Taiwan Church News 3855 Edition 12 ~ 18 January, 2026 Weekly Topical Giving Thanks to God’s Lead with Pillars of Cloud and Fire, BSTWN Commemorates its 70th Anniversary Reported by Chiu Kuo-rong from Taipei The thanksgiving service of the 70th Anniversary of the Bible Society in Taiwan(BSTWN) was held at Shi-lin Presbyterian Church at Taipei in the morning on January 10. In his opening speech, Rev Hsu Cheng-dao, chairman of BSTWN and chief pastor of Shi-lin Church, said “God’s words, like pillars of cloud and fire in the wilderness, continue to lead and enlighten every step of Christians’ lives with peace and hope.” Amid the thanksgiving service, Rev Hsu also presented special gifts to former BSTWN general secretaries and translation counsellors, as well as partner churches including Shi-lin, Da-dao-cheng, Hsiu-lang, Aou-poh, Min-chuan, Hsin-dian, Taipei Eastern Gate, Yong-ji and other presbyterian churches that had been long-term co-workers with BSTWN. With six PCT directors elected on the management board, Rev Hsu indicated, “the BSTWN management board, consisted of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan(PCT), Taiwan Lutheran Church, Taiwan Episcopal Church, the Catholic Church in Taiwan and other denominations, truly witnesses spiritual unity of the ecumenical.” “In the past 70 years, through the global network of the United Bible Societies (UBS), the Bible has been translated into different languages that can be accessed by many ethnic groups, so that the Bible is not only read in the church, but also proclaimed across Taiwan society.” Reflected in its own history, through a video clip in thanksgiving service, BSTWN was established in 1956 as the Taiwan Office of the Hong Kong Bible Society. Pursuing a vision to offer all people on the island with a Bible that is “affordable, readable and trustworthy”, BSTWN delved into the ministry of Bible translation into Chinese, Taiwanese, Hakka and many indigenous languages for decades. “BSTWN will do its utmost to respond its calling in a competitive race against time to save those dying ethnic languages in Taiwan. Meanwhile, a project of Bible translation into sign language had also launched from 2024 to meet the needs of the interested groups. In the future, BSTWN will carry on to cultivate new generations of talents and share with the ecumenical church about Taiwan’s unique contribution for the translations of the Bible into many indigenous languages,” Rev Hsu remarked. Rev Chung Shou-hui, general secretary of BSTWN, pointed out that reviewing the church history is not only to commemorate the amazing preservations of the Holy Bible, but also to witness how God’s words transform and impact the world among different times. She shared that many youth have witnessed how the Bible remarkably changed their lives: for example, one 16-year-old youth has undergone a major surgery for 15 hours due to rare diseases, yet in his grave pain and fear, he was overwhelmed by a stream of comfort and power from reading the scriptures and came to learn the promise of Christ on the cross; some people were trapped in frustration or anxiety in their career and difficulties, yet by studying the Proverbs of Old Testament, they started their lives again and learned how to rely on God’s guidance in an uncharted troubled waters. In the interview, Rev Chuang Chia-hsin, chief pastor of Aou-poh Church, said “the Bible is an indispensable foundation for the pious Christians. BSTWN has served in the ministry of Bible translation and promotion for a long period of time with a profound impact on the church and believers in Taiwan, and it is natural for the church to support its ministry.” He stressed that the Bible is not a book written to appease personal likes or emotions, but a holy scripture “God promise to lead us in his Word.” As the youth generation get used to reading the Bible via mobile phone, he observed, “such reading tends to run away from the holistic understanding and an in-depth reflection of the Bible, and the faith may easily backpedaled as fragmentary and parochial.” Therefore, he urged, preachers must interpret the scriptures in a way that is close to life and in touch with contemporary social context, so that youth can “know and use the Bible proper”. This task to engage with youth generation also highlights the urgency of translating the Bible into modern languages and social contexts. And he sincerely hoped this mission, an adequate translation and teaching, could make God’s word the pillars of cloud and fire for the youth generation in future. In the interview, Rev Chen Yan-long, pastor of Yong-ji Church, expressed “with the rapid changes in society and diverse options in sports and leisures, the milieu of Christian practices of reading the Bible is not so prevalent as past decades. Even if church ministries become more diverse, the number of people who actually engage in Bible studies and spiritual retreats is still limited. No wonder, to root deep an in-depth learning about the Bible, most church can only verbally encourage the congregation to spend more time and efforts among Bible studies classes, Sunday sermons and spiritual retreats.” When the church taught the Bible messages in recent days, he said, “it always extravagantly reduces the Bible into ‘some thing like “chicken soup’ or a tool to gain personal success, ignoring its core teaching is the redemption of God through Jesus Christ. If believers only read the Bible when convenient, faith is easy to slide backward to utilitarianism and stocks trades in the same mind set like practices among folk religions and cultures.” He solemnly warned, “if Christians cannot clearly catch the messages of the gospel in their reading of the Bible and easily become satisfied in personal emotions and experiences, it will be a crisis of Christian faith that contemporary church must watch out!” Translated by Peter Wolfe |