Shaanxi Bible School held an academic lecture on the spread of Nestorian Christianity along the Silk Road.
Dr. Wang Jing, professor of the Northwestern University History School and master tutor, was invited to the "Chang'an Forum" of Shaanxi Province’s Sinicization of Christianity Research Center on April 27, attended by all faculty and students, the school reported.
In the lecture, she first introduced the history and current situation of Nestorianism (Jingjiao in Chinese), saying it was different from the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East, Assyrian Church of the East, or Church of the East.
Then, she shared the spread of Nestorian Christianity in West Asia and Central Asia based on the latest archaeological data. With PPT pictures, she showed the Nestorian remains, silver coins unearthed in Central Asia, Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Qihe River Basin of Xinjiang, and Quanzhou of Fujian, as well as a cube statue sculpture in the Afrasiab museum of Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The tombstones of believers unearthed in many ancient sites were also revealed.
Finally, she led teachers and students to reflect on the decline and echo of Nestorianism in China, indicating that its decline along the Silk Road was due to the low indigenization, which greatly hampered the survival and development of Nestorianism.
"This 'Chang'an Forum' academic lecture enriched the knowledge of teachers and students on the history and current development of Nestorianism along the Silk Road. It also provided opportunities for them to discover the religious culture on the ancient Silk Road and reach conclusions from this historical experience, promoting thereby thinking on the Sinicization of Christianity."
In the end, Rev. Wang Hong, president of Shaanxi Bible School, presented an appointment letter to Professor Wang as a "Consultant of Shaanxi Sinicization of Christianity Research Center".
- Translated by Abigail Wu
