9Marks Journal: Immigrant Church (88期：移民教会)

Many immigrant churches are in a state of “divorce”: English ministries are splitting off from immigrant churches and starting their own churches because the pastors of English ministries feel ignored and suppressed, while the senior pastors of immigrant churches feel not included, not respected, and misunderstood. Second-generation immigrants feel justified in their decisions as they leave the churches that spiritually nurtured them, while aging first-generation Christians see their children grow up. This tension is universal. Asians, Latinos, Romanians, and many other immigrant groups face the same dilemma.

How do immigrant churches respond to this tornado of cultural division? While division in the church has caused much harm, it also presents an opportunity for us to explore together what the church is and how it should be governed.

In this issue of the journal, a number of immigrant church leaders share their biblical thinking and practices in the process of pastoring and governing churches. We look forward to the day when all tribes and all peoples can worship the Lord together. But until then, immigrant churches will continue to have a place, preaching the gospel in the heart language of their target people.

许多移民教会正处于“离婚”状态中：英文事工从移民教会中分裂出来，建立了自己的教会，因为英文事工的牧师感到被忽视和被压制，而移民教会的主任牧师则感到不被尊重和遭到误解。移民第二代中的基督徒在离开那些属灵上哺育了他们的教会时，认为自己所做的决定是正当的，而年迈的的第一代基督徒在看到他们的孩子长大成人时，则感到一种疲倦和失意。这种张力是普遍的。亚裔、拉丁裔、罗马尼亚裔，以及许多其他移民族群，都面临着相同的困境。

移民教会如何应对这种文化分裂的龙卷风？当教会的分裂造成了很多伤害时，它也带来了一个机会：我们应该就教会是什么，以及应该如何治理教会进行共同探索。

本期期刊，由多位移民教会的带领者分享他们在牧养、治理教会过程中，基于圣经的思考及实践。我们期待有一天，所有部落、所有民族都能共同敬拜主。但在那之前，移民教会将继续有一席之地，用其目标人群的心灵语言传扬福音。