Crime and Punishment, Regret and Grace Part 2
[Exclusive interview again after 2006 Part 1] Pastor Ji Fuzan, who was recently released from prison on parole, talks about the 20-year journey of "helping people down"
This magazine conducted an exclusive written interview with Pastor Ji Fuzan in 2006. In the summer of 1991, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for a shocking and brutal murder in Southern California, USA. He was imprisoned and was still serving his sentence in California at that time.
In 2006, after the special report "Crime and Punishment, Regret and Grace" was published in the third issue of "Kingdom of God" magazine, it seemed like a super shocking bomb was dropped. Readers responded overwhelmingly from all directions. Some people cried bitterly at night, some reflected on the article, and some Photocopied and circulated during pastoral meetings, and someone quoted the content in sermons and Sunday school... (For detailed reports, please go to the Kingdom of God website: http://www.e-krc.com/magapdf/Chi-article. pdf )
This pastor who horrified the church and caused uproar in society at that time finally successfully applied for parole. Because he only had a green card (permanent residence in the United States) and was still a citizen of the Republic of China, he was deported back to Taiwan on September 8, 2011. The reporter conducted another written interview during the Christmas period in December, and he responded sincerely and frankly using the latest technology tool iPad, which he had just picked up for the first time.
Pastors who violate the law often fall into a desperate situation, and are not only ostracized and despised by society, but also by the church, which claims to be "not a museum of saints, but a hospital for sinners."
Fortunately, during Pastor Ji’s 20-year sentence, according to his own description in the last interview of this magazine:“The countless and unrequited love (of the church) is God’s hand, which most concretely supported me through the valley of the shadow of death.” This interview reiterated: “(Through the church), I experienced God’s gracious hand is so real in supporting and guiding us, and His mercy and grace follow us step by step without interruption.”
I pray that this exclusive interview will allow you to see the examples of many pastors and believers who have diligently "helped people down" in God's love for twenty years, so that if unfortunately a pastor falls around you, you will be able to Support them to stand up again with true love and truth, and continue to respond to the original call of devotion.
Please read Pastor Ji’s confession and thoughts below:
Over the past twenty years, how has the church extended its compassionate and loving hands to "help you down" and help you rebuild?
Twenty years ago, I went to prison with a heart to teach and serve. That day, after Pastor Liu Fuli took his daughter to kindergarten, he sent me to the court to await sentencing, and my sentence began immediately. After returning to Taiwan on September 8, 2011, the next day, Pastor Liu and his wife met outside prison for the first time in twenty years. They were truly good friends who had always supported each other all the way.
They said that the little girl sent to kindergarten on the day she was imprisoned was now a mother! I said with gratitude and emotion: "Pastor Liu, please come and touch my hand. Is this true? Have I really been released from prison?" When the tragedy first happened, he was leading a gathering in Hong Kong and was deeply concerned about him. I dreamed at night that I was released from prison. Pastor Liu and his family often visited me in prison during the Spring Festival and gave me a lot of care.
At the time of the accident, Pastor Zhang Zihua, who was not familiar with me, mortgaged his newly transferred new home (his only house), and together with Pastor Liu, Elder Zheng Liangguang and others raised bail money to allow me to be paroled for medical treatment, and I could have a minimum of ten days before serving a long sentence. Precious time to prepare.
Pastor Huang Mingzhen Chang Yuan, the director-general of the Taiwan Rehabilitation Fellowship who is engaged in prison ministry, came to visit the prison from Taiwan; others include Pastor Cai Maotang, Elder Chen Junwei, Elder Lin Wenzheng, Pastor Su Wen'an, Pastor Zhang Deli, Philippi of Dong'an Taifu Christian Church Fellowships, etc. have prayed for me for a long time, mailed books, newspapers, magazines, packages, and even visited me to give me substantial help.
There are also many people who have written letters supporting my parole petition, such as Taiwan’s former Chief Executive Zhang Junxiong, California Senator Liu Yunping, Brother Jimmy Wang, Huang Xinzong and his wife, Elder Wang Jianhua, Elder Chen Boren, Elder Lin Jiren, Pastor Lin Hongyou, Pastor Huang Simin, etc. Teacher Chen Xiuwen from Taiwan Theological Seminary and psychologist Dr. Wu Qingyi often corresponded with me and brought information from the outside world. The constant care and intercession of these pastors and brothers and sisters encouraged me to continue on the path of ministry, serving God and preaching His grace day and night in prison.
