China and the Church

40 years of building relationships

Leaders and students reflect on experiences with China in light of Shanghai Temple announcement

BY LEIANI BROWN

Russell M. Nelson, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, paused and, voice wavering, finished the list of new temple announcements in the April 2020 General Conference with, “Shanghai, People’s Republic of China.”

“I actually wept,” said ‘Uncle’ John Muaina, a retired vice president of the Polynesian Cultural Center, whose professional career and life experiences are closely linked to mainland China.

Muaina now helps out at the PCC as a senior Human Resources adviser. "When President Nelson became the president of the Church, I said to myself, ‘If anyone’s going to be the one to usher in work there in China, it would be fitting that President Nelson be the one.’”

Muaina further explained not only President Nelson’s relationship, but also the Church’s relationship with mainland China goes back to the early days of BYUH and the PCC.

Bobby Akoi, the BYUH chaplain and former director of protocol at the PCC, said his excitement of the announcement of the Shanghai Temple also came in context with the university and PCC’s background with mainland China.

“I think I cried for 10 minutes. I really had a hard time trying to calm myself down because we’ve seen what the Church, PCC and BYUH have done for the past years to get the Church into China and to develop our relationship.

“Of course, I was grateful. I was so excited for our Chinese saints there right now who have the opportunity now to seal their families together. Some of them already did because they went to Hong Kong, but now they can have their own temple. For me, that’s what this life is all about. It’s getting all of our saints to the temple.”

The Asian Executive Management Program

Part of Muaina’s job involves running the Asian Executive Management Program (AEM), a program that started with six Chinese interns who came to BYUH and the PCC in September 1981.

“What happens is we assign each of them to different departments at the Polynesian Cultural Center,” explained Muaina.

“We have them also attend their classes just like any regular student, and most people wouldn’t have ever known that they were from mainland China.”

ChiTi Chen, a student of the AEM program from Fall 2019 to Winter 2020, said she believes the announcement of a temple in Shanghai shows the Church has built a good relationship with China.

“The AEM program is already 35 years old, and I think it’s a very important bridge to that [relationship]. Sometimes it’s hard to build an official relationship with the government, but it’s easier by the people.”

Chen said she believes it’s less of an official relationship between the Church and the Chinese government that has made the difference, and more so, the individual relationships among the Chinese people and Church members.

Chen, who said she is “not a member yet,” but attended Church meetings with her friends while in Hawaii, added she is happy for the Chinese people to have a temple in Shanghai.

“I know that it’s a little bit hard for the Chinese people that they cannot go to the temple. Not only the LDS Church but also for many other religions, they don’t have so many chances to reach out… I believe [a temple in Shanghai] is very big progress for both the Church and the Chinese government.”

The AEM program today usually consists of about four to five interns from China and one from Taiwan.

Chen said she found out about the AEM program in her homeland of Taiwan through an organization called the Alliance Cultural Foundation selecting applicants to come and attend classes at BYUH without declaring a major, as well as get an inside look at the PCC as a business model.

“I really like the people [at BYUH and PCC]. I met a lot of managers from PCC… and it inspires me how they treat their employees. The PCC says, ‘One Ohana, Sharing Aloha,’ and it’s not just a slogan. They really do it. I totally felt like I was a part of the ohana when I was at BYU–Hawaii, and it made me feel so good. I know I will go back to that ohana one day.”

Chen was not the only one to receive a lasting impression from her time at BYUH and the PCC. One of the first original six Chinese interns, Yiannan Wang, made a statement after her time spent at BYUH and the PCC in 1981, which Muaina said AEM still uses in describing the program today: “I loved Brigham Young University–Hawaii because it changed not only my mind, but it changed my heart.”

A history of Chinese dignitaries and divine meetings

According to Muaina, Yiannan Wang would later tell her father, a Chinese government official, to visit the PCC if he ever had the chance. A little over two years later, Vice Premier Zhao Ziyang visited BYUH and the PCC, which he chose as his one cultural event during his whole tour of the entire United States, Muaina said.

Muaina, who remembered this historic visit, said Vice Premier Zhao Ziyang arrived by helicopter, landing in the middle of the flag circle on BYUH campus, and upon stepping out to greet the crowd, shouted, “Aloha!”

His would be the first of many visits from Chinese government officials over the years, including Vice Premier Li Lanqiang in July of 1994. This particular visit was significant, explained Muaina, because of the interaction between the vice premier and President Nelson, who was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles at that time.

According to the Church’s website, President Nelson’s personal history with mainland China involved teaching at Shandong School of Medicine in Jinan, visiting two other Chinese universities and performing a life-saving operation on one of China’s famous opera stars in 1984.

Muaina said he remembered sitting in the conference room as Vice Premier Li Lanqiang recognized Elder Nelson as the heart surgeon who taught at his alma mater. “And at that point, Li Lanqiang put his hand on the arm of Elder Nelson, and said to all those there, ‘We know Elder Nelson. Elder Nelson is Chinese.’”

“For a person like myself,” continued Muaina, “and many who were there, we were just so amazed the Lord could bring this together, knowing that Li Lanqiang and Elder Nelson were at the same university… At least for me, it was such an amazing comment that the Lord is very meticulous about how he brings things together.”

