按：<當神明承諾能解決戀愛和財務困境時>這一篇是莊智超牧師基於對台灣民間信仰的認識所提出的「新傳福音方式」，我看完後覺得他的意見或態度，比較像以利亞戰勝巴力先知一樣（王上18），直接和台灣的泛靈信仰對撞，要在台灣人的「靈界世界」裡攻佔領地，但我看的是既憂且懼。
誠然，莊牧師對台灣民間信仰的認識是深刻的（以我過去的信仰背景，我知道他說的是事實）：
「台灣民間信仰提供人們安全感和具體的處境化保障。人們不需要掌握複雜的教義——只需去廟裡向神明祈求即可。
因此，對多數台灣人而言，抽象的福音意義不大。許多台灣人需要的是更接地氣的福音，能回應民間信仰的神明所能滿足的需求：日常生活所需及感受。解決這些需求不是神明們的副業，而是他們存在的目的。」（文摘）
但我的信仰經歷告訴我，這樣的信仰景況恰好是需要被救贖的屬靈硬土，需要的是被翻轉與更新，不是妥協。如果信仰需要像商品陳列供均選擇，基督的福音應該是展現商品質感吸引人的注意，而不是宣傳「別的商品有的我也有，而且我的更好！」
我反對以「傳統信仰的思維慣性為基礎」的福音宣傳方式是有思考過的。如果沒有擺脫傳統信仰的思維慣性，那福音不過是「另一種滿足個人需要的『選擇』」，不是「真理」，在這樣的基礎下進來教會，也會因為「真正的福音」衝擊了既有的慣性而離開，因為福音對他來說，只是可供選擇的自助餐而已。
「神的意念高過人的意念」、「盡心盡性盡力愛主你的神」……這些教導，都指向神「創造的主」的全能與本質，人應該改變自己去學神、去符合神的心意，怎麼會為了讓人好接受福音，所以可以允許＼強化「配合人的需要」、「配合在硬土紮根的需要」，去讓福音裝扮成「靈界裡最強大、最能滿足人民需求的『神明』」？這很容易把神給「偶像化」耶！
所以莊牧師的結論我看得是憂懼交加：
「基督徒需要展示上帝比那些威脅著台灣人民的靈體和神祇更強大、更能滿足他們的日常需求。
這樣的福音對台灣人而言才是真正的『好消息』，是能在這個文化裡紮根的呼召。」
總之，為了「讓福音紮根」的目的而投台灣民眾之所好，這樣的「手段＼工具」思維，只怕會重演以色列人進迦南地卻不徹底清除偶像的往事，最終以色列人無法擺脫罪的引誘而玷污了迦南美地，讓耶路撒冷聖地成為荒涼之土，我期期以為不可。
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This piece by Pastor Tony Chuang proposes a new approach to evangelism based on his understanding of Taiwan’s folk religions. After reading it, I felt that his attitude resembles that of Elijah confronting the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18)—directly colliding with Taiwan’s animistic worldview, attempting to claim spiritual territory within the “spirit world” of Taiwanese people. But as I read, I felt both concern and fear.
Indeed, Pastor Chuang’s grasp of Taiwanese folk religion is profound (from my own past religious background, I can attest that what he describes is true):
> “Taiwanese folk religion provides people with a sense of security and concrete contextual assurance. People don’t need to understand complex doctrines—just go to the temple and pray to the gods.
Therefore, for most Taiwanese, an abstract gospel holds little meaning. What many Taiwanese need is a more down-to-earth gospel that can respond to the same needs their deities fulfill—daily necessities and emotional comfort. Meeting these needs is not a side job for the gods; it is their very purpose.” (excerpt)
But my own faith experience tells me that this very spiritual condition—the hardened soil—is precisely what needs redemption, transformation, and renewal, not compromise.
If faith were something displayed like goods on a shelf for people to choose from, then the gospel of Christ should attract attention through its inherent beauty and quality—not by claiming, “Our product has everything the others have, but ours is better!”
