On Oct. 15, four Presbyterian ministers from America traveled to Shanghai to meet their friends at the registered church headquarter.
Presbyterian Churches of United States (PCUSA) Elder Douglas Welch, Rev. Dr. Insik Kim, and two others had an exchange with Rev. Kan Baoping, executive director of China Christian Council and two other top Chinese church leaders, according to TSPM/CCC’s website.
Since Kim will have his retirement ceremony on Oct. 31 after serving for 35 years in the PCUSA Asia Pacific Ministry, he wanted to introduce Rev. Dr. David Hudson, the next leadership of his position, to the Chinese church. He hopes that the friendly relationship between the Chinese church and PCUSA can be passed down.
On behalf of CCC/TSPM, Kan thanked Kim for his contributions in the relationship building between the two sides, and expressed his desire to maintain their relationship as friends and of mutual respect and to strengthen dialogues and exchanges between them.
Lastly, both parties exchanged gifts and took pictures. On Sunday morning, they visited the two registered churches in Shanghai.
PCUSA now has 2.3 million members, the largest of Presbyterian denomination in U.S.A. In the past, PCUSA have split and part and have reunited several times. Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), which has its national offices in Louisville, Ky., was formed in 1983 as a result of reunion between the Presbyterian Church in the U.S. (PCUS), the so-called "southern branch," and the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. (UPCUSA), the so-called "northern branch.” This reunion abolished their split since the U.S. Civil War.
