The aim of this research is to find social factors in Chinese academic immigrants’ conversion to Christianity using the perspectives of symbolic interactionism and social exchange theory. The research data are drawn from observation and interviews. Fourteen Chinese student converts were interviewed. The analysis focuses on the interaction between recruits and Christians. Results supported the idea that religious conversion happens progressively. Affective bonds are essential for the religious conversion of Chinese academic immigrants. Chinese Christian converts experienced five stages. First, they develop affective commitment to Christians close to them and regard them as their reference group. Second, an emergent generalized other is internalized in recruits’ minds through recruits’ acceptance of symbolic language in Christianity and interaction with Chinese Christians. Third, recruits understand the Bible with the perspective of Christians. Fourth, as the socially defined reality reinforces their beliefs and the affective bonds develop, recruits confess their sins and decide to believe in God. Finally, recruits strengthen their understanding of Christianity by intensifying interactions with Chinese Christians.

For my PhD thesis I conducted qualitative field research in a Chinese Christian community in Germany for two and a half years. The research was to explore what functions are fulfilled when Chinese students in Germany convert to Christianity. This survey is therefore not considered to be a contribution to the investigation of the reasons for conversion; instead, the approach is a functional one. From this premise arises the assumption that conversion is only one creative coping strategy amongst many in dealing with problems which confront every person. From the observed strategies for solving problems used by the protagonists, conclusions about the corresponding problem areas could be drawn. In this way it was possible to extract the most important motives for conversion.

China is a world force. Not only is China seen in the daily news but it has produced the largest church in the world. The church is 100 million people strong (Hattaway 2003:13). Since 1978, modern China has begun to populate the world community with her immigrants. Vast Diaspora communities have been created. The church in China shows all the signs of a Jesus People movement. In 1949 the communist came into power. They ordered all Christian missionaries to leave the country (Aikman 2003:44). By 1953 the last missionary had left (Thompson 1978:186). Mao closed the churches, confiscated property, burned books and bibles and had leaders sent to re-education camps. A time of persecution had begun. Rather than destroy the church, this made it stronger. The church grew from 750,000 to 100 million today. Can this Jesus People movement be experienced in the Diaspora community in South Africa? To evaluate this we use Allan Hirsch’s “The Forgotten Ways” (2006). In this he speaks of Apostolic Genius and the six elements that compose it. Thos elements are Jesus is Lord, Making Disciples, Missional-Incarnational Impulse, Apostolic Environment, Organic Systems and Communitas. These six elements are found expressed within a Jesus people movement. When they are all fully involved, a Jesus People movement is underway. There are 14 Chinese Christian churches in South Africa. The Chinese Diaspora community is 300-350,000 people. The Chinese mostly come from the Fujian province in China. Seventy percent are entrepreneurs and businessmen running shops selling Chinese goods. The researcher has found that the leadership of the churches is from Taiwan. Bringing everything together, the researcher finds the churches are growing at a moderate rate. The expected explosive growth of the church in China is not found in South Africa. The elements of Apostolic Genius are present but only partially expressed. There continues to be potential for the Chinese House church movement to field workers in South Africa. There has been some expressed interest. The Back To Jerusalem Movement is putting missionaries all over the Middle East (Hattaway 2003). It is the opinion of the researcher that putting workers in the Diaspora communities would be a natural extension of that that effort. / Dissertation (MA Theol)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Science of Religion and Missiology / unrestricted

For my PhD thesis I conducted qualitative field research in a Chinese Christian community in Germany for two and a half years. The research was to explore what functions are fulfilled when Chinese students in Germany convert to Christianity. This survey is therefore not considered to be a contribution to the investigation of the reasons for conversion; instead, the approach is a functional one. From this premise arises the assumption that conversion is only one creative coping strategy amongst many in dealing with problems which confront every person. From the observed strategies for solving problems used by the protagonists, conclusions about the corresponding problem areas could be drawn. In this way it was possible to extract the most important motives for conversion.:0. Einleitung, S. 1 0.1 Forschungsgegenstand, S. 1 0.2 Angewandte ethnografische Methoden, S. 2 0.3 Aufbau der Arbeit, S. 5 1. Historischer Hintergrund: Christentum in China, chinesische Christ(inn)en in den USA und Deutschland, S. 7 1.1 Geschichte der christlichen Mission in China, S. 7 1.1.1 Protestantische Mission von 1800 bis 1949, S. 7 1.1.2 Das protestantische Christentum in China von 1949 bis heute, S. 14 1.2 Konversion in China: Das Problem der chinesischen Termini und der gegenwärtige chinesische Forschungsstand zu Konversionsmotiven, S. 20 1.3 Konversion von Chines(inn)en zum Christentum in den USA: Gegenwärtiger Forschungsstand, S. 28 1.4 Chinesische Christen in Deutschland, S. 43 1.4.1 Geschichte der Chines(inn)en in Deutschland, S. 43 1.4.2 Allgemeines zur Chinesischen Evangelischen Gemeinde (CEG), S. 48 2. Theoretischer Hintergrund: Konversion, S. 54 2.1 Klassische psychologische Ansätze, S. 54 2.2 „Gehirnwäsche“, S. 61 2.3 Soziologische Konversionsforschung, S. 64 2.4 Rational-Choice-Theorie, S. 79 2.5 Erweiterung des funktionalistischen Ansatzes um Konzepte des religiösen Coping, S. 85 3. Familiäre Strukturen, Normen und Ideale der Chinesischen Evangelischen Gemeinde, S. 94 3.1 Die chinesische Familie: Struktur, Wandel, Relikte, S. 95 3.1.1 Traditionelle Familienstrukturen und konfuzianische Familienideale, S. 95 3.1.2 Die Transformation der traditionellen Familienstrukturen, S. 99 3.1.3 Die partielle „Restauration“ der traditionellen Familienstrukturen, S. 102 3.2 Die Chinesische Evangelische Gemeinde als christliche Familie, S. 109 3.2.1 Die Familienstruktur der CEG und damit verbundene Normen und Ideale, S. 110 3.2.2 Offizielle Familiennormen in der CEG und ihre Rezeption bei den Akteuren, S. 128 4. Funktionen der Konversion in der Chinesischen Evangelischen Gemeinde, S. 135 4.1 Methodische Reflexion, S. 135 4.2 Äußerer Rahmen: Hinführung, Bekenntnis, Taufe, S. 137 4.3 Ergebnisse der teilnehmenden Beobachtung, S. 140 4.3.1 Konversion als Realisation von Geborgenheit, S. 142 4.3.2 Konversion als Realisation von Sicherheit, S. 159 4.3.3 Konversion als Realisation von Heilung, S. 180 4.4 Auswertung der Bekehrungserzählungen und Interviews, S. 197 4.4.1 Konversion als Realisation von Geborgenheit, S. 198 4.4.2 Konversion als Realisation von Sicherheit, S. 224 4.4.3 Konversion als Realisation von Heilung, S. 252 5. Die Konversion chinesischer Studierender in Deutschland zum Christentum als familienorientierte Coping-Strategie zur Realisation von Geborgenheit, Sicherheit und Heilung, S. 271 5.1 Realisation von Geborgenheit zur Milderung von Einsamkeit und familiärer Disharmonie, S. 275 5.2 Realisation von Sicherheit zur Milderung von Überforderung, S. 281 5.3 Realisation von Heilung zur Milderung von Stressreaktionen auf äußere Schwierigkeiten sowie von psychischen Problemen, S. 283 6. Literaturverzeichnis, S. 288 7. Anhang, S. 313