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St. John's Church, Suzhou

Coordinates: 31°18′19″N 120°38′04″E / 31.30528°N 120.63444°E / 31.30528; 120.63444
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St. John's Church, Suzhou
苏州圣约翰堂
St. John's Church, Suzhou in 2015
St. John's Church, Suzhou is located in Jiangsu
St. John's Church, Suzhou
St. John's Church, Suzhou
Location in Jiangsu
31°18′19″N 120°38′04″E / 31.30528°N 120.63444°E / 31.30528; 120.63444
LocationGusu District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
DenominationProtestantism
History
StatusParish church
Founded1881 (1881)
Founder(s)Alvin Pierson Parker
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Architect(s)John M. Moore
Architectural typeChurch building
Completed1915 (reconstruction)
Specifications
Floor area1,855-square-metre (19,970 sq ft)
MaterialsGranite
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese蘇州圣约翰堂
Traditional Chinese蘇州聖約翰堂
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinSūzhōu Yuēhàn Táng

St. John's Church, Suzhou (Chinese: 苏州圣约翰堂) is a Protestant church located in Gusu District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.[1]

History

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St. John's Church traces its origins to the former East Soochow Methodist Church, founded in 1881 by American missionary Alvin Pierson Parker, a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.[1]

At the beginning of the 20th century, the number of Christians in Suzhou increased.[1] In 1915, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South demolished the church and built a new western style church with a construction area of 1,855-square-metre (19,970 sq ft) and 800 seats, designing by John M. Moore.[1] And it was renamed the St. John's Church in memory of the St. John's Church in St. Louis, Missouri, United States for its financial support.[1] Chong-tan Lee, grandfather of Tsung-Dao Lee, served as its first chief pastor.[1]

In 1959, the church was rented by the Suzhou First People's Hospital and returned to the Church in 1995.[1] It was refurbished and redecorated from October 1996 to March 1998.[1] The church was officially reopened to the public in November 2005 with the approval of the Chinese government.[1]

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St. John's Church, Suzhou in 2015
St. John's Church, Suzhou in 2015
Interior of the St. John's Church

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i 苏州圣约翰堂——江苏省基督教著名教堂巡礼. zhsw.org (in Chinese). 3 February 2009. Retrieved 20 July 2021.

Further reading

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  • Weihong, Luo (1 May 2014). 中国基督教(新教)史 [History of Protestantism in China] (in Chinese). Shanghai: Shanghai People's Publishing House. ISBN 9787208121324.