The Chinese Puzzle (Book)

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The Chinese Puzzle; Putting the pieces together for a deeper understanding of China and her Church by Mike Falkenstine (published May, 2008) is a book that is intended to help the Western church to understand China and her church. The book was written to help Westerners understand China and her Church. There is much confusion and many questions persist: Does persecution exist? Can Christians in China worship freely? Is it still necessary to smuggle Bibles? Being outside of China, how can I most effectively pray for and engage in God’s work in China? How do the Chinese view life? Many people are confused by these questions and issues. China is like a huge puzzle, with many pieces and moving parts; it’s hard to identify all that is happening today in China. There are some people are trying to describe the whole picture, when all they really have are two or three pieces of a 500-piece puzzle.

Chapter Summary

In Chapter 1, the author looks at the history of Christianity in China and China’s missionary past as a way not only to learn about the missionary effort in nineteenth century China, but he also thinks there are very valuable lessons we can learn from this history as we engage in China today. It was the novelist George Santayana who in 1905 wrote, “Those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it.”₁

In Chapter 2, the book looks at the current trends that are changing China literally from the inside out. These changes and developments are important for our understanding of China. This may be a surprising chapter for many of you as you learn of some of the main groundbreaking efforts being undertaken in China.

The Chinese people, as many of you know, have different social and moral standards than we do in the West and if we want to understand China, we need to understand how the Chinese differ in relationship building and social standards. In Chapter 3, the author will also look at the Chinese view on legality and the Rule of Law.

Chapter 4 examines what the author calls the ‘Persecution Myth,’ the myth that Christians in China continue to be consistently persecuted for their faith in Christ. It is a myth because persecution is not happening as much as we may think and we in the West need to change our paradigm. It is widely known among those Westerners living in China and those working with the Chinese church that persecution is no longer the main story of the Church in China. The book will also look at why the myth continues to persist and the organizations who don’t want the myth to be killed.

For all Westerners who want to actively be involved in what God is doing in China, Chapter 5 will become your guidebook for involvement in China. New opportunities to work with transparency in China, a new ‘industry standard’ of engagement in China and a practical guide for getting started in China are all yours for the taking in this Chapter.

One of the other keys to our understanding of modern-day China is seeing China and life through the eyes of the Chinese themselves. With my work in the China Resource center, the author is talking to many Americans about China as he speaks on China and her church. It’s clear to him through these conversations that people’s thoughts and perceptions about the lives of today’s Chinese are inaccurate.

In painting with very broad strokes, the author hopes in Chapter 6 to present useful information to clarify the overall picture of how the Chinese themselves view their government, life and democracy.

The author, Mike Falkenstine, is the Founder and President of China Resource Center, www.ChinaResourceCenter.org a Christian organization that exists to serve the rapid growth and development of the Church in China through rural Bible Distribution Events, Church Building and Theological Training. China Resource Center also has a heart to clarify Western perceptions of Christianity in China. Mike has nearly 20 years experience ministering to Chinese, including time living in his ‘second hometown’ of Tianjin. After years of China ministry, he is conversationally fluent in Chinese (Mandarin) and is a Chinese history, culture and food aficionado, with a deep heart for the Chinese people.

1 Santayana, George. “The Life of Reason, Vol. I.” Prometheus Books; New Ed Edition. 1998.