There are three brothers who were once influential pastors but have now taken on roles as migrant workers or street vendors. The transformative effects of the three-year pandemic have not only impacted their daily lives but have also altered social dynamics.
A decade ago, Brother Wang had not yet become a pastor. During that time, he worked as a migrant worker in an electronics factory while serving in a church primarily composed of migrant workers. Later, he resigned from his job and pursued theological studies at a seminary in Zhejiang. Subsequently, he engaged in further theological education in the northeast.
After years of training, he became a pastor despite having only received an education up to the junior high school level. He served in a church located in a provincial capital in central China, catering primarily to migrant workers with occasional attendance from students at several technical colleges. Following the departure of the church's previous leader, he assumed the role of head pastor. He married and started a family, aspiring to build a church with a congregation of thousands. His sermons, theological knowledge, and understanding of believers were exceptional, garnering him recognition among the congregation. Prior to the pandemic, he had plans to establish a new meeting place and was raising funds for rent.
However, the three-year pandemic dealt a severe blow to his church.
Now his church is utterly struggling. With the rent being too expensive, the big house for the original gathering has been abandoned. Believers can only meet temporarily in a sister’s house, and there are only a dozen people left. Their family’s income is terribly affected. As a last resort, he has to go out to do food delivery work. His child is still young, and his wife takes care of the baby at home. He goes out in the morning and comes back very late at night, and he can earn two or three hundred yuan a day.
Presently, his church is facing immense challenges. The high rental costs forced them to abandon the spacious gathering place. The remaining believers can only temporarily convene at a sister's house, with the congregation dwindling to a mere dozen individuals. Their family's income has been significantly impacted. Consequently, he has resorted to working as a food delivery person out of necessity. With a young child at home, his wife attends to their baby while he departs early in the morning and returns late at night, earning a daily wage of two or three hundred yuan.
Brother Zhang serves as a pastor in the central region. It is known that he graduated from a seminary in the United States, and his theological training courses were previously in high demand.
During those years, his income was relatively substantial due to training fees and the devoted contributions of believers, rendering him a successful figure. However, with the cessation of legally recognized underground training programs, he started working as a church pastor in a developed city in the south. This church primarily catered to cultural and professional groups. Despite his theological seminary education in the United States, his daily pastoral duties remained challenging due to his limited education level.
Following three years of the pandemic, the church, under economic pressure and considering his educational background, decided to terminate his employment. With his daughter studying abroad and his family's need for sustenance, he has resorted to working as a taxi driver. Yet, the discrepancy in educational recognition has often caused him to experience moments of depression.
Brother Wen graduated from a prestigious university. After obtaining a master's degree, he briefly worked as a university lecturer. However, due to his fervent commitment to Christianity, he encountered conflicts with the university administration, leading to his departure. Subsequently, he joined a church in central China.
Slowly, his ideas also clashed with those of the church. That forced him to leave the church and rely on writing articles. At one point, his official WeChat account gained over ten thousand followers. Unfortunately, during the pandemic, the platform was closed due to its Christian content, resulting in the loss of his last means of self-realization.
On his WeChat Moments (a function for posting vlogs or blogs on WeChat, translator’s note), he can be seen selling items at a stall, and his income appears stable.
The transition from being a pastor to becoming a migrant worker not only signifies a change in the personal destiny of the pastors but also highlights the transformation within the traditional church.
It is evident that currently, the conventional church has lost its position within the realm of policy and social transformations, thereby rendering its disintegration or collapse inevitable.
The underlying social framework of the traditional church resides within a modest agrarian society, as it places significance on dimensions such as size, quantity, social influence, and its conflicts with societal norms. The traditional church prioritizes constancy and stability, adopting a patriarchal system as its political foundation, rather than focusing on the realization of gospel values and the individual social worth of its adherents. Consequently, it is bound to disintegrate amidst the competition between small-scale farmers and urban communities.
In the forthcoming era, the new church will undoubtedly become an inclusive and easily accessible community, with its growth inseparably tied to the progression of urban spaces.
- Translated by Charlie Li
有三位弟兄，曾经都是有一定的影响力的传道人。但是今天他们都成了打工者或者摆地摊的。三年疫情的变革，改变的不仅是生活，还有社会格局。
十年前王弟兄他还不是牧师。那时候他只是一个电子厂的打工仔，同时在一家打工者教会服侍。后来他辞了职，去浙江一家教会神学培训班接受神学学习。后来，他到东北一个神学培训班继续接受神学培训。
培训了几年，他已经由一名初中毕业的打工者，变成了一个教会的传道人。他服侍的教会在中部某省城，以打工者为主，偶尔有几个技术学院的学生。后来因为原来的教会负责人离开，他就成为这个教会的负责人。他在这个教会结婚，生子。建立一个千人教会，是他的梦想。他的讲道、神学还有对信徒的把握，都是出色的，也得到了信徒的认可。在疫情来临的时候，他已经计划另建一个聚会点，正在为房租募款。
但疫情的三年，让他的教会举步维艰。
现在他的教会只是在维持，原来聚会的大房子因房租太贵已经退掉了。信徒只能暂时在一个姐妹家聚会，人数只剩下十几个人。他们一家的经济收入都受到了打击。不得已，他只能出来跑外卖了。孩子还小，妻子在家带娃，他早上出来，晚上很晚才回去，一天下来也能跑两三百元。
张弟兄是中部地区的一个传道人，据说他毕业于美国一家神学院。他之前办的神学培训班如火如荼。
那些年他的收入颇高，讲课费加上信徒的奉献，让他成为一个成功人士。后来地下培训班风光不再，他就开始在南方一个发达城市做教会传道人。这个教会以文化和职业群体为主，因此对于中学毕业的他，虽然是美国神学院毕业，在日常的服侍中仍然吃力。
