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God is Red: The Secret Story of How Christianity Survived and Flourished in Communist China

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When journalist Liao Yiwu first stumbled upon a vibrant Christian community in the officially secular China, he knew little about Christianity. In fact, he’d been taught that religion was evil, and that those who believed in it were deluded, cultists, or imperialist spies. But as a writer whose work has been banned in China and has even landed him in jail, Liao felt a kinship with Chinese Christians in their unwavering commitment to the freedom of expression and to finding meaning in a tumultuous society.

Unwilling to let his nation lose memory of its past or deny its present, Liao set out to document the untold stories of brave believers whose totalitarian government could not break their faith in God, including:

* The over-100-year-old nun who persevered in spite of beatings, famine, and decades of physical labor, and still fights for the rightful return of church land seized by the government

* The surgeon who gave up a lucrative Communist hospital administrator position to treat villagers for free in the remote, mountainous regions of southwestern China

* The Protestant minister, now memorialized in London’s Westminster Abbey, who was executed during the Cultural Revolution as “an incorrigible counterrevolutionary”

This ultimately triumphant tale of a vibrant church thriving against all odds serves as both a powerful conversation about politics and spirituality and a moving tribute to China’s valiant shepherds of faith, who prove that a totalitarian government cannot control what is in people’s hearts.

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2011

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About the author

Liao Yiwu

34 books108 followers
Liao Yiwu is a writer, musician, and poet from Sichuan, China. He is a critic of the Chinese regime, for which he has been imprisoned, and the majority of his writings are banned in China. Liao is the author of The Corpse Walker and God Is Red. He has received numerous awards for his work, including the prestigious 2012 Peace Prize awarded by the German Book Trade and the Geschwister-Scholl-Preis in 2011 for the publication of his memoir in Germany.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 92 reviews
Profile Image for Suzannah.
Author  30 books535 followers
January 20, 2020
Really enjoyed this. It's a series of interviews in which a (non-Christian) Chinese journalist asks Chinese Christians of different backgrounds about their lives and experiences in Communist China. I appreciated the journalist's lack of bias in curating the interviews, which give voice to both Protestant and Catholic Chinese believers, to both members of and principled opponents of the "Three Self Patriotic Movement" (the state-controlled church in China), and to both younger and older believers.
Profile Image for Lee Harmon.
Author  5 books111 followers
September 29, 2012
Wow! Powerful stuff, here.

Liao is not a Christian, he’s a Chinese rebel. That is, he’s a critic of the Chinese regime, for which he has been imprisoned and his works have been banned. Says Liao, “I will continue to write and document the sufferings of people living at the bottom rung of society, even though the Communist Party is not pleased with my writing. I have the responsibility to help the world understand the true spirit of China, which will outlast the current totalitarian government.”

So, in this book, he takes on the topic of how Christianity flourished under the Communist banner. Martyrdom, underground house churches, religious persecutions … these are the sorts of topics you’ll find in this series of 18 essays. Many deal with the period of Chairman Mao and the Cultural Revolution.

This is not really a political book, nor is it evangelical. It is a reporters-eye view of Christianity where it doesn’t fit in. In learning about his topic, Liao attends a Eucharist celebration, interviews church leaders, visits the sites of persecution, and lets real people tell their stories. Warning: These stories are as disturbing as they are inspiring. Christianity under Red China looks like the first couple centuries under the Roman Empire all over again.

Was it worth it for those who endured? I’ll let you decide after you read the final interview with its entirely different flavor, of a new young 2010 convert to Christianity. A dry surprise awaits you.
Profile Image for Ramsey Hootman.
Author  4 books124 followers
October 24, 2013
This is a strange little book. The audience would logically be Christians, since the book is about Christians and Christianity in China, but it's written by a non-believing Chinese dissident. So the tone and perspective is not at all "churchy." It's essentially just a number of interviews with various Christians in China, from house churches as well as the three-self church. The majority of these folks have seen and suffered a great deal, and their stories are worth reading. It's a definite counterpoint to the commonly held assumption that Christianity in China has been a largely negative imposition from foreigners - what this book reveals is that such beliefs are essentially manufactured propaganda put out by the CCP. What emerges here is a vibrant, self-sustaining Christianity embraced by surprisingly large portions of the Chinese population, most often by minority groups.

