On Saturday, 2000 pastoral staff and Chinese Christians took part for the memorial service held in Shanghai for China's well-loved church leaders, Li Tian'en.
Li has been a major actor in the propagation of Christianity in the country and assisted in the creation of Chinese churches with other patriarchs of Christianity in the country such as Wang Mingdao, Yuan Xiangchen, Xie Moshan, Yang Xinfei, Samuel Lamb and Ni Tuosheng.
When he was introduced to Christianity, Li withdrawn from his original study and entered the seminary in Kaifeng, Henan to study about the faith. Later on, he continued his studies to gain a theological education degree in both Nanjing and Hangzhou. After graduating in July 1950, he served in the local ministries in Shangzhou, Nanjing, Hangzhou and in the northeastern territories of China.
However, Li had been imprisoned four times throughout his service. In his imprisonment in 1973, he was actually sentenced to death for his evangelism during the time of the Cultural Revolution. His sentence was death by shooting; however, God saved him from the "lion's mouth" in all four times or one full decade he was sent in jail. When the Revolution ended, Li continued his service to the church.
The memorial service began with the hymn "Amazing Grace" which was sang by the congregation. A necrological service followed soon afterwards, remembering the life of the Church leader.
According to Li's son, Li Xinming recalls that his father had wanted to study abroad after he graduated in 1950, but God has called for him and served China for the past 30 years. He also stated that his father lived according to the verse "as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord" from Joshua 24:16 throughout his life.
One senior church staff remarked "Since his rebirth, inspired by the love of the cross, he offered himself completely and was determined to follow the Lord in his whole life. He was agile to the pursuit of the spiritual life, his determination to serve never wavered no matter what situation he found himself in and in any age. God brought him into a deeper world of the cross through the Holy Spirit as a way to test his faith.
Li Tian'en passed away on May 3 in Shanghai.
