God is Red

Book Review.

Yiwu, Liao.  God is Red.  The secret story of how Christianity survived and flourished in communist China,  Harper One. 2011.

L.Y.- a Chinese author, reporter, musician, and poet.  He is a critic of the Chinese regime and has been imprisoned for expressed views.  His writings have been banned in China.  The material in this book has been the result of personal interviews.  Writings about Christianity in China are not tolerated so information can only be attained through interviews.  Liao is not a Christian.  This book explains many of the details that are part of the vibrancy of Christianity in China.

Wenguang Huang- is a writer, journalist and translator.   He translated Liao’s book.  He lives in Chicago.

In 2009 Liao made a trip to Dali City where he explored the site of a (protestant) cemetery of missionaries who were from the London based missionary organization, China Inland Mission. He also visited the site of a Catholic cemetery.  The tombstones and grave markers had been removed in an attempt to wipe out evidence of Christianity.  His information about Christians of bygone days came from an interview with a hundred year old nun.  She told of the abuse of the Mao regime enforcing the Cultural Revolution. 

In another interview, this time with a Tibetan priest, he learned that in his village half the people were Christians.  Christianity was embraced by these people over 150 years ago as a result of missionaries.  Liao found evidence of vibrant Christians in Dali City.

Liao visited Yi and Miao villages in Yunnan province. His guide was Dr. Sun a very successful doctor who gave up his official position to practice his medicine among Christians in that province.  Dr. Sun’s story is very moving.  After a visit to the U.S. Dr. Sun was forbidden to return to China.

Above the Great West Door of Westminster Abbey are ten statues recognizing Christian martyrs of the 20^th century.  Wang Zhiming’s statue of Yunnan province is one of them.  Liao was able to interview his son and got that significant story.

Reverend Yuan Xiangchen is a prominent pastor of the underground church in Bejing.  His story is amazing of how he survived very harsh treatment in prisons.  He took a very proactive stand against government organized ‘Christianity’.  “He didn’t want to attend religious activities organized by the government be it the U.S. or China.” (179)  (Clinton invited him to the annual White House Prayer Breakfast)

The communists established a state run Catholic Church that rejected the authority of the Vatican.  This created severe tension among Chinese Catholics. 

No Christians were exempt from ‘persecution’.  Even a blind Christian musician was harassed.  Christians who ran orphanages were maligned and accused of child abuse, etc.

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