I Once visited Huzhu Tu Autonomous County in the Chinese Province of Qinghai with some Christians. We met several local believers and learned the local customs and practices, as well as the status of Christianity locally.
The Tu nationality, one of China's ethnic minorities, has a population of roughly 290,000, with about 85% living in Qinghai. The Tu used to believe in polytheism and some were followers of Taoism, but after the Yuan and Ming Dynasties most of them converted to Lamaism.
Huzhu has many lamaseries with one in each village. Every household has to bring goods or money to a lamasery as an offering each month, including the Hui people, or they may be banished from their village.
So how did some elderly women begin to follow Jesus? One of the women was so seriously ill that she couldn't get out of bed and walk. Later a person from another place went to her village and preached the gospel to her. She was willing to accept the Lord, and gradually God healed her. Afterward, she reached other women who also converted to Christianity and they gathered together to worship and pray.
The Tu have their own language, but the script has basically died out, especially among the younger generation. The woman healed by God wrote hymns in her language and taught them to others. Together, they sang the hymns to praise Jesus in gatherings. There are no other local believers except these few elderly women and men. Meanwhile, a portion of the locals don't dare to be Christians due to political pressure. Moreover, believers outside the home never evangelize here. These believers yearn for more people to carry out mission work here, and for servants of God to pastor them.
Huzhu abounds in highland barley wine and there are a few large local wine producers. We also met some Han Christians in the county town. One woman, who has been retired for years after working in a winery for decades, told us that she lost her pension due to her Christian faith. We understood her dilemma under such a circumstance and prayed that God could strengthen her to walk forward by faith. In addition to the tough political situation, the county doesn't have a church or preacher.
(The author is a preacher from Xinjiang.)
-Translated by Karen Luo
