GUIZHOU
The Precious Province
By Paul Hattaway
SPCK. 253 pages. £9.99
ISBN 978 0 281 079 896
Over the last 70 years the growth of the Chinese church has been remarkable. This volume is the second in a series entitled ‘The China Chronicles’ that will attempt to tell an up-to-date story of the Chinese church in each province of China.
This book focuses on Guizhou towards the south of the country, where the majority of the population are not Han Chinese, but members of various tribal groupings, and there is a lot of poverty. The first chapters recount the beginning of Christian proclamation, through Roman Catholic missionaries, and stories of Chinese martyred for their faith. The history of Protestant missions and the work of God in some of the tribal groups follows through to the modern era. Each chapter makes it very clear that many Chinese believers and missionaries suffered greatly, both before and in the Communist era.
