Revision 564929802 of "True Jesus Church" on enwiki

[[File:True Jesus Church Olive Garden.jpg|thumb|True Jesus Church training centre in [[Port Dickson]], [[Malaysia]]]]
The '''True Jesus Church''' is a [[Christianity|Christian]] church that originated in [[Beijing]], China, in 1917. The current elected chairman of the TJC International Assembly is Preacher Yong-Ji Lin.<ref>Chinese: 林永基</ref> Today, there are approximately 2.5 million members<ref>Although the Los Angeles based IA church website states a figure of 1.5 million, church sources from China say the figure is closer to the range of 2.4 - 3 million within China itself. See Allan Anderson: ''An introduction to Pentecostalism: global charismatic Christianity'', p.133-4.</ref> in fifty eight countries and six continents. The church was established during the establishment of the [[Pentecostalism in China|Pentecostal movement in China]] in the early 20th century. This movement started in United States and spread to China during the time of the first Pentecostal revival or, the [[Azusa Street Revival]] in Los Angeles led by [[William J. Seymour]] in 1906-1908. The church believes in "One True God theology", something that in English would be variously translated as [[modalism]] or Unitarianism.<ref>The "One True God theology" is a direct translation from the Chinese term: "[[:zh:一神论派|獨一神觀]]" (Dúyī shénguān), in which the original English equivalent is known as [[Unitarianism]], thus placing it beyond the borders of traditional Nicene Christianity.</ref> They were also one of the three<ref>The other two Chinese house churches were the [[Jesus Family]] and [[Local churches (affiliation)|Little Flock]]</ref> indigenous [[Chinese house church]]es that existed before the [[Communist Party of China]] ascension in 1949.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.giveshare.org/churchhistory/chinahousechurches.html |title=House Churches in China, From The Sabbath Sentinel |publisher=Giveshare.org |date= |accessdate=2012-09-15}}</ref> The church aims to unite the churches as One Body of Christ and to preach the [[gospel]] to all nations before the [[Second Coming]] of [[Jesus Christ]].

== The ten main doctrines and beliefs ==
The Church believes the sacraments must fulfill three requirements according to the Scripture. First, they must have been performed by Jesus Christ himself as an example; second, they must be directly related to our salvation, eternal life, entering the Heavenly Kingdom, and having a part with Jesus. Lastly, they must be of the sacraments which Jesus Christ instructed the disciples to do as well.<ref>Matthew 28:19; John 13:8, 17; Luke 22:19-20</ref>
The ten essential doctrines and beliefs, which True Jesus Church believe in to worship God correctly, are:

1. '''Holy Spirit''': "Receiving the promised [[Holy Spirit]], evidenced by [[Glossolalia|speaking in tongues]], is the guarantee of our inheritance of the Kingdom of [[Heaven]]".<ref>Mark 1:10, Luke 4:1; 11:13; Acts 2:33; Acts 1:5; 2:4; 10:44-45; Ephesian 1:13-14; Mark 16:17</ref>

2. '''Baptism''': "Water [[baptism]] is the [[sacrament]] for the [[forgiveness|remission]] of [[sin]]s and for [[regeneration (theology)|regeneration]]. The baptism must take place in natural living water, such as the river, sea, or [[spring (hydrosphere)|spring]]. Baptism, along with faith and [[repentance]], is necessary for the forgiveness of sins.<ref>'Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins' (Acts 2:38)</ref> The Baptist, who has already received baptism of water and the Holy Spirit, conducts the baptism in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. And the person receiving the baptism must be completely immersed in water with head bowed and face downward".<ref>Matthew 3:15-16; Mark 16:16; John 3:5; Titus 3:5; Acts 2:38; 19:4-6; 22:1</ref>

3. '''Foot Washing''': "The sacrament of [[washing of feet]] enables one to have a part with the Lord Jesus. It also serves as a constant reminder that one should have [[love]], [[Sacred|holiness]], [[humility]], [[forgiveness]] and [[Selfless service|service]].
Every person who has received water [[baptism]] must have their feet washed in the name of Jesus Christ. Mutual feet-washing may be practiced whenever is appropriate".<ref>John 13:1:18</ref>

