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Questions for Grandma: Family Faith History

October 20, 2025

Dear Grandma, (亲爱的奶奶，)

I hope you're doing well! I miss you so much and I'm planning to come visit you next year. I've been thinking a lot about our family history lately, especially our faith heritage, and I would love to learn more from you. (希望您一切都好！我非常想念您，计划明年来看您。最近我一直在思考我们的家族历史，特别是我们的信仰传承，我很想从您那里了解更多。)

I'm very curious about the family history and would be so grateful if you could share some stories with me. I have some questions that I hope you'd be willing to answer: (我对家族历史非常好奇，如果您能与我分享一些故事，我将不胜感激。我有一些问题，希望您愿意回答：)

About Your Father (My Great-Grandfather)​

  1. Can you tell me about your father? I heard he was a pastor - is that true? (您能告诉我关于您父亲的事情吗？我听说他是一位牧师 - 这是真的吗？)

  2. What was his name and when was he born? (他的名字是什么，他是什么时候出生的？)

  3. How would you describe how he brought faith into your household? What was it like growing up in a pastor's family? (您如何描述他把信仰带入家庭的方式？在牧师家庭中成长是什么样的？)

  4. Why did your dad become a pastor in China? What drew him to ministry? (您父亲为什么在中国成为牧师？是什么吸引他从事传道工作？)

  5. Do you know why he felt so confident that Christianity was the right faith tradition to put his heart behind? (您知道为什么他如此确信基督教是值得他全心投入的正确信仰传统吗？)

  6. Can you tell me more about what he was like as a person? What are your favorite memories of him? (您能告诉我更多关于他作为一个人是什么样的吗？您最喜欢的关于他的回忆是什么？)

  7. Was your mom (my great-grandmother) pretty involved in the faith as well? (您的母亲（我的曾祖母）也很投入信仰吗？)

About Your Faith Journey​

  1. How has faith been an important part of your life? (信仰如何成为您生活中的重要组成部分？)

  2. What do your day-to-day faith practices look like? (您日常的信仰实践是什么样的？)

  3. What has it been like going to church in China? I know China doesn't have the most consistently positive relationship with Christianity throughout history. (在中国去教堂是什么样的体验？我知道中国在历史上与基督教的关系并不总是那么积极。)

  4. During the 1960s, when the Communists became very powerful, did people know that you were Christian? What was that experience like? (在1960年代，当共产党变得非常强大时，人们知道您是基督徒吗？那种经历是什么样的？)

  5. Is there anything you'd like to share about what it's like to be a Christian in China today? (关于今天在中国作为基督徒的体验，您有什么想分享的吗？)

Personal Questions​

  1. Is it important to you that I believe in God? Why? (我相信上帝对您来说重要吗？为什么？)

  2. Do you have any other stories about faith, family, or life that you'd like to share with me? (您还有其他关于信仰、家庭或生活的故事想与我分享吗？)

  3. What would you want me to know about our family's faith heritage? (关于我们家族的信仰传承，您希望我了解什么？)

Additional Thoughts​

I'm asking these questions because I'm genuinely curious about where our family comes from and the faith tradition that has been part of our history. I want to understand the courage and conviction it must have taken to be a Christian pastor and family in China, especially during difficult times. (我问这些问题是因为我真心想了解我们家族的起源和成为我们历史一部分的信仰传统。我想理解在中国作为基督教牧师和基督徒家庭所需要的勇气和信念，特别是在困难时期。)

Your stories and experiences are so valuable to me, and I don't want them to be lost. I hope we can have some good conversations about this when I visit. (您的故事和经历对我来说非常宝贵，我不想让它们失传。我希望当我来看您时，我们能就此进行一些深入的交谈。)

Thank you for taking the time to think about these questions. I love you and can't wait to see you next year. (感谢您花时间思考这些问题。我爱您，迫不及待想明年见到您。)

With love and gratitude, (带着爱和感激，) Gary

Note: These questions are meant to be a starting point for conversation. Please feel free to share whatever feels comfortable and meaningful to you. I'm grateful for any stories or insights you're willing to share about our family's faith journey. (注：这些问题只是对话的起点。请随意分享任何让您感到舒适和有意义的内容。对于您愿意分享的关于我们家族信仰历程的任何故事或见解，我都心存感激。)