My opposition to evangelistic methods built on “the habitual thought patterns of traditional religion” is not without reflection. If we do not break free from those thought patterns, the gospel becomes merely “another option for fulfilling personal needs,” not the Truth.
People who enter the church on that basis will leave when the true gospel challenges their old assumptions—because to them, faith is nothing more than a self-serve buffet of choices.
“God’s thoughts are higher than man’s thoughts.”
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and strength.”
These teachings point us toward God’s omnipotence and divine nature as the Creator. Humanity is the one who should change—to learn from God and align with His will.
How then can we justify adjusting or enhancing the gospel to “meet human needs” or to “take root in hard soil,” by presenting God as “the most powerful and satisfying deity in the spiritual realm”?
That risks turning God Himself into an idol.
That’s why I read Pastor Chuang’s conclusion with mixed anxiety and sorrow:
> “Christians need to demonstrate that God is stronger than the spirits and deities that threaten the Taiwanese people—and that He can better meet their daily needs.
Only such a gospel will truly be ‘good news’ to the Taiwanese and take root in their culture.”
In the end, to “help the gospel take root” by catering to what the people already desire—this instrumental or utilitarian approach—may simply repeat Israel’s failure in Canaan: entering the land but not fully cleansing it of idols.
Ultimately, Israel fell into sin and defiled the Promised Land, turning the holy city of Jerusalem into a desolate ruin.
I find such an outcome deeply alarming and unacceptable.
附：Stephen Grewar長老的回應（2025/11/11）
早安，Jorman！我直到今天早上才看到你昨天的留言。越讀那篇文章，我越想知道你的看法。讀黃先生（Tony Huang）的文章時，我心情複雜：對他的發現很感興趣，但並不完全同意他的結論。第一印象具有形塑力，且往往相當強固，日後難以改變。我曾在市裡參訪過一間教會，也認識過那裡的牧師。或許那時他和我一樣心事繁重，但我當時的印象並不佳。當然我相信他是位很棒的人，但我自己的既有印象一直持續到現在。
當福音被情境化到一個程度，使得傳福音以人的日常需要為核心，會不會也產生類似的結果？我相信黃先生的良善用心是要將人領進福音的豐滿，但我擔心我們可能會養成一代以為神旨在祝福我們一切所行的心態──祝福我的工作、祝福我的家庭、祝福我的學習、祝福我尋找配偶等等。我並不認為這是他言說的核心，但這卻是一個令我憂慮的警訊。
我非常感謝也重視你對他文章的回應。Jorman，真的很感激你。你能深思熟慮，並以經文本位來檢驗事物。把福音當作「情境化」的一種論述，需要謹慎處理，並以經文為標準去試驗。我想到許多人把神當作自動販賣機，而非當作主。誠然我們在他裡面蒙福，但這是依照他的條件，而非我們的想望。
實際上，福音對於多數以自我為中心的心態仍然缺乏吸引力。以創造主為中心的傳福音有其美好之處——它立刻喚起世界觀的危機。當聖靈開啟人的眼睛、軟化剛硬的心，接著的問題便是：「我如何活著討他喜悅？」而很快地，也會顯明：若沒有恩典、沒有信心，我們無法討他喜悅。
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Good morning Jorman! I only managed to read your message from yesterday this morning. As I read that article I was more and more interested in what your thoughts would be. I read Tony Huang's article with mixed emotions. I was very interested in his findings but not entirely in agreement with his conclusions. First impressions are formative and tend to be rather strong, difficult to break later on. I visited a church in the city quite some time back and I was introduced to the pastor. Perhaps like me he had a lot on his mind at that time but my impression was not very positive at that time. I am certain he is a super guy but my own impression has stuck all this time. Won't the same happen when the gospel is contextualized to such a degree that evangelism is centered on human everyday need. I am pretty sure Tony Huang's heart is to bring people into the fullness of the gospel, I'm concerned that we will be raising a generation with an idea of God wanting to bless everything we do. Bless my work, bless my home, bless my studies, bless my hunt for a spouse, etc. I don't think this is at the heart of what he is saying but it's a flag that concerns me too. I strongly appreciate and value your response to his article. Again, I am so greatful for you Jorman. You think things through and test things against the Word. Contextualizing the gospel as an idea needs to be handled with care and tested against scripture. I think of the many people who treat God as a vending machine rather than Lord. We are blessed in Him, but on His terms not ours. In reality the gospel will remain unappealing to people with a mindset that is largely self centered. Evangelism centered on the Creator God is wonderful in that it immediately invokes a crisis of worldview. As the Holy Spirit opens people eyes and softens hard hearts the question becomes about how I can live to please Him, and then soon enough it becomes apparent that without grace and without faith we cannot please Him.