My only criticism of the book, I think, is that the stories come only from about three areas of China, so after a while the various interviews tended to blend together and seem very similar. I would have appreciated a broader view, but I understand that the author's resources were limited and conducting any of these interviews was done at the risk of his own personal safety.

Overall, I think this is an important record of how everyday people in China have experienced Christianity - a distinctly different view than what is commonly believed.
Profile Image for Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all).
2,074 reviews217 followers
September 11, 2015
The title caught my eye first. I had read something about the "house church" movement in China of the 1980s, but then someone tried to put their own template over the top of it and make it work in Europe, basically by treating the church like any growing business, which I'm pretty sure is not what the original house church movement was about...but anyway...I had also come across the "Three-Self Patriotic Church" mentioned in God's Smuggler many years ago; but I didn't really understand what it was about until I read this book.

Covering over a hundred years of Christian history in China in a very accessible way, the author met with Christians from all walks of life, from Tibetan Catholic religious to young converts who think that old style churchbuildings are "cooler than worshipping in an office", to clandestine pastors and teachers. Not a believer himself, Liao Yiwu does manage to give a balanced view of these people and their struggles to maintain their beliefs in the face of hardships that are unimaginable for most Western Christians today. While he doesn't emphasise the torture and suffering, he doesn't gloss over them either; it made an excellent antidote to the sort of "milk and sugar Christianity" I find prevalent among my online Christian friends from the US, with their comforting Internet forwards full of pretty pictures and feelgood sweetness that doesn't help much when one is struggling with existential pain or true hardship.

I will admit I was surprised by the pastor who considered committing suicide in order to "make a statement" about governmental control of the Three-Self churches, but then--I've never found myself in that situation. Also, it stopped me for a moment when the young "cool" convert speaks of Jesus being "from the West"--well, he was, if you are in China. It was fascinating to get the Chinese perspective on the breakdown of the communist system over the past 30 years; the common people have known it doesn't work for a long time, but nor do they have any illusions about the national worldview since Mao outlawed religion and raised whole generations (including the author) to equate spiritual feeling with delusion.

An excellent learning experience. I applaud both the author and translator.
Profile Image for Kevin.
1,013 reviews48 followers
October 21, 2011
If you feel sorry for yourself, read this book. If you think American politics are bad, read this book. If you need some inspiration for your faith, read this book.

Liao Yiwu mostly lets the people he interviews speak for themselves (offering some rather poetic introductions and descriptions along the way) in this fascinating look at the people who gave everything they had to help grow the Christian church in China.

It focuses mostly on rural areas and the villages that embraced the Christian faith in the early part of the Twentieth Century only to have the horrors of the communism and the Cultural Revolution bring suffering and persecution in ways that are almost impossible for Westerners to imagine.

These amazing people held on to their faith despite decades of hardship and persecution. The state took everything they had - their homes, their churches, their freedom, their health - and yet they persevered to see the faith grow and flourish.

Imagine being forced to kneel on tile and broken pottery in the freezing rain for days without food; dragged to public condemnations and beaten whenever you pray or refuse to renounce your faith; thrown in prison for thirty years for nothing more than preaching the gospel and bringing aid to the poor and helpless; having everything you have worked for taken away by capricious bureaucrats and your own neighbors.

And then as the political winds change you are forced to choose between state run churches with at least the appearance of peace and the ability to worship freely or continuing to fight for true freedom of religion and the ability to worship as you choose.

What a challenge to people of faith today!

