History

In the 1940s God spoke to several Chinese believers about spreading the Gospel starting with the western Chinese province of Xinjiang through Muslim countries all the way to Jerusalem. They called themselves “The Preach Everywhere Gospel Band”! Western missionaries called them “The Back to Jerusalem Evangelistic Band.”

Some of the spiritual roots of this movement can be traced to the 1920s “Jesus Family” group which targeted villages and preached the Gospel. They committed themselves to “sacrifice, abandonment, poverty, suffering and death” for the sake of the Gospel.

Priorities

The “Back to Jerusalem Movement’s” first priority was to reach the following Chinese provinces: Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Tibet, Sichuan, Qinghai, Gansu and Ningxia in Central, Northern and Western China. Also included as target areas were Asia’s border countries: Afghanistan, Iran, Arabia, Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Palestine. Upon reaching these areas, they intended to establish new believing groups while shepherding and reviving existing efforts. They decided to completely rely on God for finances for all their endeavours.

Persecution

The movement did move into Western China in the 1950s and suffered great persecution and most of the believers were imprisoned. Simon Zhao, one of the early leaders was jailed for 31 years. Though Zhao entered prison as a young visionary, later he was released into a very different China as a gray-haired, elderly man with no friends. News of Zhao’s release spread, but it was not until six years later that church leaders began to seek him out.

Simon Zhao's Death

Initially, Zhao did not share his vision for the “Back to Jerusalem” ministry with others. Instead he sought to encourage Chinese Christian leadership and pray. It was not until the 1990s that Zhao began to share his vision with a group of Chinese Christians to inspire them to carry on the vision God had given him over 50 years ago. He died in 2001 after another 15 years of ministry. During this time, several believers became burdened to pursue the “Back to Jerusalem Movement” once again.

Back to Jerusalem Today

Today, many Chinese Christians have the vision to reach western China and Muslim nations all the way back to Jerusalem. They believe that in the last days before Christ’s return, it is the duty of the Chinese church to take the Gospel back to Jerusalem in order to complete a full circle of the Gospel which was originally brought to them from the West.

“Hundreds of Chinese families are desiring to relocate to unreached regions of China,” reported a Chinese house-church leader. Some leaders hope to send out thousands of itinerant missionaries to reach the non-Han peoples of China and plant new congregations. Cross-cultural outreach is still very young in China, yet some believers are praying continually about their role in reaching the Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist nations with the Good News of the Kingdom.

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Map of China

Prayer Starters:

• Worship the Lord, Proclaim the truths of Isaiah 66:18-23 in prayer. May God open doors for many Chinese to proclaim his glory among the nations.
• Some Chinese believers have already made courageous efforts to proclaim their faith cross culturally but the results have not always been positive. There is a huge need for effective and in depth cross cultural outreach training for those who want to take the Gospel to other peoples. Training is a major priority. Zeal is not enough.

Listen to the Podcast - DAY 24 - China's Back to Jerusalem Movement

Video: About the Back to Jerusalem Movement (6:54)

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Muslims in the ancient capital of China

Beijing is the capital of the People's Republic of China. The city was founded more than 3,000 years ago, and was regarded as the capital of China for over 850 years.

The Hui People

The Hui people trace their ancestors back to Muslim traders, soldiers, and officials who came to China during the seventh through fourteenth centuries. These men settled and married local native (Han) Chinese women. The Hui have so well assimilated into the Chinese society that they are almost indistinguishable from the Han Chinese, except in dietary and religious practices. There is a wide range of devotion to Islam among the Hui. In north-eastern China, they are more liberal. There, they smoke, drink, and eat pork when away from home. Overall, the Hui are said to be among the least radical Muslims in the world.

Niujie Street

One can find the Muslim Hui people all over the capital region, however, they tend to congregate in certain streets as well as a few towns and villages around the city. A significant Hui community lives in the Niujie Street area of central Beijing. Slightly over 11,000 Huis live in this area of 1.5 km2 around the famous Niujie Mosque, the biggest and oldest mosque in Beijing. It was built in 996 AD and was rebuilt and expanded later. It now covers 6,000 m2. Its architecture blends the beauty of both ancient Chinese palaces and Arabian mosques.