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<當神明承諾能解決戀愛和財務困境時>Tony Chuang
在福音能明確解決日常需求前，多數台灣非基督徒可能仍會對基督教興趣缺缺。
小學一年級時，我每天下課後的例行生活都一樣。我會步行五分鐘，穿過繁忙的高樓和擠滿機車的台北市區，回到公寓老家，祖父母會在那裡迎接我。進家門後，奶奶總是提醒我要先拜祖先，才能玩我的變形金剛。我拿起一住香，雙手合十，對著客廳中央的祖先神龕簡單的祈禱。
我向祖先祈求健康、財富和好成績，接著享用祭拜祖先和神明的供品餅乾。人生很美好，我有勤奮工作的父母供應我日常所需、有祖父母照顧我的生活，還有祖先祝福並保護我的人生。
那時的我未曾聽過福音，而從祖父母那裡聽到關於基督教的評論都是負面的：基督徒想要我的錢，以及基督教本身就「不是我們的道路/方式」。我們的道路是華人民間信仰——結合儒家思想、道教元素，還有眾多神明、祖先和薩滿儀式。
母親總是教導我，有一位叫做耶穌的神明，向祂祈求很有效，所以我也將祂加入我的神明名單裡。直到高中時期，一位同學和我分享福音後，我才將生命交給這位基督教的上帝。
大約30年後，我撰寫《宗教信仰與福音傳播：從台北民間信仰中獲得的啟示》（Religiosity and Gospel Transmission: Insights from Folk Religion in Taipei）一書，探索民間信仰如何塑造台灣人的世界觀，以及基督徒能如何更有效地和台灣人傳福音。根據《皮尤研究中心》的數據，基督徒僅占台灣人口的6%，民間信仰的信徒則占44%。台灣是全球民間信仰信徒比例第三高的國家。
雖然我的研究主要集中在故鄉台灣，但華人民間信仰是全球漢裔華人之中廣泛存在的信仰體系。具體的實踐可能因地理位置而異，但人們的觀念和宗教信念，比如風水或靈界/無形世界，確實十分相似。
透過在台北街頭和廟宇與25位民眾的訪談，我逐漸發現基督教需要為深信民間信仰的台灣人（無論他們多麼深信）解答兩種關鍵的問題：基督教是如何與靈界互動的？基督教如何幫助台灣人度過日常生活？
傳福音給相信靈界存在的人
華裔美國社會學家楊慶堃（C. K. Yang）指出，華人民間信仰是一種「分散型宗教（diffused religion）」，意思是這種信仰滲透至日常生活中，以一種制度化的宗教通常無法做到的方式交織在世俗空間裡。例如，在全球華人社區中，一間新的商店開幕時，常會見到店家向特定的神明供奉食物和香，祈求祝福和生意興旺。
這也意味著，「現代化（modernity）」並未像在世界其他地方那樣消除民間信仰，而是對華人的宗教性產生截然不同的影響。民間信仰使世俗機構和社會群體「充滿超自然色彩的豐富民俗特色」，楊慶堃在《華人社會的宗教》中寫道：「（華人）整體的社會環境具有神聖氛圍，啟發人們的感覺，認為神明與人一起參與在塑造傳統生活方式的過程。」
民間信仰在日常生活和社會機構（包括政府辦公室和學校）中的普及，使其成為台灣人集體意識的一部分，與政治事務一樣重要。但這並不意味著所有台灣人仍「被超自然的魅力吸引」，而是如哲學家查爾斯·泰勒在《世俗時代》中所說的那樣，所謂的「超自然」已然成為一種人們接受的日常體驗。
在這樣的背景下，福音的呈現應直接觸及鬼怪、靈體、地方神祇和祖先等構成台灣人現實生活的力量。
例如，每年某些日子裡，台北街頭會擠滿扛著地方神像的人，從一座廟宇遊行到另一座廟宇。台灣民間信仰知名學者林茂賢解釋，這些遊行在靈性上類似於警察巡邏，目的是「驅邪安民」。