▲After returning to Taiwan, Pastor Ji Fuzan (left) and former Taiwan Executive Director Chang Chun-hsiung devoted themselves to prison ministry, caring for inmates and rehabilitated people.
Has the church ever acted in love towards your beloved wife and children? What impact does it have on their lives?
I remember there was a parole hearing a few years ago. The victim’s daughter attended and said something that moved me very much. It is also the most beautiful thing in the world: "I and the two children of this brutal perpetrator are still friends to this day." Indeed, at the time of the crime, In the early days, the two children still ate pizza together, prayed together, encouraged each other, and went through the most shocking and difficult moments together. This is really my heinous crime, ruining the once beautiful intimate interaction between the two families.
Frankly speaking, the original church showed very little concern for my family and mostly viewed it negatively. However, there were still several Christian families who accompanied us through this long and difficult time. In addition to Pastor Liu Fuli’s pastoral care and care for my family, Pastor Su Wen’an and his family are also close friends of my family. I would also like to thank Elder Cai Deyi of the Minxiong Church in Chiayi, Taiwan, for supporting the children’s education expenses and caring about their needs and growth like my grandfather.
The children were raised by a mother who worked three jobs, and she did her best to give them the educational opportunities that ordinary Chinese families could provide. The children themselves also work part-time and rely on student loans to complete graduate studies at well-known universities. After class, they often help children from low-income families with their homework or serve as tutors in church fellowships.
thank God! My children have been protected by the Lord and are going quite smoothly in terms of faith, studies, marriage, and work. During high school and college, I went back to Taiwan twice for short-term missions. My son is gifted in music and joined the "Overcomers" ministry to tour the United States and Taiwan. Once he testified: "My family once suffered a tragic loss of family members. Some church people rejoiced in the misfortune and predicted that 'these two children will go astray and become concubines and concubines.'"
"However, my father has set a good example for us - if you make a mistake, don't make it again and again and be bound by sin. After admitting your mistake and correcting it, get up and run quickly to follow the Lord. Don't complain or hate, don't bow to the environment; don't I care too much about other people’s opinions, only do the right things, and don’t criticize those who judge harshly, so I lose confidence.”
"My sister graduated from graduate school at the University of California, Berkeley, and Stanford University. I went to the University of California, Irvine, and then to graduate school at the University of Southern California. Thank God! We have not become bad."
In the process of "helping people down" and rebuilding, please tell us about your most unforgettable memories that stick in your heart.
Once, Pastor Cai Maotang’s wife sent me four pieces of Mid-Autumn moon cakes. I took them to the Bible study class and sat on the grass to share them with thirty-four fellow prisoners. For the first time, I truly experienced Jesus feeding five thousand people with five loaves and two fish, and I felt the joy of sharing it with others.
When I first entered the detention center, my mother's brief warning came over the long-distance phone call from the United States and Taiwan: "Son, this is your destiny. If you make a mistake, take responsibility for it. Don't complain, just do it! (No complaints, just do it!) )" This last sentence became the motto of my life in prison.
In 1991, during the first three months of my incarceration, at the New Prisoner Training Center, Pastor Wen-An Su, then director of the Taifu Communication Center, sent me a copy of Pastor Robert Schuller's original book "Life's Not Fair, but God Is Good", I hope that through translation and by absorbing the teachings in the book, I can get through the most difficult time.
▲Pastor Ji absorbed the teachings from Pastor Robert Schuller's book, spent the most difficult time, and completed the first translation in prison of "A Heartless World with Love—The Way to Breakthrough in a Suffering Life."
Holding the thumb-long pencil in my hand tightly, I lay on the floor of my cell and completed the first translation of my book in prison, "A Heartless World with Love—The Way to Breakthrough in a Suffering Life." When the pencil reaches the length of a fingernail, he uses the roll of paper as a pen holder and continues writing, publishing under a pen name. After that, he also completed the translation of Martin Luther King’s “Strength To Love”.
Yeah, don’t complain, just do it!
If God gave you three dreams of helping fallen pastors in the church, what would you ask Him for?
I like that you use "fall" or "make a mistake" instead of "fall." The fallen pastor still possesses knowledge, skills and divine life, but what is obviously lost is the image of the pastor and the respect and trust of the church.