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Map of China

Christian Witness?

There is very little if any Christian witness to the Hui Muslims in general. There are no known believers among the Muslim Hui in Beijing.

Prayer Starters

* May God open doors for Chinese believers in the Messiah to proclaim Christ to Muslims.

* May God cause the Muslim Hui people in the Beijing area to seek the true God.

* Pray that Chinese believers can be agents of blessing and positive change for the city and the Muslim population.

Prayer Times

Practicing Muslims all over the world pray memorized ritual prayers toward the city of Mecca five times per day. This is done at appointed hours which are constantly changing by a few minutes each day depending on the calendar. Here are the prayer times for Beijing today: 5:50 AM, 12:11 PM; 4:41PM ; 6:32 PM and 8:02 PM. Some people will pray an optional sixth time at 4:09 AM.

Video: Hui Muslim community in China [2:33]

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The Turkic nomadic tribes of Central Asia began settling in China during the 14th century. The third largest of these groups are called the Kyrgyz. The Kyrgyz live in the high mountain ranges and grassy plateau regions of the Xinjiang province of North West China. The Kyrgyz, a proud people whose name means "indestructible", were once referred to as "uncivilized barbarians" by the Chinese.

Most Kyrgyz are nomadic pastoralists and live in felt tents called "yurts". More recently numbers of Kyrgyz have moved into the cities. Approx. 1,500 live in the cities of Urumchi, Artush and Kashgar. Their occupation includes selling wool and making carpets. Kyrgyz women are particularly well known for their embroidery. Their culture is also rich with story telling and they regard the mountains as a God-given treasure to them.

Children are considered to be the real wealth to the Kyrgyz and even a rich herdsman who has no children is considered to be poor. Sadly, they have a high infant mortality rate of 50% and one in three mothers die during childbirth. Weddings are an important and elaborate social event.

The Kyrgyz Peoples Practices

One traditional practice is for the bride and groom to be tied together to a post by the bride's family. They are only released after the groom's family begs for mercy and presents a gift to the bride's family.

Although most Kyrgyz are Muslims very few practice the orthodox Muslim rituals, such as praying five times a day. They only became Muslims 100 years ago. Most Kyrgyz women do not wear a veil. They legally have equal rights and are represented in the work force. However, ancestoral worship and shamanism is widely practiced. Their religion is mixed with many forms of anamistic folk practices in which they are bound by fear of evil spirits. They have also been strongly influenced by years of communism and atheism. Although Muslims are prohibited to drink alcohol, alcoholism among the Kyrgyz is widespread.

There are only a small number of Christians among them and there is no Kyrgyz church. Many Kyrgyz villages are closed to foreigners and their nomadic lifestyle restricts their access to the gospel. Those who do turn to Christ will almost certainly face great persecution and ostracism from their families.

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Pray for the Kyrgyz Muslims in China:

* The Kyrgyz have been neglected and forgotten by the body of Christ, pray for workers to be sent. There are many ministry opportunities in the area of health care, community development and engineering. Pray for open doors and effective strategies to reach them.

* Pray that through Jesus they would know freedom from fear.

* Pray for a people movement and a culturally sensitive church to be birthed among the Kyrgyz.

Background on China (World Factbook)

For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established an autocratic socialist system that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population, living standards have improved dramatically and the room for personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain tight.

Economy of China

The restructuring of the economy and resulting efficiency gains have contributed to a more than tenfold increase in GDP since 1978. Measured on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis, China in 2006 stood as the second-largest economy in the world after the US, although in per capita terms the country is still lower middle-income and 130 million Chinese fall below international poverty lines. One demographic consequence of the "one child" policy is that China is now one of the most rapidly aging countries in the world. Another long-term threat to growth is the deterioration in the environment - notably air pollution, soil erosion, and the steady fall of the water table, especially in the north. TThe government vows, in the 12th Five-Year Plan adopted in March 2011, to continue reforming the economy and emphasizes the need to increase domestic consumption in order to make the economy less dependent on exports for GDP growth in the future.

