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: Paperback / softback
Length: 364 pages
Publication date: 13 January 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 reinvented their entire enterprise. By 1900, they had accomplished an astonishing feat by modernizing China through the establishment of schools, colleges, hospitals, museums, and even YMCA chapters. In his captivating book, Cultures Colliding, John R. Haddad skillfully chronicles this transformative institution-building process, exploring the hows and whys behind it and 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 the Chinese citizens, who exerted surprising influence over the preaching, teaching, and caregiving, eventually taking the reins of some organizations themselves. These missionaries embraced new American ideals while remaining thoroughly Chinese.

In Cultures Colliding, Haddad weaves together the captivating stories of the Americans who established these institutions and the Chinese who transformed them from within. Through this narrative, he reveals the unexpected origins and rapid rise of American institutions in China, shedding light on a chapter of history that has remained largely untold. The impact of this untold history continues to resonate in China today, shaping the country's social, cultural, and educational landscape.

Weight: 560g
Dimension: 152 x 227 x 32 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781439911617