Just like the apostle Paul in the early days of his conversion, he was also notorious. Congregants like Ananias were hesitant and afraid of him. However, because of Barnabas' trust and support, he was able to start his ministry in the Antioch church. Paul put himself in his shoes and later lovingly recommended the fallen Onesimus to Philemon (see Acts 9:13, 26; 11:25; Philemon 10).
Therefore, I will pray to God-
1. Ask God to lead the fallen pastor to fully repent, turn back to God, and clearly understand that he has been forgiven, restore trust and intimacy with God, and also work hard to repair his relationship with the victim and apologize to the victim. Obtain tolerance, understanding and forgiveness.
2. Gain strength to serve faithfully, gain affirmation and recognition from the church, and win back the respect and trust of others.
3. Pray that God would give each of these pastors a “Barnabas”, just as God had mercy on Paul and me and sent many angels, “Barnabas” to help us.
Many people who miss you do not know that you have been paroled. Please briefly describe your journey out of prison.
The process of getting out of prison was very tortuous. In 2006, the district attorney originally stated that I could legally be paroled, but unfortunately the victim's family objected and I could not be granted parole. Although he filed a complaint during this period, it passed the court, but was vetoed by Governor Arnold. It was delayed until the eighth hearing in February 2011, when it was finally determined that he could be paroled, and the new governor had no objection, so he was able to process the case. prison. After a long wait, I can only say that God has His time and mercy.
When I returned to Taiwan, I was accompanied by two specialists from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. I preached the gospel to them while waiting and boarding the plane. One white man believed in the Lord, but the other Chinese-American did not.
Day and night I think about being able to embrace my loved ones in a land of freedom. What did you say to your wife and children when you reunited for the first time in your hometown in Taiwan at Christmas?
There is really not enough to say, but the most important thing is-
To insiders:"I'm sorry, I've made you wait for twenty years! - Longer than Wang Baochuan. Thank you for your hard work. You have to work three jobs, work hard, raise two children by yourself, and yet you have never left God's love. Thank God! The broken mirror is reunited.”
Twenty years ago, a well-known pastor and marriage counselor said this: "If this family can be reconciled, only a miracle will happen!" Thank God! It is His mercy that does this.
As the prophet Isaiah said of the return of the people of Israel and the reunion of their families:“My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” ( Isaiah 55:8-9)Thank God for His grace! With men nothing is possible, but with God all things are possible.
For children:"I'm sorry! Because of dad's mistakes, you suffered innocently. In the past twenty years, dad failed to take care of you. When you were in need, dad was not there. When you cried, you had no father to talk to. When you were sick, you worried about your dad in the cage. ; I spent Christmas and Thanksgiving together in prison. This is the first time in twenty years that the whole family will spend Christmas together at home. Please let us thank, worship and praise Him together. Pray, she is my great debt!”
After twenty years of isolation from society, you have returned and set sail. Please talk about your biggest changes and adaptations in the past few months.
Speaking of which, I really look like the person in the movie who was frozen for many years and then suddenly thawed, jumping directly from the 20th century to the 21st century; I am also like a savage who broke into the civilized world from the wild world. The deepest feeling is that as the children grow up, many old acquaintances have become old. My daughter sent me a wedding photo, and I couldn’t identify most of the relatives and friends in it.
After returning to Taiwan, I went to Minxiong, Chiayi to attend the wedding of an elder’s grandson. The last time I saw that child, he was just learning to walk! Many church members came to hug me and cried for a long time. A man approached the choir to greet me. I remember he was a junior high school student at the time and asked, "Minghui! Are you married?" He replied, "My daughter is already in her junior year of college!"
What’s even stranger is that a deaconess asked, “Pastor Ji, do you recognize me?” I said, “I’m sorry! I don’t.” She said, “I asked you to marry me. The person sitting there is my husband. Amin!" Following the direction she pointed, I saw a man with white hair, but I had black hair.
An old church friend heard that I was back and flew all the way from Shanghai to have dinner with me before rushing back. Many former students and colleagues welcomed him enthusiastically. These kind greetings, familiar hugs, and busy service have left me no time to think about the hardships of life in prison. My joyful look, nearly sixty-year-old appearance with a full head of black hair, and my strong body (I practiced in prison to the point where I had to stand on my knees a thousand times a day) were beyond everyone’s imagination. They all said in unison: "Ji Pastor, your past twenty years seem to have been frozen. "Yes, God has indeed been particularly gracious and merciful to me!"
