福音与改良：英国浸礼会在华农村社会改良活动考略

摘要

In order to change the poverty in rural China,English Baptist Mission set up plants of cotton,lace and other industries in cooperation with the Christian University to carry out the rural improvement after it came to China.Through those operations,the income for Christians and the level of civilization had been improved.From the perspective of safeguarding Christian doctrine,English Baptist missionaries engaged in foot-binding and anti-smoking campaign to help people change bad habits in their lives.English Baptist Mission established Tsinan Institute and other church museum to enlighten people through the exhibitions of western civilization and offered literacy class and rural schools to help the public eradicate illiteracy,particularly to women＇s emancipation.Although English Baptist Mission＇s social improvement activities in China＇s rural areas were with the utilitarian motives of spreading the Gospel,they brought the needed western civilization to local people and improved the local community to a certain extent.However,it was unrealistic for the British Baptist to change the outlook of Chinese society at that time only through the improvement activities.Only through the reform of social system at that time can the status of weak and poor Chinese rural society be totally changed.%英国浸礼会来华传教后,为改变活动地区农村的贫困面貌,兴办棉纺织、花边发网等实业,并借乡村建设热潮,与教会大学合作开展乡村改良,以提高教徒经济收入与中国文明程度;英浸会传教士从维护基督教教义角度出发,投身于禁烟与反缠足运动,以帮助民众改变生活陋俗;英浸会设立广智院等教会博物馆,通过展览西方文明以启迪民智,并开办识字班、乡村学校,帮助广大民众扫除文盲,尤其重视妇女阶层的思想解放。英浸会在华的农村社会改良活动,虽带有传播福音的功利动机,但却给活动地区带来了急需的西方现代文明,一定程度上改变了当地社会面貌。然而英浸会企图通过改良来改变中国社会面貌是不现实的,在不变革当时社会体制的现状下,中国农村社会的积贫积弱也无法根本改观。