Of course, even if you are just interested in the history of Christianity or human rights or China you will find this book (written by a non-Christian) fascinating - a glimpse of history from the participants.
Profile Image for Paul.
1,830 reviews
July 18, 2014
Liao's has compiled interviews with Chinese Christians from Catholic, Protestant, underground and Three Self churches. Many of his sources lived in Yunnan Province (as well as Chengdu and Beijing), not a few of them were elderly, some were clergy and others parishioners, and a number of them had been imprisoned for their faith (although the official charges against them were construed differently). The strength of the book is its first-hand accounts of the struggles, liveliness and faith of China's thriving church. It also takes the reader into the experience of persecution of Christians and what it costs to be a Jesus follower in China, especially during the emergence of the new Communist nation in the early 1950s and then during the Cultural Revolution. The subjects in the book pay tribute to the missionaries who first introduced the gospel to their region and demonstrated compassion through their friendship and services; the book's appendix lists several pages of these, many of them from the China Inland Mission. The book is inspiring, faith-building, but especially valuable for adding to the account of China's history and acknowledging for presence and force of the Chinese Christian community. Liao acknowledges that he is not a believer, which makes his investigation and creation of this book more an added layer of inquiry and/or spiritual journey by an outsider. The book doesn't have a narrative thread, so that may be a deficit from some readers. Very readable and quickly read. A friend recommended this to me over two years ago - I wish I'd read it much earlier.
Profile Image for Lee Bertsch.
198 reviews3 followers
July 15, 2019
I bought the book expecting to read an analysis of how the church in China survived. What I got was a compilation of stories of 18 individuals, all but one a devout Christian, who lived through the Japanese occupation, the civil war, and the persecutions brought on my the communist regime. The author, who is not a Christian, but deeply respectful of them, personally interviewed all of the individuals or where that was impossible, those most closely associated with them. The stories are told simply which makes them all the more powerful. It is remarkable how many individuals who endured 20 and more years of suffering for their faith in deplorable conditions, in the end lived to be in their 90s. As I read, the question obviously arose - how would I respond in a similar situation? China Inland missionaries played a key role in the expansion of Christianity from 1900 until their forced departure with the onset of communism. Most of them did their work in holistic fashion - preaching the gospel and addressing the physical needs of the people. That gave them a legacy that survived all the attempts by the Maoist regime to discredit them with lies. I will not soon forget this book.
Profile Image for Tim.
Tim
1,232 reviews
January 28, 2012
It is not a comprehensive book relating the history of Chinese Christianity, instead it is a personal and journalistic book as Chinese dissident Liao Yiwu comes to meet and know various Christians, both in rural China (especially Yunnan Province) and around Beijing and Chengdu. Seeking out elders he hears the stories of Western missionaries and their positive influence and the enormous suffering individuals experienced through the years of Communism (and the repression even to today). Protestant and Catholic stories are mixed together, the greater difference in the author's mind being between state run churches and the independent house churches (there is also a hint of difference between those adopting Christianity now as Western affectation versus those who have been faithful through the horrors of the 20th century). The stories/interviews are pretty self-contained and it is easy to read. It is also incredibly moving to hear of the dedication and the suffering of those keeping the faith and spreading it amid great persecution. The book could have been twice as long and I would have continued reading it hungrily because it often reaches a simple and direct beauty.
Profile Image for Stephan Stücklin-wightman.
11 reviews2 followers
August 19, 2013
Liao offers a collection of fascinating glimpses into the lives of Chinese Christians. Many of the testimonies are moving in their simplicity and inspiring in the model of forgiveness they offer. Those interviewed have lived their faith in so concrete terms and against such cruel opposition that theological quibbles fade to insignificance. The only interviewee who strikes a dissonant chord is the young guy who's a Christian because it's cool.

The book's also a reminder that despite free-trade agreements and economic improvement China is still a repressive police state. It still isn't safe to hold your own beliefs or assemble with the like-minded, and we should not snicker about the Falun Gong folks because they look goofy to us: they are brothers in persecution with the house church movement in China.

I don't know if it is the translation or the original, but the use of coarse language sometimes feels at odds with the subject matter. Clearly, there is such a thing as too much "shit."

In sum, this may be my favorite evangelistic book so far, which is all the more impressive as it's written by a non-Christian!
32 reviews
September 14, 2015
Eye opening account of the realities of Christianity in China

Once I got rolling with this book, I found it hard to put down. It brings to light several layers of truth about life under an atheist Communist regime.

The brutality of Communist China especially under Mao towards Christianity was gut wrenching. The stupidity of the accepting common person and how easily led they are to perform public condemnation towards non government sanctioned persons generated both disappointment and anger.

Written by a non-Christian, this book provides an eyewitness account of the realities of life under a police State. Many layers of truth lie within its chapters. Truth you will not get from either the Chinese government nor the mainstream Western media.

Highly recommended if you are interested in an honest account of what it means to be not only a Christian living under brutal oppression, but what Communism is really like when it is applied and enforced. Scary but a warning to the wise. If you have an open and curious mind about the realities of religion under a Godless regime read this book.
Profile Image for Dottie Parish.
Author  1 book10 followers
June 25, 2014
God is Red is a brilliant account about Christian missionaries and the Christian Church in China which survived in spite of indoctrination and persecution. In fact Christianity thrived in Communist China! There are now seventy million practicing Christians in China.

