Studies On The Ideas Of Young John Allen

This article is comprised of seven chapters, the first three chapters are mainly written Allen's life and activities in China, on the basis of analysis of the idea of Allen, followed by four chapters, respectively, written Allen the missionary ideology, Chinese culture, and education ideas and views on women.The first chapter wrote the background of Allen come to China, including the family in the United States and observe the early education and the difficulties faced by China.Young John Allen arrived in Shanghai in 1860 with his wife and daughter. As he grew accustomed to life in China and expanded his activities beyond his missionary duties. During the Civil War, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, was unable to send funds to its foreign missionaries. In need of a salary to support his family, Young John Allen began to take secular affairs-Educating, Translating, Journal.The main contents of Chapter II is Allen's secular activities in China.Teaching English in Shanghai T'ung-wenkuan, Translating for the KiangnanArsenal, and he began to take journalistic affairs. Young John Allen took his first job in journalism as an editor at the thrice-weekly Shanghai Xinbao(Shanghai News) in 1868.He so enjoyed this new occupation that he called it his new first love. After only four months in the business, Allen founded the The Church News..In 1874,he reorganized his paper to match the secular interests of the urban Chinese elites and renamed it Wanguo Gongbao. Also, he performed education affairs. In 1885,he founded the Anglo-Chinese College, he also helped establish the MCTyeire Home and School for Girls, which opened in 1892.The original Suzhou University was founded by Southern Methodists in Suzhou in 1900 as a merger of two existing institutions :the Buffington institute and the Kung Hang School,in 1912,the Anglo-Chinese College moved from Shanghai to Suzhou and merged with Suzhou University. These activities also secular Allen formed the ideological basis of practice.The third chapter on Allen's missionary activities in China.As soon as he arrived Shanghai,he followed Aemerica Methodist Episcopal Church, South to preach every Sunday and to teach Sunday school classes. With the time go by, he found this kind of mission work had been meant nothing to China .With the secular affairs performed, he found he had to refine the missionary approach., so he founded his unique mission ideas: communicating with people; circular preaching; employ Chinese preacher. And on this basis the formation of the unique features of his thinking of the missionary.Chapter IV discussed the missionary thoughts of Allen. and were positions of his ideas of mission, and his ideas on mission contained 3 aspacts: First, preaching Christianity, directly and indirecly; Second, publicize the situation of Western technology and education, with the pact of technology played on Christianity to preach Christianity was the root of technology; Thirdly, publicize the western political and economical system to preach that Christianity was the root of a whole country.The fifth chapter on Allen's Chinese culture ideas.His view of Chinese reflect the way of his indirectly preaching Christianity. He tried to compare the Christianity and Confucianism and criticize Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism and so on to preach Christianity was better than Confucianism. This way could make his mission preach much easier, and achieve his purpose- Christianity will conquer China.Chapter VI is about Allen's education ideas. Not just as simple as how to set up the education, but containing Allen's realization on the relation between Christianity and technology, Confucianism, imperial examination system, women. But the root is that make Christianity conquer China, and this thoughts also revealed his ideas on mission- Christianity is the root of technology.Chapter VII of the main elements of Allen's views on women. During his mission work, he found women were more intent than men, accepted new things more easily ,so he thought women could play an important pact on mission work .And he appraised women so highly that he thought if a country wanted to be strong, the women of the country must be celebrated. He criticized the disadvantages about Chinese women footbinding ,there were no equality between men and women, women had no knowledge and so on. So he suggested China should celebrate women as soon as possible.Anyway, Mission, technology, Confucianism, women are important elements of the ideas of Young John Allen . In this paper, through Allen's religious ideology, ideological education, the Chinese culture and women's studies to analyze his impact of between modern Chinese society and the East-West cultural exchange, to the idea of Allen to do a comprehensive and objective evaluation.