Banner-carrying Salvation Army marchers, stone-silent Quakers, jumpy Midwestern revivalists, and Prayer-book Anglicans all made up the mixed multitude sent to the Middle Kingdom by the China Inland Mission (CIM) in the nineteenth century. In
China's Millions veteran historian Alvyn Austin crafts a compelling narrative of the sprawling history of the China Inland Mission.
This book introduces readers to a remarkable array of sights, from the visionary, charismatic sect-leader Pastor Hsi, to the "wordless book," a missionary teaching device that fit perfectly with Chinese color cosmology, to the opium-soaked aftermath of the North China Famine of 187779. Clear, readable, and well researched, China's Millions digs deeply into the Chinese and Western past to tell a story of the strange yet hopeful result of two cultures colliding.
This is part of Eerdmans Studies in the History of Christian Missions series. These studies explore the significant, yet often contested, impact of Christian missions around the world. Bringing together monographs by established and emerging scholars, collections of essays on themes in the history of missions, and new editions of seminal primary texts, this series provides rich source material for studying the relation between religion and culture.Alvyn Austin, born in Calcutta to CIM missionaries, teaches history at Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario.