Josie Luo, a senior from Guangdong, China studying TESOL education, who heard President Nelson’s announcement of a temple in Shanghai roughly 25 years later, said what amazes her is God’s timing.

“I didn’t think we would get a temple so soon. I knew there would be one in my lifetime because my patriarchal blessing indicates that. So I knew it would happen one day, but I didn’t think [it would be] that soon.

“When I heard it, I was super overwhelmed because I feel like I’m not ready. A lot of people are not ready for such a big message, but I am amazed how God used imperfect and not humble people to accomplish His work.” Luo compared it to job searching and how certain qualifications must be met, but added that

Left: Shanghai China, photo provided by Unsplash. Bottom Left: The Asian Executive Management Program graduates pose for a photo several years ago. Photo provided by John Muaina. Bottom Right: Vice Premier Zhao Ziyang visits the Polynesian Cultural Center in 1984. Photo provided by BYUH archives.

she felt God had qualified them for this blessing even when they did not feel ready. “Mostly, I just felt overwhelmed by His mercy.”

Relations between China and the Church

Of the Vice Premier Zhao Ziyang’s visit to Hawaii, Akoi said, “That was really the start of the Chinese governmental leaders coming to PCC. Since 1984, every year, someone has come from China from the Chinese government.

“Several years later, in 1996, President Hinckley knew that we had good relationships with the government… So he asked us to make the arrangements. The person that was in charge was our senior vice president, John Muaina, and he is like our Chinese ambassador for the PCC. Everybody in the government knows John because he goes [to China] all the time. So, John made all the arrangements.”

On May 28, 1996, President Gordon B. Hinckley became the first president of the Church to visit mainland China, which he did after dedicating the new Hong Kong Temple, according to the Church Newsroom.

Muaina, who was also present for this historic occasion, said he remembers thousands of people lining the streets to meet them in Shenzhen before they went to a Chinese cultural park and nearby university patterned after the PCC and BYUH.

It was here that one of President Hinckley’s interpreters pointed out a slight mistake, said Muaina, in the signs that read in Chinese: “We welcome President Gordon B. Hinckley, president of the Polynesian Cultural Center,” who chuckled and said, “Well, technically that’s right.”

Following this historic meeting, Akoi said he was involved in the First Presidency of the Church hosting the Chinese World Religious Research Center, a group of eight board members who traveled around the world, learning about different religions. The First Presidency, Akoi explained, hosted them in five cities throughout the United States in 1998, with Hawaii being their final stop.

In addition to receiving a VIP tour of the PCC, Akoi said the Chinese religious research group also attended Church youth and family programs, where they learned how to make candy leis for graduation and enjoyed looking at Scouting merit badges.

Akoi said he spent the car ride to the airport at the end of this experience talking with Elder Jia, a Church general authority who managed the Church’s presence in Asia at the time. Knowing these were the people who had the power to open China to the Church and missionary work, Akoi asked Elder Jia what he thought would happen next. “He said it would take some time, maybe years for anything to happen as far as the Church getting into China. ‘But I don’t think the Church is ready,’ he said … ‘If the Church were approved to go into China now, we would need 300 mission presidents. That’s how many we have right now.’”

The Church in China today

Despite the country still being closed to missionary work, according to the Church’s website, “many individuals from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) have joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while living in other countries.”

Ramona Zhang, a senior from Nanjing, China, studying communications, is one such individual. Zhang shared how she found the Church through friends while living in Singapore and was excited to hear about the new Shanghai Temple because of how much closer it will be to her than the Hong Kong Temple.

She explained there is a small congregation in her city of about five to 10 members who meet in a small apartment unit for church meetings. “The temple in Shanghai means our Church has had a great improvement in China, and hopefully, one day missionaries will come to mainland China to teach the gospel.” Muaina shared remembering a call he received from a Church general authority in March of 2003 with news that the Chinese government recognized the Church and would then allow the Church to organize in mainland China.

Abby Cen, a junior from Guangdong, China studying TESOL, said she lives in a city that is closer to the Hong Kong Temple, but is still excited for the changes a temple in Shanghai will bring.

Cen joined the Church when she was 11 years old, and she had to take a two-hour bus ride to church because, at the time, her congregation was tiny.

“To be honest, being a member in Guangdong was hard for me. I was afraid to tell others that I am a member because of the government. Sometimes, some strangers will come to the church, and ask what we are doing.”

“Before I came to BYUH, the government stopped us from having meetings on Sunday. We don’t have a church like here in Hawaii. We only rent a small house and have a meeting on Sunday. It is becoming better now. We found another place to have church meetings, and I believe it will become better in the future. The new temple will be the sign of opening to our church.”

President Nelson explained in his announcement that the Shanghai Temple would be open only to Chinese members. The prophet also reminded members the Church does not send missionaries there and encourages members to honor and obey the law.

“Expatriate and Chinese congregations will continue to meet separately. The Church’s legal status there remains unchanged. In an initial phase of facility use, entry will be by appointment only. The Shanghai Temple will not be a temple for tourists from other countries.” •

Additional information is available at china.churchofjesuschrist.org.