而如果福音無法做到「驅邪安民」，福音在台灣便會被視為毫無用處。根據我的訪談，台灣許多地方的人至今仍真實地擔憂鬼怪和邪靈。因此，教會需要更健全的驅魔神學及實踐。福音不應只是關於來世的保險，更應成為對抗現實或感知中的靈界力量的保護。
一個實際的例子是，讓非基督徒知道「耶穌的名」能驅逐所有可能侵擾家宅的惡靈，或向耶穌禱告的力量能成就其他靈體或神明所不能成就的事。
台灣的靈恩派教會早已能做到這一點。Judith C. P. Lin在《1945至1995台灣靈恩運動》一書中指出，由於無形的靈界在台灣人日常生活裡是種常態，多數台灣教會「理解聖經裡記載的關於信仰的超自然層面為『可以在現世品嚐和經歷的現實』」。她認為，這也是靈恩運動在台灣迅速成長的原因，並指出約有三分之一的台灣基督徒傾向靈恩派信仰。
在靈恩和非靈恩基督徒群體中，台灣基督徒經常為釋放、奇蹟性的醫治以及在靈界爭戰中的保護而禱告。這些福音實踐向台灣人揭示上帝的力量、禱告的方式、靈媒的危險等與他們日常生活相關的問題。
台灣教會自1980年代以來開始有靈恩相關的教導及實踐。然而在我的訪談中，只有少數人提到基督徒曾向他們談論關於無形的靈界。或許透過提及靈界的方式傳遞福音可以更多地運用於初次分享福音的情境中。一個能充分解答靈界問題的福音能在台灣獲得更多回應。
福音對日常生活的影響
在接觸台灣非基督徒時，另一個需要考量的重要面向，是他們向民間信仰的神祇祈求時所求的是什麼。西方人傳福音時多半專注於呈現更抽象的概念，如基督教如何提供罪的赦免、新生命和永恆的盼望，但台灣人更關心的是實際日常的需求。
例如，他們會向關聖帝君祈求升遷，向土地公祈求保護住宅免受小偷侵入，向月老祈求得遇佳緣。
和台灣人傳福音時，需要說明福音是否能或如何能在這些實際需求上幫助他們。許多基督教傳道人會敦勸我們過著符合福音的生活方式——即我們作為基督徒應如何按著所領受的恩典和責任而生活——但在日常生活中，福音對我們而言究竟意味著什麼？
當你的事業不景氣時，福音是如何回應的？當你住在高犯罪的社區，福音如何保護你？當你38歲了卻無法找到伴侶，福音能提供什麼？「要更有信心」和「依靠耶穌」這些簡單的回答，對於解決人們的真實困擾並不夠具體。
一些去教會一段時間的基督徒已逐漸明白福音如何應用於特定情況，但非基督徒並不理解這一切。在我的訪談中，許多台灣非基督徒認為抽象的福音「無關緊要」、「愚蠢」或「自大」。有些人甚至誤以為這只是另一種神秘咒語。除非我們所傳的福音開始明確地回應日常生活中的問題，多數台灣非基督徒可能會繼續對福音無感、認為福音沒有說服力。
民間信仰能為人們日常生活中遇到的情境提供解答及具體的儀式。透過習俗、儀式和像清明節這樣的特殊節日，台灣民間信仰提供人們安全感和具體的處境化保障。人們不需要掌握複雜的教義——只需去廟裡向神明祈求即可。
因此，對多數台灣人而言，抽象的福音意義不大。許多台灣人需要的是更接地氣的福音，能回應民間信仰的神明所能滿足的需求：日常生活所需及感受。解決這些需求不是神明們的副業，而是他們存在的目的。
在台灣呈現福音的面貌時，應採取處境化的方式，呈現上帝為比媽祖更能保護漁民、比土地公更能守護土地、比觀音更慈愛、比文昌帝君更關心學業、比月老更理解愛情的神。
這並不意味著基督徒應稀釋福音，或只將其定義為滿足日常需求的手段。福音具有永恆的意義，將人帶至與天父的關係中。福音的重點也不在於滿足個人慾望，而是以天父的心意而活。若將滿足日常需求的觀點推向極端，會變成「成功神學（又稱昌盛福音）」，不再關注耶穌所說的天國、忽視約翰對愛的教導，以及保羅呼籲我們過著配得上所蒙的召的生活的勸誡。
在耶穌的事工中，祂不僅滿足人們外在的需求，也關懷他們靈性的需求。耶穌談到當有人（不懷善意的）要求我們搬東西的情境（馬太福音5:41）、談到我們應如何繳稅（馬可福音12:17）以及如何寬恕他人（馬太福音18:21-22）。抽象的真理有時伴隨著滿足我們日常的需求，有時則沒有。即使是在登山寶訓這樣的大型公開講道中，耶穌仍教導人們日常生活的行為準則。
