A centenary church in Jiangsu held a service and ceremony for the inauguration of its new main building.
On April 23, a fiery red floating lantern ball was suspended at the entrance of the church in Taixing City. With a band playing music and receptionists welcoming guests at the entrance, the holy temple was fully seated with believers
Rev. Chen Dehong preached a sermon titled "The Church is the House of God" in the service. He mentioned that Bethel was the house of God, where God reigned and believers met God; Bethlehem meant the house of bread, and church should feed believers well with God’s words; Bethany was the home of friendship and hospitality, and people’s mourning could be turned to Joy with care and attention from the Lord.
In the afternoon, a celebration was held in the church, with performances such as singing, dancing, and oboe.
At the beginning of the 20th century, American missionary Alexander R. Saunders came to Taixing to do missionary work, establishing a church in Dingjiazhuang. In 1918, the Presbyterian Church started its mission work to Taixing in Taizhou Diocese, with an American missionary and a pastor from Yangzhou purchasing a land to build a church. During the Cultural Revolution, the church ceased religious activities and became a civil building. After the implementation of religious freedom policies in 1988, the church property was returned to the church, and the church was put into use in 2000. Since 2011, the foundation of the church has subsided, and cracks have appeared on the walls. Then it was detected as a dangerous building in 2015. In 2017, the municipal government planned to rebuild it in another location. With a construction area of 6,667 square meters (about 1.647 acres) and a floor area of approximately 3,300 square meters (about 0.815 acres), the new church was delivered for use in 2020.
- Translated by Emily Qu
江苏一百年教堂举行新堂落成崇拜暨落成庆典。
4月23日，泰兴市教堂门口，火红的空飘灯笼球悬浮着，左边是乐队奏乐，右边是迎宾的接待人员。圣殿内信徒座无虚席。
在落成崇拜中陈德宏牧师以“教会是家”证道。他讲到教会是伯特利之家，即永生神的家，上帝在这里掌权，信徒要在这里遇见神；教会是伯利恒之家，要看重讲台供应，用真道来喂养信徒；教会是伯大尼之家，要使来到这里的人得到关注、关爱，使困苦人因着认识主眼泪可以化为舞蹈。
下午，该教堂内进行了欢庆活动，歌唱、舞蹈、双簧等节目轮番上演。
二十世纪初，美国传教士索行仁来泰传教，初设教堂于丁家庄。1918年，长老会由泰州教区传入泰兴，美籍一牧师与扬州一传教士购置土地建教堂。文革期间教堂停止宗教活动，成为民用房。1988年，落实宗教政策后，宗教资产归还教会。2000年，教会得以交付使用。2011年起，教堂地基沉降，墙体出现裂缝，2015年检测为危房。2017，市政府规划异地重建。新教堂占地6667平方米，建筑面积约3300平方米，2020年交付使用。
https://gospeltimes.breadoflife.cn/article/index/id/73534
（请注意：1平方米=0.000247英亩 acre 进行换算，注明在平方米后面，例如（0.3 acres），这样外国人好理解。）
泰兴市教堂庆祝新堂落成
A centenary church in Jiangsu held a service and ceremony for the inauguration of its new main building.
On April 23, a fiery red floating lantern ball was suspended at the entrance of the church in Taixing City. With a band playing music and receptionists welcoming guests at the entrance, the holy temple was fully seated with believers
Rev. Chen Dehong preached a sermon titled "The Church is the House of God" in the service. He mentioned that Bethel was the house of God, where God reigned and believers met God; Bethlehem meant the house of bread, and church should feed believers well with God’s words; Bethany was the home of friendship and hospitality, and people’s mourning could be turned to Joy with care and attention from the Lord.
In the afternoon, a celebration was held in the church, with performances such as singing, dancing, and oboe.
At the beginning of the 20th century, American missionary Alexander R. Saunders came to Taixing to do missionary work, establishing a church in Dingjiazhuang. In 1918, the Presbyterian Church started its mission work to Taixing in Taizhou Diocese, with an American missionary and a pastor from Yangzhou purchasing a land to build a church. During the Cultural Revolution, the church ceased religious activities and became a civil building. After the implementation of religious freedom policies in 1988, the church property was returned to the church, and the church was put into use in 2000. Since 2011, the foundation of the church has subsided, and cracks have appeared on the walls. Then it was detected as a dangerous building in 2015. In 2017, the municipal government planned to rebuild it in another location. With a construction area of 6,667 square meters (about 1.647 acres) and a floor area of approximately 3,300 square meters (about 0.815 acres), the new church was delivered for use in 2020.
- Translated by Emily Qu
Taixing Church Celebrates Completion of New Building