About China

Population: 1,336,718,015 (July 2011 est.) World rank #1

Life Expectancy at Birth: 74.68 years. World rank #95

Ethnic groups: Han Chinese 91.5%, Zhuang, Manchu, Hui, Miao, Uyghur, Tujia, Yi, Mongol, Tibetan, Buyi, Dong, Yao, Korean, and other nationalities 8.5%

Religions: Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Christian 3%-4%, Muslim 1%-2%
note: officially atheist

Languages: Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry)

Literacy: 92.2% -- Male: 96%, Female: 88.5%

School life expectancy: 12 years

Video: Love China

- history and interesting facts
A recent history of China and the Chinese church. This is a great video about the economic success of modern China versus the deep hurts of the Chinese people versus the amazing work God is doing in this fantastic country. GodTube video.

External Link: Mission /Ministry into China

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Bringing God's Love

Hong Kong (also written as HK) developed into very important seaport as a British colony.  Many Muslims came from India as part of the British army garrison and as sailors with the British East India Company as early as 1650. Meanwhile, Chinese Muslims also moved to HK and gradually formed their own community. The first mosque in HK was built in 1890. Today, there are five mosques in HK. There are also two Muslim grave yards, eight Muslim schools and kindergartens, and ten important Islamic organisations.

Migrant Labourers

In the last ten years, significant numbers of Indonesian migrant labourers have come to Hong Kong, often as domestic helpers, and 80-90% of them are women. On their days off, they often gather near Victoria Park. Local Chinese believers have often befriended the Indonesians and several new congregations of believers have begun. However, the churches need more manpower and resources to effectively bring the Good News of God's love to the Indonesians.

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Prayer Starters

* Pray that Chinese believers in Hong Kong will make even more friends for Christ among Muslims. Pray that more Chinese believers will be willing to learn Indonesian languages in order to proclaim Christ.

* Pray that many Christians who have hired Muslims to work in their homes will treat them fairly and proclaim Christ through their daily life. It would be good for Christians to understand the rights of foreign laborers, and help them fulfill their contracts well.

* May God open Muslims hearts in Hong Kong to the Gospel, so they are willing to listen to the Word and be obedient to the Lord.

Muslims believe in ...

One God, the Creator of all things
Angels and evil spirits
Prophets (Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Jonah, Jesus, Mohammed)
Mohammed was the last and greatest of the prophets.
Holy books (the Torah, Zabur (Psalms), Injil (Gospel) and the Qur’an)
The Day of Judgement for all people
The Bible has been corrupted and modified by Jews and Christians.

Video: Let Me Show You (what love can do)

Celebrating the power of prayer and the work of Jackie Pullinger) [3:10]

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A Different Focus on the Uyghurs of Kashgar, Xinjiang

Migration, trade and war over the centuries have spread Uyghurs throughout Central Asia, but Xinjiang is their heartland. Uyghurs were previously Buddhist, but Islam entered around the 11th century, and has been firmly entrenched ever since. However, mystical folk practices are widespread and many people are arguably more concerned with the impact of "jinns" (evil spirits) on their lives than they are with the Creator, the God of Abraham (Ibrahim), Moses (Musa) and Jesus (Isa).

The Uyghurs have a long and proud history of literature and the arts, especially music, and a clear sense of their cultural identity. However, despite periods of independence they have been firmly under Chinese control – political, economic and social –for the past century, and strongly resent it.

There is considerable tension between the Chinese rulers and the Uyghur population, not least because of the atheist Communist attitude towards Islam. The Communist Government describes itself as a ‘liberator’ while the Uyghurs see the Chinese government as ‘the occupier’. Many Uyghurs passionately desire their political independence.

Uyghur is a Turkic language with an Arabic script (Uyghurs in the Central Asian countries use a Cyrillic script).

Key City: Kashgar

A key staging post on the ancient Silk Road, Kashgar sits on the westernmost end of the Taklamakan Desert and is arguably the cultural and religious centre of Uyghur culture.

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With a population of around 1 million (70% Uyghurs, 30% Chinese and growing), the Kashgar district is a microcosm for the rest of Xinjiang with conservative Muslim and ‘modern’ atheist values clashing head-on.