和信奉民間信仰的台灣人傳福音時，討論他們的生命正面臨哪些挑戰十分重要。可以詢問他們近期拜了哪些神祗、祈求了哪些事。了解這些問題有助於基督徒解釋福音能如何直接回應他們所關切的事、上帝能如何解決他們的問題，以及祂如何因著愛，為我們做出超越任何神明所能做的事。
有時，上帝並不會滿足我們每一個需求，但這並不意味著福音在這些議題上無話可說。例如，福音教導人們不必為金錢或工作升遷擔憂，而是「先求祂的國和祂的義，這些東西都要加給你們了。」（馬太福音6:33）。關於人身安全的問題，福音告訴我們，上帝「為你吩咐祂的使者，在你行的一切道路上保護你。」（詩篇91:11）。對於尋求伴侶的人，福音教導我們什麼是真正的愛（哥林多前書13章）。
在充滿民間信仰的文化中，讓人們認識到耶穌基督的福音仍是必要且重要的，基督徒需要展示上帝比那些威脅著台灣人民的靈體和神祇更強大、更能滿足他們的日常需求。
這樣的福音對台灣人而言才是真正的「好消息」，是能在這個文化裡紮根的呼召。
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Christianity Today
November 15, 2024
<When Deities Promise to Solve Romantic and Financial Problems>By Tony Chuang
Before the gospel can clearly address everyday needs, most non-Christian Taiwanese are likely to remain uninterested in Christianity.
When I was in first grade, my daily routine after school never changed. I would walk five minutes through Taipei’s busy streets filled with tall buildings and swarms of scooters to reach my grandparents’ apartment, where they would welcome me home. As soon as I entered, my grandmother would remind me to worship the ancestors before playing with my Transformers toys.
I would take a stick of incense, put my hands together, and offer a simple prayer to the ancestral shrine in the living room.
I prayed for health, wealth, and good grades, then enjoyed the cookies offered to the ancestors and gods. Life felt wonderful—I had hardworking parents providing for me, grandparents taking care of me, and ancestors blessing and protecting my life.
