Editor’s note: In China, formal, organized ministries of mercy are a pretty new concept. These organizations really became organized after the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, but the process has not been smooth or easy. There are a lot of reasons for this, including government pressure, a bad economy, and a general uncertainty within Chinese culture about specific types of charity.
Despite these difficulties, many Christians are trying to be a part of the solution. Caleb Ai is one. He talked with us about the landscape of mercy ministry in China, how he’s trying to get churches involved, and some of the specific challenges he sees as he works with congregations on growing their heart for mercy ministry.
A Bumpy Road
China Partnership: I’d love to hear what you have to say about mercy ministry in China.
Caleb Ai: Mercy ministry in China is still developing. Although mercy ministry in China started about 15 years ago, the road is very bumpy. Because of the political and economic environment, the road has not been smooth and easy, and we don’t see any improvement coming. It’s getting harder and harder.
Right now, the Chinese economy is slowing down significantly. That is going to affect a lot of ministries as they try to raise funds. We worry about that. We want the church to be part of the ecosystem, and to help Chinese mercy ministries.
Mercy ministry in China is still developing… Because of the political and economic environment, the road has not been smooth and easy, and we don’t see any improvement coming.
Charity and Chinese Culture
CP: Let’s start high level – not with the church, but with Chinese culture. What’s the role of charity in Chinese culture? How do people in China view charity?
Caleb: This is a very interesting but very important question. It gives me a little picture in my head. When we were young, if we told our parents, “Oh, today I gave some money to my friend,” then most of the time our parents would be very angry. They would say, “Why did you give the money to someone else? You can give them something to eat, but you don’t have to give them money.”
This story can actually tell you a little bit about how people understand charity in Chinese culture. Charity is not mainstream in our culture. Most Chinese people, we don’t have that giving mindset. This can explain why, when we’re trying to introduce mercy ministry to congregations, it’s so hard.
The first step for congregations is to go through is how to culturally understand charity.
CP: Do you think this view, of your parents being angry when you tell them you gave money away, has changed at all with this or the next generation? Or is it still the same?
Never miss a story
Caleb: Over the past 30 years, the Chinese economy has been developing. People have started to having spending money. They don’t have to worry about food or clothes anymore. I think that’s one of the main reasons the new generation has become more generous.
People are generous because they have something in their pocket… A culture of generosity has nothing to do with how much money you, have.
But, I can’t say this has anything to do with the culture. I think people are generous because they have something in their pocket, so they can use it. But I don’t think this changes the culture. If they didn’t have money, I would say they would just go back to the way they were.
This is not like what the Bible says: if you have two small coins, you give one of them. A culture of generosity has nothing to do with how much money you have.
Helping Churches Serve NGOs
CP: What are the opportunities and challenges for NGOs as they work and cooperate with the government? I’m also wondering, what is the view on NGOs in general in China?
Caleb: NGOs are a pretty new business in China. It really started after the earthquake, in 2008. Normally we consider 2008 to be a new era for Chinese NGOs. The years from 2008 to 2016 were a golden era, as during that time the government allowed a lot of new NGOs to register. But after 2016, the government started to tighten up the licensing and cut off the connections between local, Chinese NGOs and overseas NGOs. Two very important laws were issued, to stop local Chinese groups from interacting with the outside.
After 2016 up to now, it has been very hard to get new NGOs registered. If you want an NGO license, you have to go through the whole process.
NGOs are a pretty new business in China. It really started after the earthquake, in 2008.
Our organization has been around about a decade. Over the years, we’ve done several surveys among NGOs, and have discovered that the number of faith-based NGOs in China is very, very small. That’s one of the very important reasons we work with churches, and spend so much time mobilizing Chinese churches to get involved. We need more people to step into this industry. Faith-based NGOs don’t have enough influence.
The overall economy has slowed down, and a lot of NGOs are starving for funds because they lost their government funding.
Caleb Ai (a pseudonym) leads a Chinese non-profit that works to bring Chinese Christians and Christian non-profits together.
Pray for Chinese churches to lovingly, sacrificially serve NGOs and mercy ministries in their communities, so that Christ’s light will shine brightly.
