Reference Guide to Christian Missionary Societies in China: From the Sixteenth to the Twentieth Century.

Yihua, Xu

By R. G. Tiedemann. Armonk, N.Y.: M. E. Sharpe, 2009. Pp. 338. $128.95.

Confucius once stated that when a worker wants to produce a great work, he must first sharpen his tools. R. G. Tiedemann's recent book is one of those "sharpened tools," and researchers will find it useful in better understanding the history of Christianity in China.

To date, this reference guide joins ranks with only a few reputable resource materials in its field. The only other book of a similar nature is Jin-dai wai-guo zai-hua wen-hua ji-gou zong-lu (A handbook to foreign cultural institutions in modern China, 1992), edited by Beijing University professor Gu Wei-dong. Despite its value, this work is considered incomplete, since it covers only the years from 1840 to 1949.

Tiedemann's reference guide includes all known Protestant societies and Catholic communities, covering the time from "Matteo Ricci's arrival in China and the beginning of meaningful archival collections through the end of the missionary era" (p. xi). It is thus one of the most comprehensive tools for Christian missiology in China.

Most sourcebooks can be tedious or pedantic in nature, but not so this one. It is not only user-friendly but also contains a reservoir of new items and insights for even the most learned in the field. For example, Tiedemann has sections addressing two subjects of particular interest to missiological scholars: Chinese missionary societies and religious communities of women. For each missionary society or religious community in the guide, Tiedemann gives specific Chinese terms, pertinent literature and archival information, contact addresses, and more.

Certain obstacles arise in any attempt at comprehensive missiological research on China. For one, Chinese and English institutional names and the names of mission fields change over time and can easily become confusing, a fact that has led to some minor inaccuracies in the guide.

Yet Tiedemann's work shows remarkable completeness, with just a few omissions of what one would call quasi-missionary institutions, such as the China Endeavour House, International Institute of China, and Nurses Association of China. These are only slight flaws, however, in what the Chinese would calla "white jade."

As a prominent scholar on Christianity in China who has invested three decades of extensive research and three years of intensive preparation on the subject, Tiedemann has prepared a fine work that deserves a prominent place in all major libraries, as well as on the desks of serious researchers.

Xu Yihua, Professor of Religious Studies, Center for American Studies, Fudan University, Shanghai, is the author of Essays on the History of Protestant Theological Education in China (in Chinese, 2006).