At that time, I had never heard the gospel. The only things I knew about Christianity came from my grandparents, who spoke of it negatively: Christians, they said, just wanted my money, and Christianity “was not our way.”
Our way was Chinese folk religion—a blend of Confucian values, Taoist elements, and numerous deities, ancestors, and shamanic rituals.
My mother used to tell me that there was a god named Jesus, and that praying to him worked well. So I simply added him to my list of gods. It wasn’t until high school, when a classmate shared the gospel with me, that I gave my life to the Christian God.
Nearly thirty years later, I wrote a book titled Religiosity and Gospel Transmission: Insights from Folk Religion in Taipei, exploring how folk religion shapes the worldview of Taiwanese people—and how Christians can share the gospel more effectively with them.
According to the Pew Research Center, Christians make up only 6 percent of Taiwan’s population, while followers of folk religion account for 44 percent. Taiwan has the third-highest proportion of folk-religion adherents in the world.
Although my research focuses mainly on Taiwan, Chinese folk religion is a widespread belief system among Han Chinese communities globally. While practices may differ by location, concepts such as feng shui and the existence of a spiritual or invisible realm remain strikingly similar.
Through interviews with 25 people on Taipei’s streets and in temples, I gradually realized that Christianity must answer two key questions for those deeply rooted in folk beliefs:
1. How does Christianity interact with the spiritual realm?
2. How does it help people in their everyday lives?
Evangelizing Those Who Believe in the Spiritual Realm
Chinese American sociologist C. K. Yang described Chinese folk religion as a “diffused religion”—meaning it permeates everyday life and intertwines with secular spaces in ways institutionalized religions usually cannot.
For example, in Chinese communities around the world, when a new shop opens, it is common to see offerings of incense and food made to certain deities for blessings and good business.
This also means that “modernity” has not erased folk religion among Chinese societies as it has elsewhere; instead, it has shaped their religiosity differently. Folk religion imbues secular institutions and social groups with “a rich supernatural folklore,” Yang wrote in Religion in Chinese Society.
He observed that “the overall social environment of the Chinese people has a sacred quality, inspiring a sense that the gods participate with humans in shaping traditional life.”
Because folk religion permeates daily life and institutions (including government offices and schools), it forms part of Taiwan’s collective consciousness—just as important as politics.
Yet this doesn’t mean all Taiwanese are “enchanted” by the supernatural; rather, as philosopher Charles Taylor notes in A Secular Age, the “supernatural” has become an accepted part of ordinary experience.
In such a context, presentations of the gospel must directly address the powers—ghosts, spirits, local gods, and ancestors—that shape the Taiwanese understanding of reality.
For example, on certain days each year, Taipei’s streets overflow with people carrying statues of local deities from one temple to another. Taiwanese folk religion scholar Lin Mao-xian explains that these processions are spiritually akin to police patrols—meant to “drive away evil and bring peace.”
If the gospel cannot “drive away evil and bring peace,” it is seen as useless in Taiwan. Many Taiwanese still sincerely fear ghosts and malevolent spirits. Therefore, churches need a more robust theology and practice of exorcism.
The gospel should not only be about securing one’s afterlife—it should also offer protection against real or perceived spiritual forces.
A practical example is letting nonbelievers know that the name of Jesus can cast out evil spirits that disturb homes, and that praying to Jesus can accomplish things no other spirit or deity can.
Charismatic churches in Taiwan have long embodied this. In her book The Charismatic Movement in Taiwan, 1945–1995, Judith C. P. Lin notes that because the unseen spiritual world is part of daily life for Taiwanese, most churches “understand the supernatural dimensions of faith described in the Bible as realities that can be tasted and experienced in the present world.”
She argues that this is one reason why the charismatic movement grew rapidly in Taiwan—about one-third of Taiwanese Christians identify as charismatic.
Among both charismatic and non-charismatic believers, Christians in Taiwan often pray for deliverance, miraculous healing, and protection in spiritual warfare. These gospel practices reveal God’s power and the dangers of spiritism in ways deeply relevant to daily life.
