Abstract
About two-thirds of Chinese Australians do not have a religious affiliation. However, recent Chinese converts to Christianity constitute a growing segment, especially in migration contexts of Anglo-Saxon countries. This paper aims to investigate the reasons of Christian becoming and religion-related choices of a group of first-generation Chinese Australians, who were reportedly non-religious when they had been in mainland China and became highly religious after migration. All the eight participants are highly educated women who migrated to Australia as adults and had young children at the time of conversion. Data were collected mainly through open-ended in-depth interviews, and triangulated with private conversations, observations and WeChat messaging. This ethnographic qualitative research found that these immigrants’ Christian movements were closely related to the existential crisis as new immigrants and as immigrant parents. They see Christianity and church community - their new belief system and social network, as a strong vehicle to resolve settlement difficulties in a new society, such as economic insecurity, social isolation, language barriers, marital problems, and parenting dilemmas. Moreover, their choice of congregation or sermon (Chinese or English-medium) is influenced by their language proficiencies, their identity perceptions, and cultural affiliations, as well as their expectations for their children. The study closes by offering relevant implications for immigrant families, religious organisations, and secular institutions as to the social integration and well-being of new migrants.
Presenters
Yining WangPost-doctoral Associate, Linguistics Department, Macquarie University, New South Wales, Australia
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Religious Community and Socialization
KEYWORDS
CHRISTIANITY, CHRISTIAN CONVERTS, CHINESE IMMIGRANTS, SOCIAL INTEGRATION, PARENTING