God is Red describes the author’s travels throughout villages in southwestern China and his interviews to document the stories of persecuted Christians or those who knew them. Liao, not a Christian, but a critic of the Chinese government, admired the Christians who would not cave in to the indoctrination of the government. He attends churches, interviews missionaries and musicians, nuns and doctors. These are fascinating accounts attesting to the brutality of the Communist government and the faith of devout believers. Liao could see the kindness, love and generosity of the Christians and their strong faith and wrote this book to preserve their stories.
Profile Image for Linda.
15 reviews4 followers
May 17, 2012
A great overview of the history (and present state) of Christianity in China, told through the stories of individuals believers collected by Lioa Yiwo. Liao is a journalist in China who has been in and out of jail for his writings critical of the government. When he became aware of the the struggles and lives and stories of believers in his country, he saw parallels in their perseverance with his own fight for freedom to write and travel and was moved by the power of their faith. He was moved to record their stories in this collection of interviews and essays. The stories are varied. They are from protestants and Catholics, those who worship in the Three Self government-controlled churches as well as unofficial house churches, but they carry a common story of faith and perseverance. A great read!
Profile Image for Sean Mccarrey.
128 reviews4 followers
May 30, 2013
Liao Yiwu's story of Chinese Christians touches upon several facets of the development of China that are crucial, in my opinion, to understanding its movement. Like Corpse Walker, his earlier book, he interviews people about their experiences, largely with the Communist government. In this case however, he interviews Christians, who have had a unique history in modern China. The way Liao Yiwu is able to depict everyday life, but also represent the undercurrent of change, from Communism to a more modern pseudo-Communism, which puts profit first, is a valuable tool that should not be overlooked. The pages flew by for me and I was astonished to find out that a writer being chased by police and living on the streets could write two books in a period that takes most well kept writers much longer.
Profile Image for Paul.
518 reviews26 followers
June 17, 2015
Post-martyrdom. Liao Yiwu's book God Is Red: The Secret Story of How Christianity Survived and Flourished in Communist China bears beautiful and tragicomic witness to this relatively small group of people often oppressed and ostracized and overlooked--that is, seemingly unimportant and irrelevant according to market currency--in modern Chinese history as officials would tell it. Every single page bleeds, pulses with the blood-soaked and blood-stained faith of that particular humanity in the face and or aftermath of unimaginable suffering and ruthless suppression. A curious cast of characters gives their individual voices to this courageous collection of interviews with ordinary people saying and doing extraordinary but relatively small and yet spiritually significant things.
Profile Image for Joe Taylor.
40 reviews20 followers
February 28, 2012
What to say, what to say? I will say simply this, what a profound look at the oppression and suffering of the church in China under Communism and the socialist philosophy. Every American Christian should read this book and see not only the blessings that come with our freedom of worship but also the dangers that come with allowing the power of the state to control and regulate worship. We should note as well the extent of what our brothers and sisters in Christ outside of the Western world suffer for their commitment to the Lord. A must read. I would have given it more than five stars if I could.
Profile Image for Darlene Germain.
3 reviews
May 17, 2012
Liao Yiwu is one of the foremost banned writers of China. Perry Link, professor emeritus, East Asian Studies at Princeton University said it best: "No writer does better than Liao Yiwu in revealing the texture of daily life for ordinary people in China. His characters walk off the page and into your heart. God is Red is about Christians, but their stories reveal much broader issues of how ordinary people in China need to cope with authoritarian rule and its tools of repression, violence, and mendacity. Humanity oozes from every vignette, and every detail rings true."
This was an excellent read! I highly recommend it!
Profile Image for Sarah.
Author  42 books433 followers
March 28, 2022
This book was written by a journalist who is not a Christian. I went into it knowing that and it's important to keep that in mind. In a way, I think it helped this kind of book because he wasn't focused on just people who held what he considered "correct" views of the faith. It gave a broad picture of Christianity in China historically and in recent years.

I found this book very encouraging and inspiring of the people who have persevered in their faith through all sorts of persecution. I highly recommend this book to those who are interested in Christianity in China or just want to be inspired.

