Amity Foundation Explained

The Amity Foundation is an independent Chinese voluntary organization.^[1] it is the largest charity in China.^[2] It was created in 1985 on the initiative of Christians in China, with the late bishop K. H. Ting as its founder.^[3] Its main objective has been to help develop poor areas of the country.^[4] Amity's headquarters are in Nanjing. The organization includes the Amity Printing Company (APC, also sometimes called Amity Printing Press),^[5] the largest Bible producer in China. Amity Printing Company opened a branch in Ethiopia in 2016. Amity Foundation has an office in Hong Kong^[6] and opened a liaison office in the Ecumenical Center of the World Council of Churches^[7] in Geneva in 2017.

Ideals

Some have described Amity as a faith-initiated organization that works with Christians, while others, such as the current General Secretary Qiu Zhonghui, has described it as a faith-based organization.^[8] Various partner organizations have praised the work and activity of the charity.^{[9] [10] [11]} Recently the charitable organisation has been highlighted in both domestic and international media for its action and prompt relief work in China in response to natural disasters.^[12]

Activities

• Disaster relief
• Support of church-run social work
• Support of medical education in China's poorest areas
• HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention training
• Education in the countryside and for the children of migrant workers, including the Amity Teachers Program^{[13] [14]}
• Special education (e.g. work with deaf or disabled children)
• Taking care of orphans
• Environmental protection^[15]
• Integrated development (e.g. providing basic health care, schooling, clean energy, agricultural skills training and microfinance to a village community)

The foundation also holds the world's largest Bible printer, Nanjing Amity Printing Company.

See also

• Chinese Bible Translations
• Christianity in China
• United Bible Societies

Notes and References

1. Web site: Reference in Chinese Charity overview . Chinacsrmap.org . 2013-07-10 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120310120104/http://www.chinacsrmap.org/E_OrgShow.asp?CCMOrg_ID=370 . 2012-03-10 .
2. http://archive.beijingtoday.com.cn/tag/pfrang-association Breaking a circle of ignorance and crime
3. Book: John Peale. The Love of God in China: Can One Be Both Chinese and Christian?. 2005. iUniverse. 978-0-595-33619-7. 56.
4. Web site: Amity website. https://web.archive.org/web/20100311024545/http://www.amityfoundation.org/wordpress/?page_id=14. dead. March 11, 2010.
5. Web site: Welcome To Amity Printing CO.,LTD . Amityprinting.com . 2013-07-10.
6. Web site: Hong Kong Office.
7. Web site: World Council of Churches.
8. Book: Gerda Wielander. Christian Values in Communist China. 2013. Routledge. 978-1-317-97604-2. 73.
9. Web site: Christian Aid backs the work of Amity in quake-hit China . Ekklesia . 2013-07-10.
10. Web site: Amity Foundation expands social outreach in China . https://archive.today/20120707135613/http://archives.umc.org/interior.asp?ptid=2&mid=9039 . dead . 2012-07-07 . Archives.umc.org . 2006-11-06 . 2013-07-10 .
11. Web site: Amity Foundation Aids China Earthquake Victims . Globalministries.org . 2013-07-10.
12. Web site: Thomson Reuters Foundation . Thomson Reuters Foundation | News, Information and Connections for Action . Alertnet.org . 2013-07-10.
13. Web site: Amity Teacher blog . News.haverford.edu . 2013-07-10 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121014010140/http://news.haverford.edu/blogs/amity-foundation/ . 2012-10-14 . dead .
14. Web site: Back to School Program.
15. Web site: Thomson Reuters Foundation . Thomson Reuters Foundation | News, Information and Connections for Action . Alertnet.org . 2013-07-10 . 2008-06-26 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080626063931/http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/fromthefield/284081/120715740055.htm . dead .