Kashgar is a strategic city. It boasts one of the largest weekly bazaars in Central Asia with tens of thousands of people – almost entirely Muslims – coming to trade from the surrounding countryside, and neighbouring Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan & Tadjikistan.

Prayer Points

* May God break down the demonic principalities and powers. Fear and death reign unchecked; Please ask God to breakdown these ancient strongholds and release the Uyghur people into the freedom only Christ can bring.

* Lift up the city of Kashgar before the Lord.

* Pray for the completion of the Uyghur Scriptures, and their accessibility; The New Testament translation has recently been completed, but much of the Old Testament is yet to be translated and published. The Uyghur Bible is illegal in Xinjiang.

* More intercessors are needed; The spiritual barriers to this people hearing and responding to the Good News of Jesus Christ are immense. Please pray that God would raise an army of intercessors to stand in the gap for the Uyghur people of Xinjiang.

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Fourth Largest

The Dongxiang people is the 4th largest of China’s 10 Muslim peoples. Literally, Dongxiang means “eastern villages” hinting that the Dongxiang came from further west. In fact it is thought that they originally came from the Sarta people of Central Asia. Between the 12th and 13th century, Genghis Khan invaded the Central Asia and captured the Muslim Sarta people - a term that once referred to Muslim traders in Central Asia. He brought them back to China and many intermarried with Mongol soldiers, some of the Sarta became slaves to the Mongols and some were sent to Gansu province as settlers. They fought for the Mongols in war and farmed their land in peace time. The largest concentrations of the Dongxiang still live in rugged and dry mountains of Gansu province, others are found in Qinghai, Ningxia and Xinjiang Provinces in north-western China south of Mongolia and north-east of Tibet.

The Struggles

Over the generations they also mixed with Han, Mongolian, Hui and Tibetan peoples. Due to their seclusion in the remote area of the Northwest China for several centuries, the Dongxiang people formed their own unwritten language which is related to the Mongol language. Even if they do not have a system of writing they do have rich oral traditions including legends, stories, folk songs, riddles and proverbs. Many of them also know spoken Mandarin. However, government statistics show that the Dongxiang are among the poorest and least literate of China’s 56 ethnic minorities. Many of them have only had slightly over one year of schooling. Most Dongxiang children find it difficult to learn Chinese. Some international aide agencies have been spurred to act in collaboration with the Chinese government to begin bringing a solution to this problem. A Dongxiang - Chinese dictionary was recently produced which is proving to be a great help.

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Three Treasures

The Dongxiang mainly engage in agriculture. Livestock rearing, especially of sheep, plays an important role in their economic life. Their major products include potatoes, wheat, maize, hemp, rapeseed and other industrial crops. The Dongxiang's "three treasures", apricots, melons and other fruits, enjoy good reputation throughout China. There are possibly 200 Christians among the Dongxiang, however most of them are not organised in house groups or churches.

Prayer Requests:

* Ask God to send Chinese Christians to live and announce the Gospel among the Dongxiang people. May there be opportunities to help them with medical, educational, social and agricultural projects.

* May God open the hearts of the Dongxiang in order that they could enter His kingdom.

Video: Love China - Wonderful works of God

A promotional video about the work in China.

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Initially, the Uyghurs came from Mongolia, but for the last 1,300 years they have been living in a region previously visited by caravans travelling the "Silk Road".

Today, approximately 10 million Uyghurs live in Xinjiang, the most north-western province of China, together with Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Mongols, Uzbeks, Hui and Han Chinese. The very sparsely populated Chinese province of Xinjiang covers 1.65 million km2. Since 1940, there has been a massive influx of Han Chinese immigrants, who now make up over 33 per cent of the population. About half a million Uyghurs live in the neighbouring countries of central Asia, in Pakistan and in Turkey.

The mixing and intermarriage of many peoples living in this region during the past few millennia can be seen in many of the Uyghurs. Some look like Indians, others like Uzbeks, Tajiks or Pashtuns. The Uyghurs originally practised animism and then Buddhism, which spread from India along the Silk Road in the 2nd century BC. Islam arrived in the 7th century, through commercial ties, followed by Islamic teachers. The 8th century saw intensive Islamisation.

