How do you imagine the Church in China? Some of us with a vague idea might imagine a tense group huddled together in a front room, all sharing a single copy of the Bible that can be easily hidden at a moment's notice should the secret police decide to pay a visit.
A reading of Paul Golf and Pastor Lee's book gives the impression that while this image had some foundation in truth in the past and is true in some places today, the whole picture is more complex.
The book covers the history of China's Church, from its earliest foundations in 781 AD right up until the 21st Century and can be summed up as an honest, challenging, narrative of understanding. 'Honest' because this is not a light hearted book. Although the writers slightly gloss over some of the harsher aspects of communism, the iron fist is definitely visible through the velvet glove. 'Challenging' because it is difficult to read this book without feeling challenged as you sit in the comfortably free and relatively fair political and social arena of western democracy. 'Narrative', because we slowly and somewhat awkwardly move through Chinese history. 'Understanding' because it's impossible to go away from this book without a clearer picture of what it means, has meant, and will mean, to be a Christian in China. Cultural insights and anecdotal evidence abound. Keep reading
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