LONGMONT, Colo.—Ling Zhang and her husband, Yuli Gao, understand English.
The couple, who own an acupuncture practice in Lafayette, also speak the language fluently.
But religious concepts are easier to comprehend in their first language: Mandarin.
“(At church), we cannot understand every word,” Zhang said after a Sunday service at Vinelife Church in Longmont. “I can only understand about 70 (percent).”
“He can only understand about 60 (percent),” she added, nodding toward her husband and grinning.
Both were baptized Christians after immigrating to the United States in 1990 from Shanghai, China. At first, the couple attended an English Bible study at a different church but found the language barrier was too difficult, especially when delving into abstract faith concepts.
“They taught us, but they taught us in English so we only understand a little,” Zhang said. “You can understand some things, but not very completely. But in Chinese, we can understand more completely.”
But Vinelife’s Chinese ministry has helped them deepen their faith, said the couple. Through the ministry, families can hear Sunday’s sermon translated into Mandarin and discuss the teachings in Chinese Bible study classes.
Erie resident Ching Loh, who has born in Shanghai and grew up in Taiwan, began the ministry after retiring from the University of Colorado at Boulder’s accounting department.
In 2001, she began hosting a Bible study for single women in her home. But married women began attending. And then they brought their husbands and children.
“We just grew too big,” she said.
Loh encouraged her flock to come to Vinelife, her home church for nearly 20 years. By 2003, she was leading a Chinese ministry at the church. At its peak, more than 60 adults and 20 children were involved in the ministry, she said.
Currently, the ministry includes about 10 families from the Front Range.
Loh takes her work seriously. She has a bachelor’s degree in ministry from the Wagner Leadership Institute in Colorado Springs. She is scheduled to graduate in April with a master’s degree in ministry.
Because many are first-generation Christians, Loh said they need a strong foundation in the basics of the faith, and you can’t always do that in a person’s second language, she said.
During Sunday morning service, she sits in a sound booth in the main auditorium and translates the sermon into Mandarin. Those who choose to can hear the translated version through headphones the church provides.
Loh also leads Friday evening Bible studies, and all the families take turns hosting monthly potlucks in their homes.
After Sunday service, families can meet with Loh in a conference room to dissect that day’s lesson.
June Wang has been involved in the ministry since 2002. The Erie resident, who left Beijing in 1990, said the ministry provides her a place to socialize and connect with Chinese Christians.
“I love the energized ministry,” she said.
After last Sunday’s service, Loh explained the lesson primarily in Mandarin, occasionally tossing out English phrases like “up in heaven” and “God’s power.”
Joyce Loh (no relation to Ching Loh) grew up in a traditional Christian church in Taipei, Taiwan. It was forbidden to play instruments in the chapel, so all hymns had to be sung a cappella.
When she came to Boulder in 2004, she joined Vinelife, a charismatic Christian congregation whose Web site boasts a “spirit-filled worship experience with modern music and high-impact media.
Needless to say, there was some culture shock.
“I was thinking, ‘What these people are doing?'” she said. “They were just waving their hands and looking like they were crazy.”
But Loh said she quickly adjusted to the worship style. Both she and her sister, Thornton resident Jackie Loh, attended weekly services and Bible studies.
“If you want to worship God, forms don’t matter,” she said.
Erie resident Jane Lim came to the U.S. from Taipei as a teenager. Although she was born in a Christian family and attended church in Taiwan, Lim said she turned away from her faith after settling in Boulder. She later moved to California to be closer to family and was “born again.” Upon returning to Colorado, she sought a church to meet her needs.
When it comes to her spirituality, Lim said she expresses herself better in Chinese.
“I feel more at home with Chinese because I grew up with that,” she said. “It’s home for me.”