4. '''Holy Communion''': "The [[Holy Communion]] is the sacrament to commemorate the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. It enables us to partake of the [[flesh]] and blood of our Lord and to be in communion with Him so that we can have [[Eternal life (Christianity)|eternal life]] and be raised on the [[Last Judgment|Last Day]]. This sacrament shall be held as often as possible. Only one [[unleavened bread]] and [[grape juice]] shall be used".<ref>Luke 22:17-20; John 6:53-58; 1 Corinthians 5:7-8; 11:23-29</ref>

5. '''Sabbath Day''': "The [[Sabbath in Seventh-day Adventism|Sabbath day]], the seventh day of the week (Saturday), is a Holy Day, blessed and sanctified by God. It is to be observed under the Lord's [[Divine grace|grace]] for the commemoration of [[Creation myth|God's creation]] and salvation and with the hope of eternal rest in the life to come".<ref>Genesis 2:1-3; Deuteronomy 5:12; Isaiah 58:13-14; Matthew 12:8-12; Mark 2:27-28; Luke 4:16; Acts 17:2 Hebrew 3:19-4:11</ref>

6. '''Jesus Christ''': "Jesus Christ, the [[Logos (Christianity)|Word]] who became flesh, died on the [[Crucifix|cross]] for the [[Redemption (religious)|redemption]] of sinners, [[Resurrection|resurrected]] on the third day and ascended to heaven. He is the only Saviour of mankind, the Creator of the heavens and [[earth]], and the only True God".

The church differs from most Christian denominations in that they do not believe the doctrine of the [[Trinity]]—A doctrine affirmed in the city of [[Nicaea]] by the [[First Council of Nicaea|First Ecumenical Council]], which met there in 325 A.D. They believe in the [[Nontrinitarianism|One True God theology]] which is similar to the [[Oneness Pentecostal]] view of God.<ref name="Anderson">Allan Anderson, Michael Bergunder, Andre F. Droogers, ''Studying Global Pentecostalism: Theories and Methods,'' [http://books.google.com/books?id=Zl1rEl-HXtAC&pg=PA18&dq=True+Jesus+Church+Oneness+Pentecostal&hl=en#v=onepage&q=True%20Jesus%20Church%20Oneness%20Pentecostal&f=false pp. 18-19].</ref>
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They are also different from other theologies such as [[Modalism]], [[Arianism]], [[Adoptionism]], [[Docetism]], [[Sabellianism]], [[Binitarianism]], [[Unitarianism]], etc.  {{Citation needed|date=July 2010}}
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7. '''The Bible''': "The [[Holy Bible]], consisting of the [[Old Testament|Old]] and [[New Testament]]s, is inspired by God, the only [[Scriptures|scriptural]] [[truth]], and the standard for Christian living".

8. '''Salvation''': "[[Salvation]] is given by the [[Grace (Christianity)|grace]] of God through [[faith]]. Believers must rely on the Holy Spirit to pursue holiness, to [[honour]] God, and to love humanity".

9. '''The Church''': "The True Jesus Church, established by our Lord Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit during the time of the '[[latter rain]]', is the restored True Church of the [[Apostolic Age|Apostolic time]]".

10. '''Second Coming''': "The Lord's [[Second Coming]] will take place on the [[End times|Last Day]] when He descends from heaven to judge the world: the [[righteous]] will receive [[Eternal life (Christianity)|eternal life]], while the wicked will be eternally condemned".

