Hudson Taylor
By the late 18th century, some Protestant missionaries started showing up in China. Though hampered by anti-Christian attitudes, a few bold evangelists adopted native customs, clothes, and communication styles to once again blend in. Among the Christian heroes of this era was the revered, Hudson Taylor.
Hudson Taylor was a Christian missionary to China and founder of the China Inland Mission. He first arrived in Shanghai in 1854 and spent 51 years in China — responsible for planting 125 schools and baptizing approximately 18,000 people.
Taylor was known for his passionate evangelism, while also being sensitive to Chinese culture. At first, the locals called him the “black devil” because he wore a black overcoat while preaching. Taylor realized this was a pretty big problem for a preacher, so he went ‘all in,’ wearing native Chinese clothes and sporting a Chinese-style pigtail with a shaved forehead.
Taylor learned several dialects of the Chinese language and helped translate portions of the New Testament. He lived and preached in the streets, distributing thousands of Chinese Gospel tracts. Under his leadership at the China Inland Mission, Taylor inspired over 800 Christian missionaries to come to China — dedicated people from all walks of life.
Ruth Tucker, a Church historian, wrote:
No other missionary in the nineteen centuries since the Apostle Paul has had a wider vision and has carried out a more systematized plan of evangelizing a broad geographical area than Hudson Taylor.”*
*Tucker, Ruth. From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya: A Biographical History of Christian Missions. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. 1983. (p. 73).
Randall acts as the lead writer for ColdWater’s Drive Thru History® TV series and Drive Thru History® “Adventures” curriculum.
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