Note: both Catholics, protestants, state church members, and house church members get air time and are treat them all with the same respect. I think there is a lot to be learned from all the Christians interviewed.
Profile Image for Jameson.
6 reviews1 follower
December 6, 2017
I picked up this book years ago for a buck at Dollar General and thought that I'd give it a chance. Last month while reorganizing a book shelf I realized that I had never read it, so challenged myself to finish it and I am not disappointed. The author is an atheist himself, a rebel who lives in the Chinese underground, and due to this fact gives a surprising thorough and unbaised view as he travels throughout China using any tips he can find to lead him to local Christians.

Yiwu's purpose with this book was report on the hardships that Christians had endured under communist persecution and question how they had continued on, refusing to denounce thier religion and continuing to worship on the threat of inprisionment or death. Reading the stories of these people, hearing how God gave them strength to continue in their darkest hour and how miracles occurred that kept food on the table or stayed, is awe inspiring.

We can not even know the hardships our brothers and sisters endured and can only hope that we would be as strong, as devout enough to keep the faith. Yet this book is also uplifting, showing how Christianity has grown exponentially and leaders formerly incarcerated for their beliefs are once again leading the church.

I highly suggest this book
Profile Image for Łukasz.
116 reviews5 followers
November 25, 2018
Jest Bóg, ale trzeba pamiętać, że w Chinach ponad Bogiem jest Partia. Ciekawa walka Chińczyków o istnienie chrześcijaństwa w ich regionie, pomimo wielu przeciwności losu. Niektórzy zrezygnowali i podupadli, inni dołożyli Partię do tej układanki, a inni walczyli (i wciąż walczą) do końca. A czasem koniec był na wyciągnięcie ręki. Ciekawa pozycja, jednak nie wiem czy taki z kolei must read.
8 reviews
August 31, 2022
Nice personal stories in this book. Worth the time to read it.
Profile Image for Jen.
Jen
4 reviews3 followers
January 6, 2012
This is a compelling read for Christians and non-Christians alike. I appreciated the author, a non-believer, kept an objective and respectful stance.

I was moved by the testimonies of the many faithful Christians who persevered through extreme persecution for the sake of the gospel. I was most moved by those who endured until the end; still fighting, still working, still faithfully serving. They are choice examples of Christians who ran and finished the race well. I can only hope to be as single-minded as they were.

My only critique is that Liao intermixed Catholicism with Protestant Christianity. This is understandable considering that in the pre-Mao era, many missionaries came from outside of China and seemed to be engaging in similar work. Because doctrine wasn't a high topic of discussion in the interviews, I don't necessarily see the intermixing of the two as an issue. And I think any discussion of the differences between Catholicism and Protestantism would have taken away from the main point and purpose of the book.

I'm unclear if this was intentional or unintentional on the part of the author, but the last interview with "the convert" created a stark contrast between the early Christians and, what might be considered, modern-day Christians. I found myself disappointed by "the convert"'s response, but realized that I'm oftentimes disappointed by the response of 'Christians' today as well. I was reminded that I need to be sensitive to cultural differences, but at the same time, uncompromising in my faith and in the truth of God's word.
Profile Image for Christy.
429 reviews6 followers
November 29, 2011
Written by of the most subversive writers in China, Liao Yiwu, this book on Christians in contemporary China was a thought-provoking read most of the way through. What I liked most was that the author, an atheist, was able to keep his own system of beliefs out of the people’s stories. Truly. He did. And in doing so, he let these courageous and controversial people speak for themselves without interpretation. The stories of these persecuted Christians were shocking and awe-inspiring. I felt both moved by their devotion to God and dwarfed by their certainty. We hear so much these days about the awful things that faith drives people to do, and this book was nothing like that. The individuals whose stories were transcribed were (or are) made of a deep, inner metal to withstand any kind of torture in the name of God, true and deep love, and helping each other to survive. Their strength of character is unforgettable. My only criticism of this book is that, while each story was unique, the idea itself became repetitive to me, so what started as a consuming book became something that I had to finish up quickly in the last days before book club. It either needed more variation or fewer stories.
Profile Image for Joy.
Joy
Author  1 book24 followers
September 14, 2013
The idea that the Christian church is growing significantly in Communist China is a somewhat unbelievable claim. How can it be possible, with such strict regulations against religion, gathering together, and preaching. In spite of obstacles, the church is flourishing. Liao Yiwu's book, God is Red, is an account of the church in China, told through personal interviews. Liao talks to intellectuals, grandfathers, college students, doctors, and pastors to really encompass the Chinese church.

