Collision, Dialogue And Identification: The Localization Of Chritianity In Yulin

The spread and development of Christianity in Yulin region is actually the process of collision, integration and blending with the local traditional culture. With the aggression of Western powers in Guangxi in the early 20th century Christian Church spreads to Yulin. Yulin becomes an important area of Christian missionary activity in Guangxi. Taking the localization of Christian Church in Yulin as a focal point and making full use of historical documents and archives in Chinese and English, this paper aims at a multi-angle analysis of the development and localization process of Christianity in Yulin region, and points out the difficulties Christianity encountered in the process of localization which is in accord with the national environment, and proves the localization of Christianity is a necessary process of"God returns to China".This paper consists of five parts.Part 1 is an introduction, including the review of academic history, the reason and significance of the topic, data sources and deficiencies. The following three parts are the main body of this paper.The second part describes the spread and development of Christianity in Yulin in details and surveys the Church sites in Yulin. They are churchs of Yulin, Luchuan, Rongxian, Beiliu and Bobai.The third part focuses on the localization of the Christianity in Yulin. The localization mainly embodies in the localization of Three-self Church, followers and customs of marriage and funeral. Localization of the Three-Self Church shows itself mainly in self-government, self-support and self-propagation. In the customs area, without changing the the basic teachings, Christianity seeks a compromise and integration with traditional culture. Its complete doctrine of strict religious rules affects limitedly the customs of Yulin, mainly in the weddings, funerals and other major aspects of folklore.In the fourth part the localization of christianity in Yulin is evaluated and analyzed from the aspect of Christian Cultural exchanges, and the difficulties in its development is given out. As is known to all, the spread and development of exotic culture must go through a process of acclimatization. In order to spread the gospel of God, the Christianity must be combined with the local culture and integrated into society to be accepted by the people.The fifth part is the conclusion part of this paper. A general comment on the localization of Christianity in Yulin is given. Through an analysis of the national situation at that time, this paper shows that on the one hand the localization and development of Christianity in Yulin is closely linked Christianity's development in China, on the other hand the localization of Christian in Yulin promotes the National Christian Council development to some extent. Finally the localization of Christianity in Yulin shows the development of the Chinese Christian Church in miniature.