Sï-Shen-Tsï Methodist Church; Sichuanese romanization: ''Sï Shen Tsʽï Li Pai Tʽang''; ; also spelled Sz Shen Tsz; also known as The First ethodistChurch of hengtu'', Gospel Church ( zh, t=福音堂, s=福音堂, w=Fu2-yin1 Tʻang2, p=Fúyīn Táng, links=no; Sichuanese romanization: ''Fu In Tʽang'') or Enguang Protestant Church ( zh, t=恩光堂, s=恩光堂, p=Ēnguāng Táng, links=no; Sichuanese romanization: ''Ngen Kuang Tʽang''; )., also called Enguang Church, is a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

church situated on Sishengci North Street in the city of

Chengdu Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...

Sichuan Province Sichuan is a Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capita ...

(formerly romanized as ''Sz-Chuan'' or ''Szechwan'', also referred to as "West China"). It is the first church in Chengdu built by the

Canadian Methodist Mission The Canadian Methodist Mission (CMM), also known as Missionary Society of the Methodist Church in Canada (MCC; zh, t=美道會, w=Mei3 Tao4 Hui4, p=Měi Dào Huì, l=Beautiful Way Society; former romanization: Mei Dao Hwei or Meh Dao Hwei; also ...

. It has been subjected to the control of the state-sanctioned Three-Self Patriotic Church since 1954.

History

Sï-Shen-Tsï Church was erected in 1894 by the Rev. , leader of the West China Mission of the Missionary Society of the Methodist Church in Canada (MCC), which at the time was practically a chapel. The church was designed by Walter Small, a

Victoria University Victoria University may refer to: * Victoria University (Australia), a public research university in Melbourne, Australia * Victoria University, Toronto, a constituent college of the federal University of Toronto in Canada * Victoria University of ...

graduate known as the "Mission's Builder". Its walls were made of solid brick. It was built in semi-native style with fine board floors, and seated three hundred persons. A year later, it was destroyed by the anti-religious turmoil (Chengdu Mission Case) in 1895. It was rebuilt the following year. In 1900, when the Boxer Rebellion broke out, the church was destroyed again and rebuilt again. It was doubled in size in 1911. The building cost $1,000 in gold, a sum gifted by Jairus Hart, Esq., of Halifax, N.S. At that time, the situation was not considered particularly good. The Jinjiang District, in where the church was erected, was comparatively poor, and had not the best reputation. But this had changed much by 1920. This change was due in part to the general growth of the city, in part to the opening of a new city gate in the near vicinity. According to Rev.

Newton Ernest Bowles Newton most commonly refers to: * Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist * Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton Newton may also refer to: People * Newton (surname), including a list of people with the surname * ...

, Canadian missionaries believed this was in no small measure due to the general influence of the church itself. The present church building covers an area of more than 3,000 square meters, with a usable area of more than 1,200 square meters. The height of the church is about 18 meters. The Sichuan Theological Seminary is located next to the church.

Gallery

File:Si Shen Tsi Church during the Republican Era 1.jpg, Sï-Shen-Tsï Methodist Church before 1928 File:Si Shen Tsi Church during the Republican Era 2.jpg, Sï-Shen-Tsï Church when in the Republican Era (1912–1949) File:Interior of the Canadian Methodist Chapel at Chentu.png, Interior of Sï-Shen-Tsï Chapel, decorated for Christmas, before 1903

Notes

References

Bibliography

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External links