Many things are happening in Asian American Christianity and thanks to the power of digital publishing via the internet and social media, we’re able to see it and learn from these activities. In 2013, I wrote a guest blog post on The Exchange with Ed Stetzer (then at Christianity Today), 9 Things About Asian American Christianity, and now in 2022, I wrote another guest blog post for The Exchange with Ed Stetzer (now hosted at Church Leaders)—9 More Things about Asian American Christianity.
For those of you that want an overview or executive summary or listicle, here’s the list of those 18 things:
- Asian Americans are the fastest growing racial group in the United States.
- There may be more varieties of Asian Americans than any other racial group.
- 83% of Asian Americans are in these top 6 ethnicities: Chinese, Filipino, Asian Indian, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese.
- Asian Americans are more educated and have higher median family income than any other racial groups; but that’s not the whole picture.
- 64% of Asian Americans speak English very well.
- 42% of Asian Americans self-identify as Christian, that is, 22% Protestant and 19% Catholic.
- There are an estimated 7,123 Asian American ethnic churches — of which 4,000 are Korean and 1,200 are Chinese. (2013)
- What’s trending is the significant growth of next-generation multi-Asian churches.
- More Asian Americans in college campus ministries indicates a future trajectory for the American church.
- Uniting Together for Public Safety and Social Justice.
- More Next-Generation Multi-Asian Churches.
- More Asian American Christian Women Pastors and Ministry Leaders.
- More Asian American Christians Leading Evangelical Organizations.
- More Networks and Academic Resources for Asian American Pastors and Church Leaders.
- More Asian Lead Pastors in Multiracial Megachurches.
- Asian Americans and Christians Are Incredibly Diverse.
- Beginning to Cultivate More Generosity Strategically.
- Addressing Mental Health More Openly.
Faithfulness and Fruitfulness among Asian American Christians
Of course many more things are happening among Asian American Christians, churches, ministries, elsewhere, and everywhere. I’d like to avoid misunderstanding and be clear that these are not the most important things nor are these ranked as the things that have the most value.
One more thing very important to mention is the increasing number of Asian American Christian authors being published by traditional publishing houses. InterVarsity Press is most likely the one with the largest number of Asian and Asian American authors.
Many things have value in the Kingdom of God, like the patient caregiving of elderly parents, the mother who is carrying a baby in the womb, the so-called blue collar worker doing manual labor, as well as those in vocational Christian ministry, marketplace workers, organizational leaders, teachers and professors, community organizers, artists, students, content creators, and many more.
In an incredible diverse and nuanced world, it’s becoming more challenging to communicate effectively and succinctly. And yet, to have to use so many words to explain a perspective or be inclusive of so many perspectives as to not leave out any marginalized or minority voices, I’m not sure how that can be done in the finite limitedness of 24 hours a day. This is the world we find ourselves in.
My hope is that in shining a light on some things that are happening, that this is an example and would prompt for many others to shine a light and share the things that are going on around them too. “Give praise to the LORD, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done.” (Psalm 105:1)