Cultures Colliding: American Missionaries, Chinese Resistance, and the Rise of Modern Institutions in China

American missionaries in 1860 went to China to spread the Gospel but ended up modernizing the country by building schools, colleges, hospitals, museums, and YMCA chapters. John R. Haddad's book "Cultures Colliding" recounts how this happened and its consequences, showing how missionaries innovated by building hospitals and educational institutions, and how they listened to Chinese citizens who exerted surprising influence over the preaching, teaching, and caregiving, eventually running some organizations themselves.

Format: Hardback
Length: 364 pages
Publication date: 03 April 2023
Publisher: Temple University Press,U.S.

As incredible as it may seem, the American missionaries who journeyed to China in 1860, with the sole purpose of spreading the Gospel, ultimately transformed their entire enterprise. By 1900, they had modernized China in remarkable ways, establishing schools, colleges, hospitals, museums, and even YMCA chapters. In his book, Cultures Colliding, John R. Haddad skillfully chronicles this transformative institution-building process, exploring how and why it unfolded, as well as its far-reaching consequences.

When the missionaries first ventured into rural towns, mounted on mules, they encountered populations deeply entrenched in belief systems that venerated Confucius and rejected Christ. Tensions arose as the Chinese viewed the missionaries as unwelcome disruptors, leading to conflicts. However, against all odds, this failing movement managed to undergo a remarkable transformation. Many missionaries decided to innovate. They built hospitals and established educational institutions that offered science and math. A second wave of missionaries opened YMCA chapters, engaged in sports coaching, and taught college. Crucially, they began to listen to Chinese citizens, who exerted surprising influence over the preaching, teaching, and caregiving, eventually taking over the management of some organizations themselves. These Chinese individuals embraced new American ideals while remaining thoroughly Chinese.

In Cultures Colliding, Haddad recounts the unexpected origins and rapid rise of American institutions in China by sharing the stories of the Americans who established these institutions and the Chinese who reshaped them from within. Today, the impact of this untold history continues to resonate in China, shaping its cultural and societal landscape.

Weight: 692g
Dimension: 158 x 237 x 28 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781439911600