Rev. Deng Fucun, the sixth deputy chairman and secretary-general and the seventh resident deputy chairman of China Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM), died of illness after failing to respond to the medical treatment at age 92.
Deng returned to heaven in Hangzhou at 21:14 pm on February 16, according to Zhejiang CC&TSPM.
According to the funeral committee, his remains' farewell ceremony is scheduled to be held at 9 a.m. on February 21 in Hangzhou Funeral Home. The team claimed: "As the number of mourners is limited due to the requirement of coronavirus pandemic prevention and control, the people outside Hangzhou are suggested to stay in place to mourn, while local staff workers need to make an appointment in advance."
They announced that the memorial service would be notified later.
Born into a Christian family, Deng's parents were both missionaries. His grandfather was a deacon of a church of the China Inland Mission. Baptized as a child and receiving confirmation at 16, he became an active member of a young people's fellowship. Determined to study theology after graduating from high school, he served as a pastor for his entire life after training at the Central Theological Seminary at Shanghai St. John's University in 1950.
"My faith has been tempered, wavering sometimes. But the grace of the Lord is enough for me, leading and protecting me to this day," Pastor Deng said to the Gospel Times in an interview in 2010. He represented in his 80's as deputy chairman of the national TSPM and chairman of Zhejiang TSPM.
At that moment, the Chinese church had just completed the new and old pastoral staff's handover, so he was delighted. He said: "The churches have many pastoral talents and qualified successors in various ministries, which is the great grace God-given to China. As a retired person, I want to do what the church needs me to do within my reach and be an old horse that knows the way, just as an old hand to be a good guide!"
(The original article is published by Gospel Times.)
- Translated by Abigail Wu
