On January 4, choirs from seven churches in Fuzhou, Fujian Province, held a joint choir exchange concert, reflecting on the achievements of the past year while looking forward to the dreams for the new year.
The participating churches included Huaxiang Church, Guanxiang Church, Jianxin Church, Dongmen Church, Shipu Christian Church, and Puqian Church. The event took place at Guanxiang Church.
Senior Pastor Chen Ying of Guanxiang Church introduced the church's long history, which spans over a century. She explained that in 1863, the American Congregational Mission came to Fuzhou to oversee the work of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM). The following year, the Fuzhou Mission built a white-brick teaching building on North Taiping Street, at the foot of Yu Mountain, which was named "Holy Teaching Hall." In 1881, the mission expanded the building into a church, renaming it "Peace Street Church."
At that time, the church was the largest in Fujian Province, and the American church donated a large American-made brass pipe organ to the church. This organ was the third of its kind in China, following those in Beijing and Shanghai. Since then, major festival concerts and important celebrations in Fuzhou have been held at Guanxiang Church, making it a well-known landmark in the history of Fujian's music culture.
(This article was originally published by the Gospel Times, the article has been edited under permission and the author is a believer in Fujian.)
- Edited by Karen and translated by Abigail Wu