This is the latest [[English language|English]] version that was adopted during the 9th TJC Delegates Conference in May 2005.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tjc.org/about/stmtFaith.aspx |title=The Statement of Faith |publisher=Tjc.org |date= |accessdate=2012-09-15}}</ref>

=== Other beliefs ===
The church does not celebrate Christmas since it considers 25th of December to be originally associated with a [[paganism|pagan]] ritual celebrating the birth of the [[Solar deity|Sun god]] which was later adopted into the Christian church during the reign of the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] [[Roman Emperors|emperor]] [[Constantine I (emperor)|Constantine]] in the 4th century AD.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tjc.org/showArticle.aspx?aid=7219 |title=Is Christmas Biblical? |publisher=Tjc.org |date= |accessdate=2012-09-15}}</ref> The church also does not celebrate [[Halloween]]<ref>The fact that the TJC does not celebrate Halloween is mentioned in the [http://ia.tjc.org/elibrary/ContentDetail.aspx?ItemID=9629&langid=2 Holy Spirit Monthly, July 2007 publication]</ref> because it says the roots of Halloween can be traced back to an ancient Celtic festival called “[[Samhain]]” (meaning “Summer’s end,” pronounced “sow-en”). The festival took place on October 31 and marked the beginning of the dark season, which was associated with death and the waning of the sun.

Easter is not observed either,<ref>The fact that the TJC does not celebrate Easter is mentioned in the [http://www.joy.org.tw/holyspirit.asp?num=5638 Holy Spirit Monthly, May 2007 publication], their reason being that the Bible never mentioned of the early apostles ever setting up a date to celebrate "Easter".</ref> because the name “Easter” comes from Old English "Ēostre", a Germanic pagan goddess of fertility and spring, whose feast was celebrated during the spring equinox.<ref>known variously as Eostre,1 Ostara,2 or Eastre.3 The Saxon people in Northern Europe dedicated an annual festival to her to give thanks for newness of life after the winter. In the ancient Near East, people used to worship female deities with similar sounding names and who, again, were linked to spring and fertility rites. They include Ishtar in Babylon and Astarte (Ashtaroth) in Phoenicia. It is possible that they were worshiping the same deity, albeit by different names. For further information, see [http://www.religioustolerance.org/easter1.htm Easter: Its Pagan origins]</ref> However, this is based on a misconception since Easter (or its variants) is the name of the holiday only in Germanic-speaking countries; the original name for the Christian festival is [[Pascha]] (Passover) and this is what it is called even in English by [[Orthodox Christians]].

== Historical background and origins ==
The successful attempts to evangelize China by [[Nestorian Christians]] from [[Persian Empire|Persia]] (635-845 AD), the Roman Catholics and [[Jesuits]] (1265, 1601–1724) were short lived—they fell out of favour with the Chinese emperor and saw only scattered underground efforts.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.imarc.cc/reghist/reghist1.html |title=History of Missions in China |publisher=Imarc.cc |date= |accessdate=2012-09-15}}</ref>

The first Protestant [[missionary|missionaries]] to labor on Chinese soil began in 1807 with the arrival of the [[Scotland|Scotsman]] [[Robert Morrison (Scottish)|Robert Morrison]].
After the [[Opium War]] in the 1840s missionaries from all over the world began to arrive in China. [[Hudson Taylor]] founded the [[China Inland Mission]] in 1865.

The 19th century witnessed a great increase in the number of Christians. In 1900 there were almost 111,000 Protestant Christians with 1,600 Chinese Christian workers and 2,000 missionaries.

=== The origins of TJC ===
The three early workers of the True Jesus Church were [[Paul Wei]],<ref>Chinese name: 魏保羅</ref> [[Zhang Lingsheng]],<ref>Chinese name: 張靈生</ref> and later [[Barnabas Zhang]].<ref>Chinese name: 張巴拿巴</ref> According to the church history, Paul was led by the [[Holy Spirit]] to be baptized in [[Yongding River]],<ref>Chinese name: 永定河</ref> West of Beijing, near the site of [[Marco Polo Bridge]] <ref>Chinese: 盧溝橋</ref> where the beginning of the [[Second Sino-Japanese War|Sino-Japanese War]] had started later.

Later, the early co-workers met and firmly believed that it was the Lord's will for them to set up a true church that would correct all the past errors and misinterpretations in the doctrines of the other denominations and eventually reach perfection before the Lord's second coming.

<!--This paragraph has nothing to do with the origins of TJC and should be moved to a separate section or article. 

