Nanxun Christian Church

Nanxun Christian Church (simplified Chinese: 南浔基督教堂; traditional Chinese: 南潯基督教堂; pinyin: Nánxún Jīdū Jiàotáng) is a Protestant church located in Nanxun District of Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.

Nanxun Christian Church
南浔基督教堂
Frontal view of Nanxun Christian Church.
Nanxun Christian Church
30°44′57″N 120°22′17″E
Location	Nanxun District, Huzhou, Zhejiang
Country	China
Denomination	Protestantism
History
Founder(s)	Slote
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architectural type	Church building
Style	Modern
Years built	1927
Construction cost	USD$ 30 million
Specifications
Materials	Bricks and granite

History

The introduction of Christianity into the Nanxun area began in 1860, belonging to the American Methodist Episcopal Mission.

In 1927, American Christian Slote appropriated USD$30 million for building the Church. It was named "Slote Church" in memory of her after completion. Yu Zhizhai (俞志斋) was the first rectorship and Tang Musan (唐沐三) was the first archpriest.

After the defeat of the Nationalists by the Chinese Communist Party in Chinese Civil War in 1949, Nanxun Christian Church under the jurisdiction of the government. Religious activities had been forced to stop in the following year. In 1958 the Church was used as residential building for locals.

In 1966, Mao Zedong launched the ten-year Cultural Revolution, the Red Guards attacked the Church. It was spared destruction and was boarded up till 1986.

After the 3rd Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, a policy of some religious freedom was implemented in 1986. On 29 March 1987, the Church held the first Sunday Services since 1950. In December that same year, Lü Haisheng (吕海生) was proposed as the new director of its Management Committee. In October 1992, Wang Jinkang (王金康) replaced Lü Haisheng as the second director.

Gallery

• 
  Frontal view of Nanxun Christian Church.
• 
  Cornerstone.

References

Bibliography

• Codification Committee (1995). 《南浔镇志》 [Nanxun Annals] (in Chinese). Shanghai: Shanghai Science and Technology Document Press. ISBN 7-5439-0884-0.
• Weihong, Luo (2014-05-01). 《中国基督教（新教）史》 [History of Protestantism in China] (in Chinese). Shanghai: Shanghai People's Publishing House. ISBN 9787208121324.