(Above: In 1948, a large number of foreign Christian missionaries left China with their families)
As early as the Tang Dynasty, Christianity was introduced to China, and Christianity was called Jingjiao at that time. The "Monument to the Popularity of the Great Qin Jing Sect" unearthed in Xi'an records the historical facts of the introduction of Christianity to China...
The recent excavation of the Han Dynasty bronze mirror in Xuzhou, the "Han Dynasty Christian Gospel Inscription Mirror", has a Christian eighteen-character gospel, which has led some experts to predict that Christianity was introduced to China as early as the Han Dynasty.
In modern times, especially during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, foreign missionary visits to China reached a climax.
(Above: Historical photos and videos recalling the Japanese invasion of Nanjing in 1937, when foreign professors in the History Department of Jinling University, Such as Bedes Bades and missionary John Maggie, established the Nanjing International Safety Zone, set up a hospital for the wounded and wounded, and rescued tens of thousands of Chinese.) They are hailed as the 24 foreigners who died in Nanjing during the Nanjing Massacre, 15 of whom were Christian missionaries)
Christianity in Twin Peaks originated in 1905, when the Chinese Christian Promotion Association was established abroad, and Sent The German Pastor Xu Dedao to Yongfeng to carry out missionary activities, when Yongfeng belonged to Xiangxiang. At the beginning, yongfeng gospel hall was founded, and then Yangshi, Shuidongli, Taipingshi, Zoumajie, Yaojiaqiao, Dacun, Hemuting, Water Measurement, Lotus Leaf, Xinqiao, Suoshi and other sub-halls were built.
(Above: Inscription on the side of the gate of The Christian Church in Kunming City, commemorating the Allied soldiers in the War of Resistance)
After Japan's defeat and surrender in 1945, Xu Dedao returned to his hometown. Following the German priest Du Shide, the Danish female missionary Wei Anna stayed in the Yongfeng Gospel Church in a cycle, which was short but volatile.
(Above: During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the former site of the meeting place of the Kunming YMCA)
In 1948, against the background of the kuomintang's gradual defeat and retreat, many foreigners and expatriates evacuated China. All foreign missionaries in Yongfeng left the country to return home.
Later, Pastor Luo Buyun of changsha Christian Inland Church and Xiao Tianmin and Wei Xianglin of Yangshi, as well as Shuangfeng Huangruitang, Li Linshu, Zhu Yanzheng and other pastors of Shuangfeng Church. There are more than 700 Christians.
(Above: Chairman Mao Zedong and Wu Yaozong talk in June 1950)
In April 1950, Wu Yaozong and other responsible persons of the Beijing-Tianjin Church met with Premier Zhou Enlai, advocated the idea of "autonomy, self-support, and autobiography", and decided to launch the "Three-Self" patriotic movement, which immediately received the approval and support of Premier Zhou Enlai.
On September 23, 1950, the People's Daily published the Christian "Three-Self" Patriotic Declaration and published an editorial in support of it. At that time, more than 180,000 Christians signed a response in support of the "Three-Self" patriotic movement. Under the international background of the confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union in the Cold War, the "Three-Self" patriotic movement came into being.
(Above, People's Daily publishes the Christian "Three-Self" Patriotic Declaration)
At the same time, some church leaders and believers at that time, such as Wang Mingdao and Watchman Nee, did not participate in the "Three-Self" patriotic movement.
(Above, Mr. and Mrs. Wang Mingdao)
(Above: Watchman Nee)
With the advent of the Cultural Revolution, the "Three-Self" church, like the non-"Three-Self" churches in the early period, suffered a huge impact, and the church was closed and not allowed to meet publicly.
(Above in the 1980s, after many reports, the bell returned to the church from Jiufeng Mountain)
After smashing the Gang of Four, the chaos was rectified and the policy of freedom of religious belief was implemented. Church work has resumed across the country. The Christian church in Twin Peaks also resumed normal religious activities in 1982 and reclaimed some of its religious practice sites.
(Interior view of the church above)
In the 1980s and 1990s, the Twin Peaks Christian Church formed a working collective with Zhu Yanzheng, Huang En'ai, Zeng Ziguang, etc. as the heads of the church. A great deal of work has been done for the restoration and advancement of the work of the Twin Peaks Christian Church.
(Above, the location of the former site of the early Christian church (which has been changed to a residential building))
At the end of the nineties, with the development of social economy, some new contradictions and things arose. There have been changes within the Twin Peaks Christian Church, and there have been some changes in work. The former church sites established by foreign missionaries were relocated, and unified meeting points were dispersed. Gradually, a new development situation has been formed.
The church that was originally built by foreign missionaries is also recorded in a historical record:
At the height of the Great Revolution in the 1920s, the famous American progressive journalist Anna Louis Strang made a special trip to Yongfeng to investigate and interview the peasant movement, and in her famous article "The Revolution in Yongfeng", she described Yongfeng as follows: "A day and a half later we arrived in Yongfeng... The green hills of Yongfeng give people a sense of freshness, and Yongfeng is the end of the road. After walking through the rough road between the houses and the swollen river, we crossed the stone arch bridge and came to the other side of the river. After walking through a few more ordinary shops, we came to an old cottage where New De Woolf and his wife and daughter lived. ”
In this short passage, the new Dwughal residence mentioned is the predecessor of the early Christian church in Twin Peaks County.
(Above, works left by the head of the early Christian church, courtesy of Twin Peaks Yongshang Gallery)
This article excerpts the relevant materials of the first issue of the "Twin Peaks County Literature and History Information Album", as well as some historical documentary materials. Thank you in conjunction with you.