Although charismatic teachings began spreading in the 1980s, few of my interviewees said Christians had ever spoken to them about the invisible spiritual realm. Perhaps evangelism that explicitly acknowledges spiritual realities should be used more often when sharing the gospel for the first time.
A gospel that speaks convincingly about the spiritual world will likely find a more receptive audience in Taiwan.
The Gospel’s Impact on Daily Life
Another key factor when engaging non-Christian Taiwanese is understanding what they seek from the gods of folk religion.
Western evangelism often focuses on abstract ideas—such as forgiveness of sins, new life, and eternal hope—but Taiwanese people are more concerned with practical, daily needs.
For example, they pray to Guan Sheng Dijun (Lord Guan) for promotions, to Tudigong (the Earth God) for protection from burglars, and to Yue Lao (the Matchmaker God) for romantic success.
When sharing the gospel, we need to explain whether and how it meets these same practical needs.
Many preachers urge believers to live according to the gospel’s values—guided by grace and responsibility—but what does the gospel actually mean for people’s daily struggles?
What does it say when your business is failing?
When you live in a high-crime area?
When you’re 38 and still single?
Simple answers like “have more faith” or “trust Jesus” are not specific enough for people facing real problems.
Longtime Christians may gradually learn to apply the gospel in specific situations, but nonbelievers do not yet understand this. In my interviews, many Taiwanese described the gospel as “irrelevant,” “foolish,” or “arrogant.” Some even thought it was just another kind of magical spell.
Unless the gospel begins to address real, everyday issues clearly, most non-Christian Taiwanese will remain indifferent.
Folk religion provides tangible rituals and solutions for life’s challenges. Through customs, ceremonies, and special festivals such as Qingming, it gives people a sense of safety and contextual assurance.
They don’t need to grasp complex theology—just go to a temple and pray.
Thus, for most Taiwanese, an abstract gospel means little. What they need is a more grounded gospel—one that meets the same needs their deities supposedly fulfill: daily provision and emotional security.
Meeting those needs isn’t a side job for folk gods; it’s their very purpose.
When presenting the gospel in Taiwan, Christians should contextualize it—showing God as more protective of fishermen than Mazu, more caring for the land than Tudigong, more compassionate than Guanyin, more concerned about education than Wenchang Dijun, and more understanding of love than Yue Lao.
This doesn’t mean Christians should water down the gospel or reduce it to a tool for meeting daily needs.
The gospel has eternal significance—it brings people into relationship with the Father. Its focus is not personal satisfaction but living according to the Father’s will.
Taken to extremes, emphasizing earthly blessings leads to the “prosperity gospel,” which neglects Jesus’s teaching on the Kingdom, John’s call to love, and Paul’s exhortation to live a life worthy of our calling.
In Jesus’s ministry, he addressed not only spiritual needs but also physical and emotional ones.
He spoke about practical matters—carrying a burden an extra mile (Matthew 5:41), paying taxes (Mark 12:17), and forgiving others (Matthew 18:21–22).
Even in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught principles for everyday living.
When sharing the gospel with folk-religion believers, it’s important to discuss the challenges they face. Ask which gods they’ve prayed to recently and what they’ve asked for.
Understanding these concerns helps Christians explain how the gospel directly responds to them—how God can solve their problems and, out of love, do more for them than any deity can.
Sometimes, God does not grant every request—but that doesn’t mean the gospel has nothing to say.
For example, it teaches that we need not worry about money or career success: “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33).
Regarding personal safety, “He will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways” (Psalm 91:11).
For those seeking love, 1 Corinthians 13 teaches what true love really is.
In a culture steeped in folk religion, it remains vital to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ—and to demonstrate that God is more powerful than the spirits and deities that so many Taiwanese fear, and more capable of meeting their everyday needs.
Only such a gospel will truly be good news to the Taiwanese people—a message that can take root in their cultural soil.
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