INDIGENOUS INNOVATIONS OF CHRISTIANITY IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH

                                                  An Examination of the Creative Ways Indigenous

                                                   Populations Adopted and Embraced Christianity

     The spread of Christianity in the global south since the 19th century in the regions of Asia, South America and Africa introduced a western religion to indigenous populations with preexisting religions, spirituality, rich cultural beliefs and practices[1]. The intersection of Christianity with these indigenous elements often led to innovative expressions of the faith that reflected the unique cultural elements of the respective cultures. However, the enculturation of Christianity in cultures of the global south reveals not only the suppleness of the Christian faith to adapt to new cultures and environments, but the propensity of the faith to find both orthodox and heretical expressions along the theological spectrum.

     The Ministry of The Bethel Band and John Sung The evangelical outreach of the mission churches found powerful orthodox expression in the unique contemporary music group The Bethel Band. The evangelistic band, largely a product of the mission churches, was comprised of four young men dressed in Western suits who sang upbeat "catchy" choruses[2]. Indeed, a spirit of revival seemed to be upon the band and many crowds were inspired by the music and message of redemption in Christ. The message of the band often penetrated the hearts of the masses who were comprised of a wide range of individuals from the intelligentsia to society's most rapacious elements. Reportedly, people were so moved and convicted by the band's message that many individuals spontaneously confessed and repented of their sins towards others. This repentance, also promoted many to return more than twenty thousand dollars in conscience money to those who they had cheated and wronged.

     John Sung, an extremely successful evangelist in China, was invited to join the band and quickly became one of its most charismatic leaders. Sung was known for leveraging the dramatic arts in his sermons and used many props to illustrate key points of his message. He was known for using a coal burning stove to dramatically illustrate the sparks of the Holy Spirit. Moreover, he used to carry a large rock on his back to illustrate the weight of sin in one's life[3]. Sung also would jump in and out of a coffin on stage to illustrate how Christ conquered sin and death by his redemptive work on the cross.

      The Bethel Band's phenomenal success and appeal in ministry beautifully illustrates how Christians in China internalized the Christian message and expressed it in new and innovative ways. As Christianity became part of Chinese culture and spirituality, it permeated the musical and dramatic arts as well. In this way, the Christian faith became an essential element of indigenous consciousness, in the Chinese understanding of itself in the created order. Moreover, it should be noted that the band's roots in conservative mission churches and the fundamentalist theology of John Sung, kept the band grounded in an orthodox theological understanding of Christian theology and tradition.

                                                          Jing Dianying and The Jesus Family

     The innovative enculturation of Christianity in Chinese culture is also beautiful illustrated in the unique ministry of Jing Dianying and the The Jesus Family. Dianying established a neo-monastic community on a four-acre plot in the village of Mazhuang. Having been expelled by the missionary community for his embrace of Pentecostalism[4], Dianying was free to create a utopian vision of the Christian life, celebrating the best of charismatic spirituality.

     The seeds for Dianying's neo-monastic community were planted in 1926 with his establishment of a house for widows named the Silkworm and Mulberry Tree House for the Learning ofthe Way. The mission of the house was to teach widows to raise silkworms and learn to weave while learning to be disciples of Christ[5]. Later the community was renamed the Jesus Family. The community quickly began to develop much like a monastic community. Members were required to sell their possessions and give the proceeds to the poor or to the Jesus Family community. Life was difficult initially, as the community did not have enough land to produce adequate food the group. Moreover, the daily diet for the members consisted of a simple gruel composed of corn and beans.

     In The Jesus Family's spiritual practices and theology, the highest state of being was rapture (hetti). It was a state of being filled with the Spirit. According to this hierarchy, tongues was the first rung of the ladder of assent, followed by visions, dreams, and prophecy[6]. The final rung of the ladder led to a rapturous state where one's spirit left their body to encounter Jesus "face to face". According to historian Phillip Jenkins, such supernatural orientations of Christianity are typical among indigenous populations in the global South[7].

     The innovative spirituality of the Jesus Family may have their roots in Pauline writings of being "caught up in the spirit" and being taken to a third heaven (II Corinthians 12:2). Although such experiences are not encouraged by more orthodox and conservative Christian traditions, they should not be quickly dismissed. Such radical spirituality is also reminiscent of the Hesychast movement in the Eastern monasticism, that deeply sought rapturous encounters with the Divine in the holy Darkness of Unknowing.

                                                             The Three Self Movement

     The Three Self Movement in China, created by Wu Yaozong was a radical and innovative attempt to sanitize Christianity by disconnecting it from Western influence and power. The movement boldly attempted to fuse state sponsored patriotism with Christianity, undermining the theological integrity of the faith. After the communist takeover of China, Wu Yaozing, an ordained minister embraced the communist platform. Before Yaozong became a Christian, he was an atheist. Ironically, after embracing Christianity, he had no problem accepting the Marxist ideology, which at its core is anti-religious[8].