In 1979, one member of TJC, Hua Xuehe, broke away and created a separate sect known as ''Ling-ling jiao'' (灵灵教). He announced that he was the "Second Jesus," and the church's members celebrate January 17, Hua Xuehe's birthday, instead of Christmas. Church teachings emphasize the end of the world, faith healing, and exorcism.<ref>http://www.affcrit.com/pdfs/2002/01/02_01_sd.pdf</ref>  
-->
For more facts and information, see the Regional histories below, [[China's TJC History]],  [[Taiwan's TJC History]], and [[Sabah's TJC History]].

=== Regional histories ===
* [[True Jesus Church in China]]
* [[True Jesus Church in the Democratic Republic of the Congo]]
* [[True Jesus Church in India]]
* [[True Jesus Church in Japan]]
* [[True Jesus Church in Korea]]
* [[True Jesus Church in West Malaysia]]
* [[True Jesus Church in Sabah]]
* [[True Jesus Church in Myanmar]]
* [[True Jesus Church in the Philippines]]
* [[True Jesus Church in Singapore]]
* [[True Jesus Church in Taiwan]]
* [[True Jesus Church in Hawaii]]

In 1956 the Taiwanese General Assembly was established in [[Taichung]].

In 1967 the International Assembly was formed in Los Angeles (their administrative branch) <ref>{{cite web|url=http://members.tjc.org/sites/en/church_landing.aspx |title=A Brief History of the Establishment of the International Assembly |publisher=Members.tjc.org |date=2003-04-01 |accessdate=2012-09-15}}</ref>

Although most of the believers were located in China, contact with the mainland was lost shortly after the [[Chinese Revolution (1949)|1949 communist revolution]] and subsequent persecution of Christians throughout China.

== Membership ==
[[Image:Image-TJC Logo.jpg|right]]
By 2001, an estimated ten percent of [[Protestantism in China|Protestants in China]] - over 200,000 in [[Jiangsu]] province alone -were members of the True Jesus Church, and in some areas almost whole village communities were converted to this church.<ref>''An introduction to Pentecostalism: global charismatic Christianity'', Allan Anderson, p.134</ref> The church claimed in 2004 to have 440 churches and 106 prayer houses with 86,970 members from around fifty three countries in six continents and prudent estimates of over 2.5 million more members in China.<ref>The "exact" number is difficult to determine accurately and there is a discrepancy due to problems in the disseminating of information within China. For further information, see Alan hunter: [http://books.google.com/books?id=NSr53XxBLvoC&pg=PA67&dq=true+jesus+church++provincial+figures&lr=#v=onepage&q=true%20jesus%20church%20%20provincial%20figures&f=false ''Protestantism in contemporary China''], p.66-70. The number of TJC members in China were obtained from the TJC preachers in China itself. Depending on how many Protestants there are in China, the figure for TJC members could be at least three million</ref>
* '''TJC Africa''' - Benin, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, Togo.
* '''TJC Americas'''
** North America - Canada, United States.
** Latin America - Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Paraguay
* '''TJC Asia'''
** Northeast Asia - China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan.
** Southeast Asia - Brunei, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam.
** Southwest Asia - United Arab Emirates
* '''TJC Europe''' - Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Russia, Spain, United Kingdom.
* '''TJC Oceania''' - Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga.

== Administration ==
The workers are called divine workers who are the [[Elder (Christianity)|Elder]]s, [[Deacon]]s and [[Preacher]]s <ref>(''Wanguo gengzhengjiao bao'' 1919, 1:1)</ref> which are all below the fellow believers in the system. The following church offices pertain to this church:
A "Deacon" is defined as a member who has been ordained by the church to tend to the faith of the congregation, conduct sacraments, and set good examples for others. An "Elder" is a title given to a TJC member who has attained at least fifty years of age and has ministered in the Church for at a minimum of seven years. A TJC "preacher" is a full-time church minister whose duties are prayer, preaching, attending to members’ spiritual needs, and the conducting of sacraments <ref>‘Visiting the Church’, a church brochure giving a glossary of church terminologies.</ref>

Nowadays, representatives from each of the True Jesus Churches in the world also meet once every few years to elect a chairman of the International Assembly which focuses on the Church's development and future progress internationally.

