Christmas Eve

For Christmas Eve, I went with another foreign teacher Mr. Brown and some of my students to a government-approved Chinese church in TJ. I'll update this post with photos later, since I lent my camera to Mr. Brown for his last week in China.

I'd been here with Mr. Brown two times before in Sundays, but this was the first time I saw a church this crowded. People were sitting in the aisles, standing and crowding at the doorways, and I couldn't even get a seat. I was one of the lucky ones to get a cushion to sit on the floor, because we got there at 6:30pm for the 7pm service. Even at 6pm, all the seats were filled. Granted it's b/c of Christmas, but it's still impressive to see this many people in the house of the Father. It must have been what it was like over 2000 years ago, when JC went around teaching and healing, and it was so crowded that people even cut a hole in the roof to get to him.

I'm very surprised that four of my students were eager to come. Three of them had never been before and were quite interested and curious. Unbeknownst to me, the service was 3.5 hours long, from 7pm to 10:30pm. It was a long time to sit, listening to choral music and preaching. I wish they had a projector with the words so I could at least sing along, but often it was just the choir singing and the parishioners listening, not as much participation as in the States. The best part, I think, was the beginning when they had all the little children come up to sing. They were so cute, doing hand motions and everything. The speaker was also very heartwarming. He was this humble 82-year old man who had just had an operation, and would stop midway to sing us a song he loved. He spoke of his trust and his peace, how he did not fear death for it was simply returning to his home above. I loved the peace and serenity that filled his voice and persona.

Afterward, I went with two of my students for some shaokao, and got a chance to share how I came to know JC. When the clock struck midnight, we toasted and wished each other Merry Christmas over lamb kebabs. It was nice, kinda like Yorkside buffalo wings and garlic bread late at night in college; it really hits the spot.