In Yuanbao District, Dandong City, Liaoning Province, lies the Yuanbao Mountain Christian Church, which was initially built in 1915. It is a two-story building that has a mixed structure of Nordic Gothic brick and wood.
This church was said to be designed and built by Danish Lutheran missionaries in Andong (now Dandong) at that time. In 1892, the Danish "Christian Lutheran church" sent evangelists to Luda (now Dalian), Gushan in the Northeast, and then Fengcheng, Xiuyan, and other places to preach the gospel. Afterward, the Danish pastor, Johannes Vyff, set foot in Andong (now Dandong, the same below). He was not only a pastor, but also an educator, gardener, and doctor. He built a church in Dandong, as well as schools and other facilities. In order to adapt to the missionary work in China, Vyff first studied at Jinan Chinese Language School in Shandong Province. After graduation, he came to Dandong City from Luda (Dalian). In 1914, a church that could accommodate hundreds of people was built after the land was purchased on Yuanbao Mountain.
The church owned a construction area of 397.4 square meters, with two auxiliary rooms in the courtyard, one of which was a traditional "pastor's mansion" brick building. It was used as the office and accommodation for the pastors in those days. According to records, the church at that time had a bell tower on the top, and the interior was comprised of a hall with Bible banners hanging around the walls. There was an altar on the south side of the hall with a granite stone basin for baptism in front of the altar. Indoor wooden floors were applied and it could hold about 600 people.
Since then, the interior of the church has changed with not only the traces from more than a hundred years ago but also the characteristics of modern Christianity. In the backyard of the current church, there is a cultural corridor for believers to rest, whose décor style matches the Sinicization of Christianity and the "four entries" campaign (the national flag of China, the Constitution, laws and regulations, core socialist values, and fine traditional Chinese culture shall enter religious venues).
(The article is originally published by the Gospel Times.)
- Translated by Shuya Wang
在辽宁省丹东市的元宝区，有一座始建于1915年的元宝山基督教圣殿，是一座具有北欧哥特式的砖木混合结构的二层楼建筑。
据介绍：这座教堂是由丹麦信义宗（信义会）传教士在当时的安东（现丹东）设计并建造的。1892年，丹麦“基督教信义会”派人到东北旅大（大连）、孤山，继之凤城、岫岩等地传教。嗣后，丹麦牧师于承恩（Johannes Vyff）踏上了安东（今丹东，下同）的土地。他不仅仅是牧师，还是教育家、园艺师、医生，他不仅仅在丹东建教堂，还兴办了学校等。于承恩为了适应在华传教，首先到山东济南华语学校学习，毕业后，从旅大（大连）来到丹东市内。1914年在元宝山购得地基，建造了可容纳数百人的教堂。
教堂建筑面积397.4平方米，院内各有两栋配房，其中一栋是有传统的“牧师府”砖瓦房一栋，作为当年传道人的办公和住宿使用。据资料记载，当时的教堂顶建有钟楼，室内为一大厅，墙壁四周悬挂圣经条幅。厅内南侧设有圣坛，坛前备有洗礼用的花岗岩石盆。室内地面铺设地板，大约可容纳600人左右。
现在的教堂内部有所变化，既有百余年前的痕迹，更有现代基督教的特色。在现在教堂的后院，有基督教中国化和“四进”的文化长廊，是信徒休息的一个地方。
（福音时报特约撰稿人报道）
记百余年历史的丹东元宝山基督教礼拜堂
In Yuanbao District, Dandong City, Liaoning Province, lies the Yuanbao Mountain Christian Church, which was initially built in 1915. It is a two-story building that has a mixed structure of Nordic Gothic brick and wood.
This church was said to be designed and built by Danish Lutheran missionaries in Andong (now Dandong) at that time. In 1892, the Danish "Christian Lutheran church" sent evangelists to Luda (now Dalian), Gushan in the Northeast, and then Fengcheng, Xiuyan, and other places to preach the gospel. Afterward, the Danish pastor, Johannes Vyff, set foot in Andong (now Dandong, the same below). He was not only a pastor, but also an educator, gardener, and doctor. He built a church in Dandong, as well as schools and other facilities. In order to adapt to the missionary work in China, Vyff first studied at Jinan Chinese Language School in Shandong Province. After graduation, he came to Dandong City from Luda (Dalian). In 1914, a church that could accommodate hundreds of people was built after the land was purchased on Yuanbao Mountain.
The church owned a construction area of 397.4 square meters, with two auxiliary rooms in the courtyard, one of which was a traditional "pastor's mansion" brick building. It was used as the office and accommodation for the pastors in those days. According to records, the church at that time had a bell tower on the top, and the interior was comprised of a hall with Bible banners hanging around the walls. There was an altar on the south side of the hall with a granite stone basin for baptism in front of the altar. Indoor wooden floors were applied and it could hold about 600 people.
Since then, the interior of the church has changed with not only the traces from more than a hundred years ago but also the characteristics of modern Christianity. In the backyard of the current church, there is a cultural corridor for believers to rest, whose décor style matches the Sinicization of Christianity and the "four entries" campaign (the national flag of China, the Constitution, laws and regulations, core socialist values, and fine traditional Chinese culture shall enter religious venues).
(The article is originally published by the Gospel Times.)
- Translated by Shuya Wang
[Church Series] Dandong Yuanbao Mountain Christian Church with Over 100 Years of History