Three different types of Uyghurs can be identified:

The first group comprises intellectuals, public servants and political leaders. They are indoctrinated by atheistic teachings, yet many of them follow Islamic cultural traditions.

The second group follows orthodox Islam strictly; some are influenced by Islamic reformation movements, such as Wahhabism. They desire to introduce Islamic sharia law.

The third and largest group is composed of farmers, craftsmen and merchants who are involved in "folk Islam". They use occult practices based on animism and Buddhism for healing, prosperity, successful pregnancies and protection from evil spirits.

History of the Uyghurs

At the beginning of the 7th century, the Nestorians brought Christianity to the Tarim Basin, though no evidence of their efforts remains.

The Uygurs embraced Islam in 934 AD, during the reign of Satuk Bughra Khan. He was the first Turkic ruler who embraced Islam in Central Asia, and instead of temples, mosques were built.

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Map of China

It was only in the 19th century that Russians and Jesuits brought the Orthodox and the Catholic faith to this region, without making any converts. At the beginning of the 20th century, the China Inland Mission in Urumqi and a Swedish mission in Kashgar started working among the Uyghurs, supporting orphanages and doing medical work. In the 1930s, most Christians in Kashgar were killed. Today, there are about 200 Christians among the Uyghurs in China. In neighbouring Kazakhstan, there are possibly 400.

A complete Bible translation in Uyghur became available in 1939. The New Testament has been translated once again, this time into a modern-language version, and a new translation of the Old Testament is under way. The Jesus movie is also available. There are indications for an increasing number of Uyghurs turning to Jesus.

Pray for the Uyghurs in China:

* Pray for the distribution and use of the Jesus film and the newly-translated Uyghur New Testament (Rom 10:17).

* Pray for the Han Chinese churches to proclaim Christ to the Uyghurs living in their areas.

* Pray for the Lord to protect the Uyghur believers in Xinjiang, and empower them for witness among their people (2 Thess 2:17; 3:3).

* Pray that young believers may find Christian marriage partners (Gen 24:12-28).

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Hui Muslims in Linxia City, China

Today in the city one immediately notices that a large portion of the population are Hui Muslims, in fact there are equal number of Hui to Han Chinese (The Han Chinese is the predominate Chinese ethnic group). Formerly during their regional political and military dominance the Hui made Linxia one of their major bases since it was strategically located on the border of China and the Tibetan region. A large Hui mosque is located in the center of town and one can often see old Muslim men with long beards and white caps everywhere throughout the city.

In addition to the Hui, Linxia is home to the Dongxiang, a zealous Muslim people group. The Dongxiang mainly live in the town of Suonoba situated on a high ridge near the city Linxia. Some Dongxiang have green or blue eyes and fair hair, a sign of the Central Asian ancestry of this group. Reaching the Dongxiang with the Gospel is made more difficult because the city is tightly controlled by the police. The Dongxiang people are widely known as the controllers of the drug trade and the prostitution rackets in Northwest China. The Dongxiang also have the lowest literacy rate of China's 55 official minorities. A mere 12% of adults are able to read Chinese. Overall, Linxia provides the ideal gateway to reach out to the needy Dongxiang, as well as the Hui Muslims in the city.

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Christian Presence in Linxia City, China

There has been some Christian presence in Linxia since the early part of 20th century, but frustrated in their attempts to establish a church among the Hui and Dongxiang Muslims, the missionaries refocused their attention towards the more receptive Han Chinese. Today there is a small church among the Han in Linxia. Recently when the pastor was asked if there was any hope of reaching the Hui or Dongxiang in their area, he replied "It is impossible!" The small number of believers in Linxia seem to have given up all hope of reaching out to their Muslim neighbours. As a result, the vast majority of people in Linxia today have never been exposed to the Gospel.

Pray for the Muslims in China:

* Ask God to glorify his name among the inhabitants of Linxia.

* Pray that the Han Chinese people would reach out to the Hui and Dongxiang Muslims with the Gospel message (Luke 1:37).

* Pray for former Muslim Christian workers to choose Linxia as a place to reach out to and that a church would be establish among these Muslim groups.

* Pray that Christians from other parts of China would focus on Linxia for ministry and church planting.

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