三年疫情之后，教会因为经济压力加上他的文化水平，不再聘任他。女儿在国外留学，家人要生活，他只能开起了出租车，能保障生活。但这种身份的落差几度让他精神抑郁。
文弟兄毕业于一家重点大学，拿到硕士学位之后，曾短暂在一所高校任教。但是因为他对基督教的热心，让他与学校产生了冲突，不得不离开学校。后来到了中原地区的一家教会服侍。
慢慢地他的观念也与教会产生冲突，让他不得不开教会，转以写文章为主。他的公众号好的时候，关注人数万人以上。疫情期间平台因为基督教内容被关闭，让他失去了最后一块自我实现的平台。
在朋友圈里，最近看到他在摆摊卖东西，收入应该还可以。
这种传道人到打工人的转变，并不仅是传道人自己的个人命运变化，还意味着传统教会的变革。这说明，在当下的时刻，传统教会已经在政策和社会变革中失去了自己的空间，解体或者崩溃已经成为必然。
传统教会的社会基础是小农社会，因为它强调教会的规模、人数、社会影响力以及与社会的冲突。传统教会追求不变和稳固，以父权家长制为经营教会的政治理念，而不是福音价值和信徒个体社会价值的实现。因此，在这场小农与城市的竞争中必然解体。
未来新的教会，必然是一个开放和自由的共同体，新教会的成长必然是随着城市空间的壮大而壮大。
观察| 疫情带给教会的冲击：从传道人到打工者现象管中窥豹 谈传统教会的没落和变革
There are three brothers who were once influential pastors but have now taken on roles as migrant workers or street vendors. The transformative effects of the three-year pandemic have not only impacted their daily lives but have also altered social dynamics.
A decade ago, Brother Wang had not yet become a pastor. During that time, he worked as a migrant worker in an electronics factory while serving in a church primarily composed of migrant workers. Later, he resigned from his job and pursued theological studies at a seminary in Zhejiang. Subsequently, he engaged in further theological education in the northeast.
After years of training, he became a pastor despite having only received an education up to the junior high school level. He served in a church located in a provincial capital in central China, catering primarily to migrant workers with occasional attendance from students at several technical colleges. Following the departure of the church's previous leader, he assumed the role of head pastor. He married and started a family, aspiring to build a church with a congregation of thousands. His sermons, theological knowledge, and understanding of believers were exceptional, garnering him recognition among the congregation. Prior to the pandemic, he had plans to establish a new meeting place and was raising funds for rent.
However, the three-year pandemic dealt a severe blow to his church.
Now his church is utterly struggling. With the rent being too expensive, the big house for the original gathering has been abandoned. Believers can only meet temporarily in a sister’s house, and there are only a dozen people left. Their family’s income is terribly affected. As a last resort, he has to go out to do food delivery work. His child is still young, and his wife takes care of the baby at home. He goes out in the morning and comes back very late at night, and he can earn two or three hundred yuan a day.
Presently, his church is facing immense challenges. The high rental costs forced them to abandon the spacious gathering place. The remaining believers can only temporarily convene at a sister's house, with the congregation dwindling to a mere dozen individuals. Their family's income has been significantly impacted. Consequently, he has resorted to working as a food delivery person out of necessity. With a young child at home, his wife attends to their baby while he departs early in the morning and returns late at night, earning a daily wage of two or three hundred yuan.
Brother Zhang serves as a pastor in the central region. It is known that he graduated from a seminary in the United States, and his theological training courses were previously in high demand.
During those years, his income was relatively substantial due to training fees and the devoted contributions of believers, rendering him a successful figure. However, with the cessation of legally recognized underground training programs, he started working as a church pastor in a developed city in the south. This church primarily catered to cultural and professional groups. Despite his theological seminary education in the United States, his daily pastoral duties remained challenging due to his limited education level.
Following three years of the pandemic, the church, under economic pressure and considering his educational background, decided to terminate his employment. With his daughter studying abroad and his family's need for sustenance, he has resorted to working as a taxi driver. Yet, the discrepancy in educational recognition has often caused him to experience moments of depression.
Brother Wen graduated from a prestigious university. After obtaining a master's degree, he briefly worked as a university lecturer. However, due to his fervent commitment to Christianity, he encountered conflicts with the university administration, leading to his departure. Subsequently, he joined a church in central China.
Slowly, his ideas also clashed with those of the church. That forced him to leave the church and rely on writing articles. At one point, his official WeChat account gained over ten thousand followers. Unfortunately, during the pandemic, the platform was closed due to its Christian content, resulting in the loss of his last means of self-realization.
On his WeChat Moments (a function for posting vlogs or blogs on WeChat, translator’s note), he can be seen selling items at a stall, and his income appears stable.
The transition from being a pastor to becoming a migrant worker not only signifies a change in the personal destiny of the pastors but also highlights the transformation within the traditional church.
It is evident that currently, the conventional church has lost its position within the realm of policy and social transformations, thereby rendering its disintegration or collapse inevitable.
The underlying social framework of the traditional church resides within a modest agrarian society, as it places significance on dimensions such as size, quantity, social influence, and its conflicts with societal norms. The traditional church prioritizes constancy and stability, adopting a patriarchal system as its political foundation, rather than focusing on the realization of gospel values and the individual social worth of its adherents. Consequently, it is bound to disintegrate amidst the competition between small-scale farmers and urban communities.
In the forthcoming era, the new church will undoubtedly become an inclusive and easily accessible community, with its growth inseparably tied to the progression of urban spaces.
- Translated by Charlie Li
Observation: Three Pastors Become Employees During Pandemic, Reflecting Decline and Transformation of Traditional Church
