It was not until I had been a missionary in Africa for some years that it dawned on me that missionaries had often been proclaiming the advantage of western culture and ethnicity along with the Gospel.
Senior male members of the church appeared on Sabbath morning soaked in black suits, white shirts and tie, because missionaries had taught them this was how one should be dressed on Sabbath. Outside on the street men were walking in native costumes that were neat and much more appropriate for the tropical climate. In several ways I saw how church members had been converted even more to western culture than to the teachings of Jesus Christ.
I understand it was a great awakening for the Seventh-day Adventist Church when leaders discovered that some of our churches in China seemed more like American societies than Christian congregations, but I understand that when foreign missionaries were banned our native leaders realized how matters stood and created a reformation of Christian values in a Chinese setting.
If you got this far in my notes, then forget what I wrote, and dive into the study of this week's lesson!
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Topic: Lesson 6 Ethnicity (Read 19079 times)
