For this week’s interview I decided to mix things up a little. Instead of interviewing someone who currently lives in China, I interviewed a young man who moved to China in the 1800’s. ( and I don’t even own a time machine! )
Actually, I read about Hudson Taylor’s life about fifteen years ago. It’s so fascinating that I reread a book and articles and “interviewed” him by answering questions the way Hudson might have based on the real-life events recounted in these resources. I also divided the interview into a 2 part series because there is a lot of information to share! Rather than deleting a lot of details to make the answers shorter, I thought I’d just make the series a bit longer. I hope you enjoy reading about his life as much as I did. At the end of the series I’ll list some books you can read to find out more about him.
Hudson Taylor (1832-1905)
Founder of the China Inland Mission
Q: Hi Hudson. Thanks so much for agreeing to do this interview. I’m sure our readers will be fascinated to learn about China, a country you moved to in the 1800’s. First of all, tell me where you are from originally and a bit about your family? Secondly, can you tell me why you decided to move to China?
A: Sure. I was born on May 21st, 1832 in Barnsely, Yorkshire, England. My father’s name is James and my mother’s name is Amelia. I have two younger sisters, Amelia and Louisa. My younger brother William and baby brother Theodore both passed away when they were young. The short answer as to why I decided to move to China is because God told me to and I obeyed. A longer answer is that my journey to China was just as much a spiritual journey as a physical one.
It is my spiritual journey that best explains my decision to move to China as a missionary. For about 3 years I couldn’t stand going to church with my family and listening to them read the Bible. Then my mum went away for 2 weeks to visit my aunt. While she was gone she prayed for me. My sister Amelia also made a silent promise to pray for me 3 times a day. As I retraced the timing of their prayers, I realized that the same time I finished reading a gospel story and chose to trust in Jesus was the exact time my mum was praying for me.
I was amazed and realized that God really answers prayer and I wondered what else God might have in store for me. Then I went through a difficult time. Due to various circumstances, my sister and cousin had to swap places. My sister Amelia moved to my aunt’s house & my cousin John moved to our house and began sharing a room with me. Amelia was my best friend and prayer partner and I felt terribly lonely losing her. Not only that, John drove me crazy. He was the exact opposite of Amelia and he annoyed me to no end.
During this rough time I continued to read the Bible and pray. I even told God while I was praying that I would go anywhere He wanted me to go and do anything He wanted me to do if He would change John’s heart so that he too, would come to know Jesus as I had. Well, God did exactly that and during this time as I prayed, I heard God speak one word to me: China.
Q: I imagine that an Englishman preparing to go to China in the 1800’s was a bit of a challenge, to put it mildly, considering there was no television, internet or air travel during that time period. So, how did you, in fact, prepare for this journey?
A: You are correct. There were many challenges that I faced in my preparation. I did not have up to date reports about the political situation in China to rely upon. The only relatively current information I could find was in a book I borrowed called China, Its State and Prospects. I eagerly read it cover to cover amazed at the descriptions of rice paddy-covered plains, walled cities, enormous mountain ranges, yak trips and river voyages. I then realized a couple things. If I was going to survive the 3 month journey by ship to China and communicate once I arrived, I had to prepare myself physically and linguistically. I was often sick as a child and I wanted to toughen myself up. So these are some of the routines I began to prepare myself for a new life in China:
- I started waking up at 5 am to brush up on Latin, learn Greek & the basics of Hebrew.
- I strenuously exercised outside in cold weather.
- I got rid of my feather bed and slept on bare boards instead.
- I gave away all my non-essential possessions.
- Studied and practiced medicine to work as a doctor in China.
- With the help of my cousin John, whom I became friends with, I also figured out a way to study Chinese. It was tricky because the only Chinese book I had was the New Testament book of Luke.
- Finally I fully trusted God to provide all of my money and resources.
Here is one little story of how I trusted God for money. In London I worked for a doctor who often forgot to pay me. He repeatedly asked me to remind him when it was payday, but I decided I never would. I only prayed about it.
For example, one Saturday night I only had one half-crown left, which was not enough to pay the rent that would soon be due. On Sunday, I was hopeful that somehow God would provide the money. Instead, I found myself at the home of a very poor family. The wife was very ill so I cared for her and prayed for her. And then seeing their need but also sensing my own, I reluctantly gave them my only remaining coin.
With absolutely no money for food or rent, I woke to a knock on the door Monday morning. Strangely, my landlord stood at the door with an envelope for me. It was very odd because my mail normally arrived at the end of the week. I opened the envelope. It contained a very nice pair of men’s gloves but no note. Then I heard a clink as something dropped to the floor. It was a half-sovereign coin worth four times more than the half-crown I had just given away. I silently prayed to thank the Lord…
And now for the most suspenseful words ever: TO BE CONTINUED…
Suzhou Creek in Shanghai, China circa 1920
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
(public domain in U.S. due to expired copyright)
To find out about Hudson’s journey to Shanghai (pictured above), join me next week when I post the second part of the interview. And remember, if you don’t want to miss a post, you can subscribe to Mommy Maleta for free. Just click the follow button on the bottom right hand corner of the page, fill in the details according to the prompts and each Mommy Maleta post will be delivered to your inbox.
Deep in the Heart of China
(click on the book icon above to purchase)
This interview is based upon the book Hudson Taylor Deep in the Heart of China by Janet & Geoff Benge. It is part of the Christian Heroes: Then & Now series, copyright 1998 YWAM publishing.
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