Pietism in the Chinese church – not like the West!
‘Pietism’ may sound like a relatively good thing to you. And for the most part it is – at least in the history of Western Christianity. But for Chinese Christianity, Pietism takes on a different form entirely…
In the Western world Pietism is a movement that actually dates back to the post-Reformation period in Germany. Sure, Germany was full of life when the gospel was rediscovered in the 16th century… But by the 17th and 18th centuries German churches had become cold and analytical in their theology and practice. Pietism was a movement dedicated to changing all that. It turned the focus back onto practical Christianity (not just theology), personal conversion (not just church attendance), a focus on devotional life (not just formal observance), and the study of the Bible in home groups (not just sermons at church).
The movement quickly caught on, and its influence spread to other countries such as England and the United States. And on the whole it had a positive influence. It led to to the Great Awakenings in America. It led to modern-day evangelicalism. And in part it fuelled the modern missionary movement.
And it is partly through that missionary movement that Pietism came to influence key Chinese church leaders such as Watchman Nee, Wong Ming Dao, and John Sung – and through them, the Chinese church as a whole. However as it did so, Pietism would take on a distinctive form among the Chinese…
Over the next few posts we’ll look at the key features of Chinese Pietism!
[ PS: what do you think are the signs of Chinese Pietism? ]
