C. Hope Flinchbaugh

Mei Lin is a young Christian, a member of an underground house church in rural China. Returning from a brutal imprisonment in Shanghai she is embraced by loving family and friends; however, the scars from her time in prison are more than emotional. The combination of violence and mal-nutrition has robbed her of her chance for a child, a fact that she is unwilling to share with any - particularly her fiancée Liko, a young leader in the churches of their village.

Liko is reluctant to see Mei Lin return to Shanghai to volunteer with an unregistered Christian orphanage so soon after her ordeal. Shortly after her arrival at the orphanage Mei Lin discovers an abandoned newborn, discarded and left for dead. Her mother’s heart blossoms as she tends to this beloved little one and ministers to the other children at the orphanage.

Shortly after her departure for Shanghai the church leaders in her village set into motion a series of events. Liko and his mother, Mei Lin’s father Kwan So and a network of 31 others in positions of leadership accept the opportunity to be trained by teachers of a prestigious Singapore seminary. It is only after they have arrived for training, tricked into splitting into small groups and engaged in the teaching that they realize they are in the hands of a dangerous cult, Eastern Lightning. The cult seeks to break the Christians from their faith in Jesus and turn them towards a false Christ, a Chinese woman claiming to be Jesus reincarnated, come again.

C. Hope Flinchbaugh has written a novel that is heavily focused upon current issues in the persecuted church in China. The cult, Eastern Lightning, kidnaps Christians, drugs, tempts, and tortures them to convert and lead others into their doctrine. Across the China Sky is based upon personal interviews of the author with those who have survived kidnappings by the cult. Chinese Christians are desperate to warn the church at large of their dangerous techniques and teachings, as they seek to spread to the West. This is what Flinchbaugh is striving to achieve in her novel.

Until I had Across the China Sky in my hands I didn’t realize that it was a sequel to Daughter of China. Not having read the first title I dug in. The story was a bit slow in starting off. My unfamiliarity with the characters led to an initial sense of disconnect, and I struggled somewhat to keep the Chinese names connected to the characters; foreign names not being my strong point, a cast of characters would have helped considerably. The pace soon picked up as I was immersed into Mei Lin’s mother-love for Little Mei, and once the Christians were kidnapped the pace became relentless. I couldn’t put the book down. Sweet scenes of Mei Lin showering Christ’s love upon unwanted children are interjected by scenes of temptation and torture creating a riveting combination.

While some of the characters, such as Liko, could have used more depth, it is possible that the first novel provided a deeper knowledge of these individuals. The chaste love between Liko and Mei Lin is very sweet; I appreciated its understated yet abiding nature. Flinchbaugh did leave a few loose ends dangling, perhaps a sign of future novels to come. I’d love to see works in the same vein, and will be keeping an eye on her.

Though Flinchbaugh’s novels of the church in China have been largely overlooked by Christian fiction readers, I highly recommend them. Here in North America we don’t often consider the struggles our brothers and sisters in Christ are engaged in. To be persecuted, to lose members of our families to torture from government officials, and then to be kidnapped and tortured oneself by a violent religious-political cult - what a nightmare! Through impassioned prayers for each other and perseverance these Christians are enabled to stay true to their faith despite painful, enduring consequences.

The year of 2008 has been one of international attention for China. Hosting the summer Olympics, the Chinese government laboured to present a positive image to the watching world. The Olympics were followed all too quickly with the current baby formula tragedy in China, and I found myself reading Across the China Sky only a week or two after the deaths and illness of many Chinese babies. God has used this work to light a fire in my prayer life for Chinese orphans and infants and for the persecuted church in China. I now understand their struggles and devotion a bit more clearly.

Reviewed at http://quiverfullfamily.com… (altro)