thesis doesn't seem so unusual to me and I'll probably get the book to explore it in greater depth.
ReplyDeleteCheers.