- 期刊
中國基督教的區域發展：1918、1949、2004
The Regional Development of Protestant Christianity in China: 1918, 1949 and 2004
摘要
自從1979年中國教會恢復公開聚會，迄今已超過25年的歷史“改革開放以來，基督教在中國取得了前所未有的發展，中外學術界及教會界更有所謂「基督教熱」的討論。有關討論旨在探討文革後中國基督教蓬勃增長的原因，對我們從宏觀的角度解釋「基督教熱」，可謂裨益甚大。但當我們從區域發展的角度作檢視時，便發現中國基督教發展的區域差異現象，一直未受到學術界的關注與探討。本文旨在從區域研究的角度來重檢中國基督教在二十世紀的發展格局，其中尤重基督徒人數的增長與分佈所呈現的區域差異現象。全文以1918年、1949年及2004年作座標基礎，再比較基督教在不同省區的發展。筆者相信，認識基督教在不同區域的特色，比我們從「大論述」的角度來談論「中國」基督教更具價值。今後我們對中國基督教的認識，更多應從區域研究的進路入手。
並列摘要
Since the ”Reform and Opening,” the rapid growth of Protestant Christianity in China has become a hot and sensitive issue in both the academic and church circles. Researchers on post-Mao Chinese society try to interpret the so-called ”Christianity Fever” from different perspectives. However, when we approach the ”Christianity Fever” from a regional perspective, we find that the uneven geographical distribution of Chinese Christians is a field not yet well studied. This article aims at quantitatively reconstructing the growth of Protestant Christianity in twentieth-century China, particularly focusing on the numbers of Chinese Christians in different provinces. These regional figures were based on the surveys and statistics of 1918, 1949 and 2004 respectively. The years being chosen reflected the unique meaning of different epochs. 1918 marked a centenary review on the Western missionary movement in China since Robert Morrison's arrival in 1807. 1949 opened a new chapter that the church struggled for her survival under Communism. 2004 signified another period of Protestant Christianity after a quarter of century of Post-Mao Reform. This article reveals the overall pattern and salient characteristics of Protestantism in different provinces in the three epochs in the twentieth century. Interesting topics to be explored are also pointed out throughout the article. After all, regional studies instead of the grand narrative should be the key of exploring the development of Protestant Christianity in China.