Missionary Primitivism and Chinese Modernity

Abstract

Introduction: the Brethren in Modern China 'Beyond any other British denomination, Open Brethren have become noted for their missionary outlook.' 1 Thus has asserted Tim Grass, in his history of the Brethren movement. Despite this, other than from their own historians, the Brethren have received little coverage in studies of missions. 2 This oversight is especially noticeable in the case of China, where the Brethren influence was particularly strong. As well as sending their own missionaries, the Brethren had a formative influence on China's largest Protestant mission, the China Inland Mission (CIM). 3 That the