The choir of Yiwu Central Church in Zhejiang participated in the “First Exchange Meeting of Church Choirs on Sinicization of Christianity in Jinhua”.
Rev. Xu Yaojin, chairman of Yiwu TSPM, led a group of 72 members from the Favor (Rongmei) Choir of New Grace Church to Agape Church in Jinhua, participating in the exchange meeting with nine choirs from counties and cities of Jinhua on November 12.
Due to the epidemic situation, the meeting was divided into three sessions, one in the morning and two in the afternoon.
Pastor Xu, also chairman of Jinhua TSPM, delivered a speech there, hoping that through the experience exchange among choirs, they can learn from one another’s strengths, keep learning, encourage one another and grow together.
Representing Yiwu churches, the Favor Choir, which was just established last year, participated in the meeting in the form of singing and dancing, with the opening dance “Rise and Shine” and the song “Gracious God, Our Father”.
The song “Gracious God, Our Father” was written in 1982. Its lyricist Zhao Shaoyun came from Yiyang County, Henan as a pastor deeply loved by believers. The tune was composed by his son Zhao Baoheng who created it using the national tunes and musical language of the Chinese Han nationality. The song was selected into The Chinese New Hymnal, and then translated into English, and incorporated into a hymn collection published in Britain.
Yiwu is a county-level city under the jurisdiction of Jinhua in Central Zhejiang Province, East China. "Yiwu, 300 kilometers away from Shanghai, is the largest market of petty commodity wholesales in the world where various foreign buyers go to place orders", according to 'Chinese Figures Astonishing the World', a joint report from the United Nations, the World Bank and Morgan Stanley. The city was ranked first among county-level cities In "the 2004 Most Favourite Chinese Cities of Domestic and Foreign Public in 2004", said Wikipedia.
- Translated by Stephen Huang
