ELCA NEWS SERVICE

September 19, 2012  

ELCA presiding bishop explores mission with Christian leaders in China
12-61-YFI/MRC

     CHICAGO (ELCA) - In his first visit to China, the Rev. Mark S.
Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA), shared a message of hope, appreciation for and commitment to the
ministries and relationships between ELCA members and Chinese Christians.
During his Sept. 11-17 trip, Hanson met with national church leaders in
Shanghai and with regional leaders across China's Sichuan Province.
     In a gathering with leaders of the China Christian Council and Three-
Self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Church in Shanghai, Hanson noted
that his visit here was "to listen and learn. We come out of a deep
history of building relationships," he said, and the "challenge is how
people in our church can learn from you."
     The Rev. Gao Feng, president of the China Christian Council,
expressed his appreciation toward the ELCA for its support in areas of
theological education, personnel training and social services. "In the 30
years since the end of the Cultural Revolution, we are now cultivating new
religious freedoms that have fostered a rapid growth in the church," said
Gao.
     According to Elder Fu Zianwei, chair of the patriotic movement, "The
church in China is in a golden era of development," he said, "but it has
lots of challenges." One is that the church is being required to build up
fast to meet the needs of society as society is seeking the church's
response. This has also meant redefining the role of the church to meet
the current context for mission, he said.
     Hanson spoke of the similar challenges for the ELCA. "We are about
 the revitalization of congregations and ministries," he said, noting that
like the Chinese Protestant Church, the ELCA is seeking to find its place
in society through a similar rethinking of how it engages in ministry.
     One way in which the church in China has begun to operate outside
some of its traditional ways is through social services, said Fu. "The
church is not just about pastoral care for church members; it is also
about social services for society," he said. "With the rich tradition of
the ELCA's work in social services, we seek further cooperation (with
you)," he told Hanson.
     Three days before Hanson departed for China, an earthquake in the
Yunnan and Guizhou provinces killed 80 people and forced tens of thousands
to evacuate, according to news reports. ELCA Disaster Response provided a
$25,000 grant to support earthquake recovery efforts there in response to
an appeal for funds by the China Christian Council.
     Disaster response has been a critical point of engagement between the
ELCA and China's Christian councils following earthquakes that struck
Sichuan and Yushu in 2008. The southwestern region of China is prone to
earthquakes, and more than $1 million from ELCA Disaster Response has been
allocated to assist China's Protestant church in earthquake disaster
response.
     The recovery work in the Sichuan Province has led to the building of
 new churches and gaining members, according to the Rev. Y. Franklin
Ishida, who directs the Asian-Pacific ministries at ELCA churchwide
ministries in Chicago. The Protestant church in Sichuan has some 460,000
church members in 116 congregations, with many other house gatherings and
preaching points.
     For the Rev. Wei Kan, chair of the Sichuan Christian Council, "There
is a correlation between the expansion of social services and church
growth." Hanson met with Wei in Chengdu, Sichuan's capital.
     "What we believe is acted out in our social services," Wei said,
adding that the government recognizes more than ever before the role the
church can play in society. "Faith and Christianity is now seen as a
motivation for social development, whereas Christianity is also seen as
part of the culture."
     While the Chinese government in many instances has helped the church
by providing land for building, funds from the ELCA have helped "seed"
programs which, in turn, have leveraged government and other
organizational funding, said Ishida.
     A goal of the ELCA is to deepen global relationships, according to
the Rev. Rafael Malpica Padilla, executive director for global mission at
ELCA churchwide ministries in Chicago. "We rely on mutuality with sharing
of resources, experiences and gifts," he said.
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United
States, with 4.2 million members in 10,000 congregations across the 50
states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work.
Our hands," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in
Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's
roots are in the writings of the German church reformer, Martin Luther.

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