There is a General Assembly in most of the countries mentioned above. The General Assembly is subdivided into Religious Affairs, Financial Affairs and General Affairs. In Taiwan, Central and local headquarters seem able to deal with the ever-expanding network of both rural and urban churches.<ref>In style and in function, the General Assembly seems much the same as the legislative organ of the [[Presbyterian Church in Taiwan]]. Yet, in theory, such as assembly and the basic ecclesiology of the church itself is based, according to church leaders, upon Apostolic precedent. On church [[ecclesiology]], see True Jesus Church, Jiàohuì Zǔzhī Yuánlǐ (教會組織原理)</ref>
The church's publication effort has also helped the church to grow. Tracts have been written and produced in great numbers and these are made readily available to each church member. The press has become more sophisticated in its presentation of tracts and scriptural materials and is better able to meet the needs of the expanding church.<ref>The authors and editors of the magazines are now able to target their audiences more clearly, writing different types of articles for different types of church audiences. A personal of a typical issue of the monthly ''Holy Spirit'' (聖靈月刊) and ''Manna'' publications demonstrate this point</ref>

In some countries where there are not enough numbers of believers, prayer houses are established. When the number of believers are sufficient, a church dedication ceremony is made.<ref>To form a "Church" at any given location there must be at least thirty members; A "Prayer House" is established when there are fifteen or more TJC members gathering together in a locality. For further information, see here [http://members.tjc.org/sites/en/us/GA%20Documents/LcBlws-Amend_31%20NCC.pdf]</ref>

== Nomenclature ==
Initially, the proposed name was "Jesus True Church" (耶穌真教會) but while the application for the church’s name was being registered at the Beijing police station the workers of True Jesus Church were moved by the Holy Spirit to register as “True Jesus Church” (真耶穌教會) <ref>[http://www.superfate.com.tw/v_community/relog_list.php?type=229 Christian Museum: sectarian introduction - True Jesus Church] {{zh icon}}</ref> and attached onto the church building. By 1927, the Shanghai TJC General Assembly decided to stick to the name.

==References, Notes and Further Reading ==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

Further reading: ''Christianity and China (2001): Burdened Past, Hopeful Future - Stephen Uhalley and Xiaoxin Wu''

== See also ==
{{Portal|Christianity in China}}
* [[Chinese Independent Churches]]
* [[Christian Sabbatarianism]]
* [[Christianity in China]]

==External links==
{{Commons category|True Jesus Church}}
* [http://www.tjc.org TJC Evangelical site]
* [http://members.tjc.org/sites/en/default.aspx TJC International Assembly]
* [http://www.tjc.org.hk/ TJC Hong Kong]
* [http://www.tjc.org.uk/ TJC United Kingdom]
* [http://us.tjc.org The TJC United States General Assembly]
* [http://www.tjc.org.my/ TJC West Malaysia]
* [http://members.tjc.org/sites/en/sabah/default.aspx/ TJC Sabah]
* [http://chicago.tjc.us/international/international.htm TJC Chicago, IL, USA]
* [http://hillsborough.tjc.us/ TJC Hillsborough, NJ, USA]
* [http://elizabeth.tjc.us/ TJC Elizabeth, NJ, USA]
* [http://elizabethtjc.org/ TJC Elizabeth, NJ, USA - Listen to recorded and live sermons]
* {{dmoz|Society/Religion_and_Spirituality/Christianity/Denominations/Pentecostalism/Oneness_Pentecostalism/True_Jesus_Church}}
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{{Apostolic Church}}
{{Chinese Independent Churches}}
{{Sabbath-Keeping Churches}}

[[Category:True Jesus Church| ]]
[[Category:Religious organizations established in 1917]]
[[Category:Seventh-day denominations]]
[[Category:Oneness Pentecostal denominations]]
[[Category:Christian denominations established in the 20th century]]