Bethel Mission, Shanghai
The Bethel Mission in Shanghai (Chinese: 伯特利教會; pinyin: Bótèlì Jiàohuì) was an independent evangelistic institution established by Shi Meiyu (also known as Mary Stone) and Jennie V. Hughes in 1920. It would eventually include primary and secondary schools, a hospital and nursing school, an orphanage, and, through a revival led by Paget Wilkes in 1925, the Bethel Bible School (Chinese: 伯特利聖經學院; pinyin: Bótèlì Shèngjīng Xuéyuàn).[1]
History
After receiving her medical degree at the University of Michigan in 1896, the Chinese medical doctor and bible woman Shi Meiyu returned to China and practiced medicine in the Danford Memorial Hospital run by the Methodist Episcopal Church beginning in 1901. However, she eventually became disillusioned by the amount of foreign control on the hospital and the liberal theology of the mission. She later severed ties with the mission and, partnering with the former American Methodist Episcopal missionary Jennie V. Hughes, established the Bethel Mission in Shanghai in 1920. Hughes led Bethel Mission's Bible school whereas Shi led its hospital and nursing school. The Bible school was the basis for small groups, known as "Bethel Bands," which would travel throughout the country to evangelize Chinese and foreigners.[2]
Bethel Worldwide Evangelistic Band
The most famous of the Bethel Bands was the "Bethel Worldwide Evangelistic Band," organized in 1931 by Andrew Gih (also known as Ji Zhiwen) and three other graduates of Bethel: Lincoln Nieh (also known as Nie Zhiying), Li Daorong, and Lin Jingkang. The group would later include the charismatic evangelist John Sung (also known as Song Shangjie). According to the historian Lian Xi, in a single year, the band held over 1,000 meetings, preaching to over 425,000 people in 13 provinces.[3]
References
- Bays, Daniel H. (2011). A New History of Christianity in China. Malden, MA: Wiley. p. 137. ISBN 978-1-4443-4284-0.
- Shemo, Connie (2009). "Shi Meiyu: An "Army of Women" in Medicine". In Hamrin, Carol Lee (ed.). Salt and Light, Volume 1: Lives of Faith that Shaped Modern China. Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications. pp. 60–62. ISBN 978-1556359842.
- Lian Xi (2010). Redeemed by Fire: The Rise of Popular Christianity in Modern China. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. pp. 131–141. ISBN 978-0300123395.