Globalization's impact on the urban church in China: A multiple case-study of four churches in a major urban center.

摘要

Globalization is impacting China economically, culturally, and sociologically in many ways. Young urban professionals are adapting to global realities such as Westernization (popular music, movies, marketing, luxury products) and McDonaldization (efficiency, predictability, calculability, and technology control). Globalization is contributing to an interest and growth of Christianity and the rise of a new breed of urban churches. While most writings on the church in China have been on the rural house churches, this research will examine four urban churches effectively reaching young professionals. The primary research questions are twofold: (1) how are the influences of globalization penetrating the urban churches (theology, models of ministry, leadership patterns, values, beliefs, and worldviews) and (2) how do the global influences on ministries speak to the needs and interests of young professionals (their identities, their needs, and their spiritual growth) in these churches?;Through the theoretical framework of various global flows, Mediascapes, Ethnoscapes, Ideoscapes, Eduscapes, and Financescapes, this research tracks how each church is uniquely integrating various church models from the global church.;Global Impact church integrates a highly organized celebration-cell church model. Discipleship Center church utilizes SaRang church's (Korean megachurch) discipleship training model. They are also influenced by Reformed theology. English Fellowship church (a Three-self church), uses contemporary English worship services learned from seeker-sensitive churches in the U.S. Cityhill church is turning to the writings of the Reformed Movement and Puritans for inspiration to forge a new spiritual church era.;The implication of this research is that wherever the realities of globalization are impacting cultures, a new contextual framework needs to be adopted, taking into account both the global and local cultural realities. Contextualization must think less in terms of essentialized static cultures and traditions. China's young professionals are not being forced to adopt Westernization as in the past colonial era, but now they desire to integrate the dual global and local cultures.;The research concludes with the recommendation for the urban churches to use a critical contextualization approach. Rather than uncritically adopting or rejecting Western church models and theologies, each church can critically reflect and innovate their own church models based upon the current cultural situation. They can also learn to become a fourth-self church: self-governing, self-supporting, self-propagating, and a self-theologizing church, contextualized to a global and local China.