Asia Church History

I'm so pleasure for this book. We can learn the precious history in this book. Because, that's our history.
That's interesting to read so much. Now, I will express what I have learned from this book.

The first area that we learned was North East Asia. That's China with Hong Kong and Taiwan, Japan and
Korean. In 1500 and 1800 the Roman Catholic did mission to China and Japan. In 19 century, there were
about 250,00 Christian in China. One of most popular missionary was Hudson Taylor. The first
missionary to Taiwan was a Dutch Reformed minister who landed in 1627, in 19 century. In the middle
of the 19 century Hong Kong replaced Macao, it was the base for Christian missionary work in China. In
1856 Roman Catholic missionaries had already begun work on the Riu Kiu Island to the South of Japan.
The earliest Christian contacts with Korean go back to the 16 century.

The Indian Subcontinent, Sir Lanka and Nepal.

Until 1947 the whole Indian Subcontinent formed one country known as India. St. Thomas the Apostle
brought Christianity to India in the first century AD. Before partition, Muslims were the majority of the
population in two main areas. The first was the north west of the subcontinent. The second was around
the Ganges Delta. These two areas were separated from one another by over a thousand miles, but in
spite of this they elected to form the one nation of Pakistan. Pakistan has suffered a series of political
crises, and in 1971 India intervened in East Pakistan. As a result this area became the independent
nation of Bangladesh. The proportion of Christians in Bangladesh is even smaller than in Pakistan and
the churches lack well trained leaders. Some of the better educated Christian leaders left in 1947 to live
in India. The population of Sir Lanka is mostly Buddhist but there are Hindu, Muslim and Christian
minorities. There were once Thomas Christians in Sir Lanka but by modern times they had disappeared
and some 90 per cent of Christians there today are Roman Catholic. Roman Catholic missionary work
from 16 century. Nepal is a small mountainous kingdom on the north east border of India, which by the
mid 1970 had a population of some 14 million. The majority are Hindus, but there are also Muslims and
Buddhists. Jesuit missionaries started work there in the late 17 century, but in 1767 they and their
converts were expelled to northern India. In 1951 following change of government, mission were
allowed into Nepal to do social work but not to evangelize. The Roman Catholic church, protestant
groups and some Mar Thomas Christians entered the country on these terms. They are running schoola
and public health programmes and also training people in agriculture. The Roman Catholic opened a
hospital in Kathmandu in 1953. Nepalese who had became Christians but we're living outside the
country were permitted to return home and practise their religion. By the mid 1970, there were about
500 Christians in Nepal, 125 of whom were nationals. The Christians were scattered, but formed small,
autonomous congregations and built two churches. The Nepalese Christian Fellowship has brought them
together once a year.

South East Asia

Thailand has long maintained political independence and a large measure of religious freedom.
Christians have been welcomed for their social contribution through education and medicine, and have
enjoyed generally friendly relationships with the government. In 1980 Christians were about 1 per cent
among a society that remains over 90 per cent Buddhist. I. 1930 the Siam National Christian council was
formed and in 1934 the Church of Christ in Thailand. In Burma, the missionary came in 1813. The
greatest response among the animistic hill tribes. In Vietnam missionary entered in 17 century.
Following by the persecution. Several early 19 century Roman Catholic efforts failed to establish a
mission but they were more successful when two priests from the Paris Foreign Missionary Society in
1880. The growth in the church was slow in Cambodia. By 1969 nearly 90 per cent of the 62,000
baptized were vietnamese, nad there were only four Khmer priests in the country. Christianity had been
brought to the Philippines in the 16 century by the Spanish conquerors. The mission entered in 1511 and
1641 . By the mid 1970 Christians totalled some 8 per cent of the population of Singapore and 6 per cent
in Malaysia. Christianity had come to the island of Indonesia with the Portuguese in the 16 century and
with the Dutch from 1605. Today the population is largely Muslim but about 11 per cent are Christian.