     Yaozong was the chief architect in the communist party of an ambitious strategy to sever Christianity from all of its western imperialism. The goals of the strategy were threefold:

                           To adopt principals of self -governance

                           Self-Support-cut ties with Western financial support
                           Self-Propagation- missionary work was only to be indigenous

     Not surprisingly, the three-self principal evolved into a Patriotic movement within China. However, it did not resound well with many Christians who saw it as a propaganda ploy of the government. In Beijing, eleven churches openly rejected the government's new strategy. At first the government exercised restraint against its opposing forces. However, later the government wielded its heavy hand of authority and murdered over 20,000 Christians.

     The ethics of the Three Self movement are best assessed through the utilitarian/consequentialism model. At its core, this model considers who is better off by a rule in a society. The communist rule of the Three Self Principals only benefits those in power and not Christians with opposing ideological views of the union of church and state. From this utilitarian perspective, the unequal distribution of benefits exposes the inherent flaws in the movement. Moreover, the state' s violence against non-conforming Christians violates fundamental Christian imperatives regarding the love due to one's neighbor in the polis.

                                                 The Ministry of Matsumura Kaiseki and The Way

      The ministry of Matsumura Kaiseki (1859-1939) in Japan illustrates the manner in which the enculturation of Christianity can lead to innovative fusions of the faith with pre-existing indigenous beliefs. Kaiseki was chiefly interested in an indigenous expression of Christianity that was uniquely Japanese.

     Due to his lifelong interest in Confucian philosophy[9], it is not surprising that Kaiseki aspired to create a hybrid model of Confucianism and Christianity. After braking from the mission churches in Japan, Kaiseki had the intellectual freedom to explore and develop of his own ideas of the intersection of Christianity with indigenous beliefs. Kaiseki initially referred to his reformed version of Christianity as the One HeartAssociation. He later renamed the association the Church of Japan. Kaisaeki also established a magazine entitled The Wayto promote his new brand of Christianity that integrated Western and Eastern ideas[10].

     As with similar indigenous expressions of Christianity, one of Kaiseki's aims was to create a Japanese expression of the faith that was free of Western control[11]. Although, he obviously embraced many aspects of Jesus' teachings, Kaiseki shared a common suspicion of Western imperialism as seen in other indigenous cultures. This suspicion, coupled with a keen sense of nationalism created a common tension between Christianity and indigenous cultures.

    Kaiseki believed that The Waysimply elaborated basic principles of all religions around the world. His reformed Christianity wove Buddhist, Christian and Confucian ideas together in an innovative hybrid. The quintessence of Kaiseki's views are articulated in the following quote:

                                                                Many are the roads

                                                                Ascending from the foot of the mountain

                                                                But the same moon is visible to all

It should be noted that Kaiseki's movement was considered to be heretical in its rejection of foundational Christian doctrines such as the Trinity and the atonement[12]. Kaiseki seems to have fallen victim to what Marl Knoll describes as syncretism, the intermingling of a cultures non- Christian elements with the Christian message.[13] For Kaiseki, Jesus, Buddha and Confucius' view of the moon were from different social locations. However, they all affirmed the same basic reality of the Divine and humankind's responsibilities to God.

                                                Uchimura Kanzo and the New Heart Church

     Uchimura Kanzo, was the architect of another hybrid of Western Christianity and indigenous elements. Although largely educated at American universities, Kanzo returned to Japan with a Christian faith firmly rooted in the Christian canon and Puritan tradition. Interestingly, Kanzo was part of the non-church movement in Japan that some describe as "an expression of Christianity whose father is Puritanism, whose mother is Quakerism, born in Japan in accordance with direct revelation from God.[14]" Kanzo had a deep appreciation for these Christian traditions but no interest in Western ecclesial traditions. He viewed the non- church movement as a dynamic force to complete the unfinished work of the Protestant Reformation. Institutionalized Protestantism was no more than a return back to the rigid and broken Catholicism that reformers supposedly rejected. Not surprisingly, Kanzo embraced Luther's radical theology of the priesthood of all believers, and rejected the ordained priesthood.[15]

     As with other non-church movements seen in China and Japan, Kanzo sought to create a Japanese expression of Christianity free from Western control and finances. This also involved an embrace of indigenous beliefs of Confucianism and Buddhism. Kanzo was committed to a "Christianization of the pre-Christian past[16]." His vision is encapsulated in the following poetic stanza:

                                                Budda is the Moon; Christ is the Sun.

                                                Buddha is the Mother, Christ is the Father.

                                                Buddha is Mercy; Christ is Righteousness

In the above stanza, Kanzo provides striking parallelism between indigenous beliefs and the Christian God. Rather than viewing Buddhism and Christianity as mutually exclusive ideas, Kanzo looks for the harmonic principals of the two.

      The spread of Christianity in the global south since the 19th century in the regions of Asia, South America and Africa introduced a foreign religion to indigenous populations with well-established religious and philosophical systems. The intersection of Christianity with these indigenous elements often led to innovative expressions of Christianity that sought to syncretize indigenous beliefs with Christian doctrine and tradition. However, the enculturation of Christianity in cultures of the global south reveals not only the suppleness of the Christian faith to adapt to new cultures and environments, but the propensity of the faith to find both orthodox and heretical expressions along theological spectrum. Despite the some of the challenges regarding the enculturation of the faith in indigenous cultures, Christianity no doubt will continue to flourish in the global south.