Covenant News

Taiwan Covenant Church Marks 50th Anniversary

TAIPEI, TAIWAN (May 21, 2002) - About 3,500 Chinese Covenanters gathered at National Taiwan University's new sports arena in Taipei for a joyous celebration of 50 years of denominational ministry in Taiwan.

Sunday morning's service culminated a celebration May 16-19 that included former executive director of the Department of World Mission Ray Dahlberg. He first visited the church 25 years ago, when the church had just 600 members. He praised God for the dramatic growth in recent years. He said he appreciates the name of the church, which means "Doers of the Word."

An atmosphere of excitement filled the arena as the ceremony began with a procession of banners representing 38 churches - 32 representing churches in Taiwan and remaining banners representing churches in South Korea, the Philippines, New Zealand, South Africa and Rosemead, California. Members of each church stood and cheered as their banner was carried in.

The Taiwan work through the Covenant began after Covenant missionaries were evacuated out of China in the late 1940s. Dr. Signe Berg arrived in Taiwan in March 1952 as the denomination's first missionary. Shortly thereafter, missionaries Edward and Mildred Nelson arrived and Bible studies began in the Nelson home. Those studies eventually led to the inauguration of the first Covenant congregation, Taipei Covenant Church.

Rev. Norman Dwight (accompanying photo), a missionary to Taiwan since 1954, and 90-year-old Chinese Covenanter, Mr. Yang, who had attended the Covenant seminary many years ago in Hubei Province, China, reminisced about the beginning of the Covenant church in Taiwan. Dwight was one of four Covenant pastors recognized for more than 30 years of service. Asian Covenant leaders from Japan, Thailand and India were also present and brought greetings to the church.

Music included a traditional choir, a young peoples' praise and dance troupe and native Taiwanese dancers in colorful costumes. Rev. Nathen Chang, pastor of the Hsin Tien Covenant Church, challenged Christians with the passage from Luke 5:38-39 to be "new wineskins" in order to reach people for Christ in the 21st century.

"It was thrilling for those of us in attendance to look over the crowded arena and consider the work God has done to bring growth, maturity and vision to a church that began among poor refugees from China in 1952," said David Dolan, coordinator for Chinese ministries for the Evangelical Covenant Church Department of World Mission since 1999 who also served as a Covenant missionary to Taiwan with wife Judy beginning in 1976.

For more information about the ministries of the Covenant in Taiwan, email Dolan at djdolan@attbi.com.

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