I really enjoyed God is Red. China is somewhere I'm longing & planning to go to one day, and have had many friends experience this great nation. I felt that through this book, I gained a greater understanding of the state of the Chinese currently, and what it has endured over generations. I understand more about Communism, the Cultural Revolution, and even the Three-Self Church. Ultimately, I learned about how my God is alive & active in China, and how He is bigger than a nation & political agenda. And that is a wonderful thing. I would recommend this book for any Christian preparing to go to China!
Profile Image for Joanne.
2,613 reviews
June 11, 2012
I liked these interviews with Chinese Christians, though really wish that Liao Yiwu had taken the time to pull them together in some coherent way, especially at the end, where the book just peters out. I was looking for some kind of summary chapter, I suppose.

We read this in a book group, and one of our questions was how much Liao might have missed, given his unfamiliarity with Christianity, about the differences among Christians that he was interviewing, or the diferences among their churches. He doesn't seem very up on theology or even belief, just the conflict between a state that didn't tolerate religion and Christians who had refused to bend. He's not judgmental about the Christians who *did* bend, which we found intersting.

We also discussed whether state churches can ever exist without sacrificing truth, or whether it's always the church's job to stand outside the government so that it can critique it. We came down on the latter side - they should be separate.
Profile Image for Brenda.
267 reviews10 followers
January 31, 2013
If only more people were as open and respectful of others and their beliefs as Liao Yiwu. After spending time in a Chinese prison for his beliefs, Liao wants to learn more about Chinese Christians and their willingness to be imprisoned for their beliefs. In this book he relates what he has learned through talking to many different Chinese Christians. He asks good questions and records their stories, stories that must have been difficult to relate and live through. Christians in China suffered greatly for their faith. Liao presents their stories with respect and admiration. While he does not chose to embrace Christianity for himself, he has great respect for the people who have done so and the struggles they have undergone. This world needs more people who are willing to listen to others experiences and respect them as human beings even if they do not agree.
20 reviews
Read
February 6, 2016
Liao Yiwu is a Chinese dissident writer and thinker, and in this book, he writes a series of vignettes, mostly based on interviews, of the experiences of Chinese Christians over the past century and a half. What makes the book particularly interesting is that he himself is not a Christian. Thus, while he shares their often-antagonistic view of the Chinese government, he writes about their communities as a sympathetic outsider. These vignettes portray a Chinese Christianity whose relationship with shifting governments and the legacy of foreign involvement in China is incredibly complex and provide an at times deeply moving introduction to the lives of one small minority population in this increasingly powerful nation.
Profile Image for Josiah.
376 reviews26 followers
March 14, 2018
Plot: A+
Writing: A
Vocabulary: A
Level: Easy
Rating: PG13 (references to torture, kidnapping, imprisonment, wounds, disease, bullying, public shaming, graveyard desecration, family separation)
Illustrations: none
Worldview: Christianity is a native religion in some regions of China. Freedom to worship should be a universal right.

Free-thinking, atheist, and Chinese writer Yiwu Liao decided to research the experiences of Christians in China who have been punished - like he has - for failing to toe the Party line. He conducted multiple first- and second-person interviews to establish facts and learn personal details about Chinese Christians who have suffered for their faith. I highly recommend this anthology!
Profile Image for Frank Peters.
857 reviews47 followers
May 9, 2012
I really enjoyed this book. It was written by a non-believing Chinese dissident writer who wanted to learn about Christianity in China. The book is structured around a series of stories based on interviews with various Catholic and Protestant Chinese Christians. As a result it is very light reading in terms of style, as each chapter can be easily read in a single sitting. On the other hand much of the content is anything but light reading. The book discusses persecution, famine, and other grizzly pieces of history that most people would like to pretend did not happen. Truly “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church”, as was stated almost 2000 years ago.
Profile Image for Brenton.
211 reviews
January 29, 2012
Every Christian should read at least a couple books on Christianity in China for a couple reasons. First, there's a striking parallel between Christianity in China and the early church in the Roman Empire. Second, it will help us appreciate our hubristic Anglo-American interpretation of our faith. This is not the best book on the subject, but it does offer several intriguing interviews from a diversity of Chinese Christians. The author is an intrigued unbeliever, and for that reason he's not always clear in his definition of authentic Christianity.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 92 reviews

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