Title: Taipei Street Ministry and Calls Churches to Reject Inwardness
Taiwan Church News 2835, 26 June - 2 July 2006
Reported by Chiou Kuo-rong, Written by David Alexander
The captain of Taipei Presbytery's Chia-le Fellowship Team explains, "Our service to 'street people' is just beginning. We hope many people will not consider their position or their low income and will step up and, as soldiers for Christ, join our volunteer force. Many who come are church elders. We are engaged in 'throwing a brick to get back a piece of jade,' and hope that many young people can enter into this work."
Every Saturday afternoon in the first floor chapel of the Taipei Women's Theological School miracles can be seen happening. The glory of Jesus shines. The gathering of 70 or so street people includes many with unclean bodies and runny noses, but the chapel the atmosphere is light. Some experienced volunteers move about seeing to the needs of the street friends, serving meals, and asking no questions.
Elder Lu Chih-huei, the team captain, relates how in the past the team's running joke was, "There was a time a couple of years back when only two people showed up and we had 30 volunteers." That really happened, and one of the two was a noisemaker who jumped from seat to seat waving a divining stick and shouting how the spirit of the Buddha had come down. >From those beginnings the ministry progressed. Volunteers learned how to better serve the street friends and began to pray more in preparation for the weekly meetings.
All who gather in the school chapel participate in worship at the "street people's church." In the short time they have been organized, Elder Lu explains, they have established a foundation to continue the work. The foundation is not established along traditional Presbyterian Church in Taiwan (PCT) lines because a street people's church doesn't fit well into the organizational culture of the PCT. Nonetheless, in actual operation it upholds the principles of "identification and commitment" which are common to PCT related organizations.
Elder Lu speaks against the inwardness of churches, which she sees as a tremendous barrier. Local congregations often care only for their own members and pay attention only to their internal matters through promotion of small groups and fellowship. A "street peoples' church" just doesn't fit. Although the people who support the effort are church board members, nonetheless, many are involved in preserving the traditions of Presbyterianism. "The church," she says, "must be revived if it is to speak to the outside!"
For More Information: Taipei Presbytery www.tppct.org.tw
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