ABSTRACT
The latter part of the nineteenth century saw the expansion of missionary work in the form of missionary societies and organisations embracing, for example, the Church of the Holy Trinity; the Union Church; the Baptist Church of the Bund; the Deutsche Evanglische Kirche; a variety of Catholic Churches in the French and International Settlements; the traditional Protestant Churches, the Salvation Army; the YMCA and YWCA.32 Addison P. Scotan has pointed out that 'For Christians, certainly one of the greatest achievements to be noted is the spread of Christianity and the growth of the Church.' 33
Although there were differences in structure, style and proselytisation, the aim was always the same - to Christi anise the Chinese. The missionaries were convinced that they had received God's call to conversion, that Christianity was a major component of Western progress, and that they must share their faith with the as yet backward and unbelieving heathen. 34 Their antipathy towards the Chinese world has been remarked upon by Jonathan Chao: 'They regarded many Chinese religious and social customs as cultural barriers to the Gospel, which needed to be removed. Accordingly, many missionaries saw themselves as wilful destroyers of the traditional culture and as builders of a new Christian civilisation for China.'35
