April 13, 2003
Reported by Li Yi-shin.
Translated and rewritten by David Alexander

A delegation from the Reformed Church in America (RCA), which has a longstanding and close relationship with the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan (PCT), paid a call to Taipei and Tainan from April 1 to 3 on its way to China. The group was led by the Rev. Mr. Tiu Geng-siong (John Chang), who is president of the RCA's General Synod this year.

Mr. Tiu was born and raised and educated in Taiwan. He is a graduate of Tainan Theological College and Seminary. He has lived in the USA since 1980, and is the pastor of Grace Christian Church (RCA) on Staten Island in New York City. He is the first Asian elected to the presidency of the RCA in its 375 year history on the North American continent. Twenty of the RCA's over 900 churches are ethnically Taiwanese.

The delegation visited Tainan Theological College and Seminary on the morning of April 2nd, then flew to Taipei for an audience with Taiwan's President Chen Shui-bian that afternoon.

Mr. Tiu told the President that the RCA stands alone among mainline Protestant churches in the USA in its support of Taiwan's entry into the United Nations and its call for a general recognition of Taiwan's role in the international community. The RCA's General Synod has written formal letters to US President George W. Bush and to United Nations' Secretary General Kofi Anan on the matter.

President Chen received Mr. Tiu's remarks with gratitude. He thanked the RCA for its concern for Taiwan's freedom, democracy and for its action which evidenced Taiwan's progress in ecumenical esteem. He went on to say that when a Taiwanese person is elected to head a church denomination, it is not just a personal honor, but a hope for future close cooperation and Taiwan's return to the world stage.

The General Secretary of the RCA, The Rev. Mr. Wesley Granberg-Michaelson, in thanking President Chen for receiving the group, reiterated the close relationship between the two churches in concern for Taiwan's democracy and freedom. He also said that the churches' concern for the society and its weak sectors cannot be carried out without recognition of the need for growth and strengthening.

He added that strength comes when believers serve with zeal. When church hierarchies and agencies unite with local churches, clergy and believers, the resulting network facilitates the enjoyment of spiritual gifts and mutual service. This can lead to constant renewal of churches, and opens the way for the coming of the Kingdom of God.

Taiwan Church News