▲Pastor Ji Fuzan (right) joined the ministry of the Taiwan Rehabilitation Fellowship after he was released from prison and returned to Taiwan. Together with the director general, Pastor Huang Mingzhen, he planned and provided theology courses for prisoners.
May I ask about the focus of your current service and your future vision for life?
The current focus of service is:
‧Visit every prison in Taiwan to preach the gospel and bear witness.Identify and focus on cultivating inmates whose lives have been renewed and who are willing to preach the gospel and serve in prisons. The current method of preaching in prisons is like fishing, saving one person and edifying another. My idea is to cast a net in the prison, just like the service model when I was incarcerated, and make full use of the favorable opportunity where the inmates can witness, accompany them, and even lead Bible studies 24 hours a day in the prison to provide theological training. The training focuses on Bible courses and counseling. On the one hand, it helps them grow themselves and lead a positive and edified prison life. After they are released from prison, they can continue their studies at the rehabilitation college in Hualien and complete a bachelor's or master's degree.
‧Participate in the rehabilitation fellowship service.Go to prisons two or three times a week to preach messages, hold discussions, or teach group Bible classes (emphasis on spiritual growth); study the Bible and share with fellow fellowship workers; regularly lead homeless people, drug addicts, AIDS patients, Gatherings for rehabilitated people in halfway houses such as cancer patients; leading group gatherings for families with special problems.
The vision and goals for the future are:
‧Establish churches in various parts of Taiwan with mainly rehabilitated people.It is not easy for regenerated people to rebuild. People often look at them in a strange way, making them unable to live a church life. If this group of people can get together to warm each other, encourage and help each other, it can increase the "spiritual survival rate" of rehabilitated people, quickly return to normal social and family life, and drastically reduce the recidivism rate of prisoners.
‧Online Bible study and text ministry.My specialty in theology is original text Bible study, interpretation and preaching. I hope to have the opportunity to serve in this area. Moreover, literary ministry can transcend the stereotype of a prisoner and is suitable for my situation. When he was in prison, he and Elder Zheng Liangguang co-published an online monthly newspaper "Lily Forum", and he was very willing to continue this online writing ministry and expand the kingdom of God. In addition, I have completed "Afuzai e-story, like it!" The book "Escape from the Dark Power of Sin" is a realistic testimony and spiritual reflection on life in prison, and I hope it can be used by the Lord.(Editor's note: Pastor Ji Fu-chan calls himself "Afuzai" in Taiwanese; "e" means "of"; another word in his name, "zan", is also pronounced here in Taiwanese, meaning "great!" Very good!")
Heartfelt prayers
When compiling this interview, our mood was just as it was in 2006, complicated and complicated. We sighed many times and walked around the room, unable to control ourselves. What has been lingering in my mind are still those eight words - "Sin will be punished, and repentance will be rewarded with grace!"
However, what is very different from 2006 is that after the emotions of shock, regret, sadness, and reluctance settled, there was a surge of gratitude and relief. Because we have seen how a shepherd who once fell to the deepest part of the abyss, even though he could not pray to God for death, clung to every minute and every second of breathing time, from prison to outside prison. , working hard to lead people to the Lord, and shepherding a special flock of sheep who have hurt themselves and others.
When we end this Part 2 of "Crime and Punishment, Regret and Grace" six years ago, we can't find a more appropriate conclusion than the previous interview. Therefore, with the most sincere respect, I have slightly rewritten the conclusion from that year and present it again. May the Father who turns dry bones into an army, raises the dead, and turns curses into blessings, may He speak to us again through these words, bringing abundant comfort, rest, and reconciliation─
In this era of information explosion, major news events emerge one after another. However, no matter how big a news event is, after a moment of excitement, it will be forgotten in the long river of memory. The person involved is left struggling in pain and whimpering in regret. The same happened with Pastor Ji Fuzan back then.
The community section of "Kingdom of God" magazine once again interviewed Pastor Ji, not to rehash old stories or sensationalize them, but to bear witness to the vast number of readers, caretakers and intercessors who read "Crime and Punishment, Repentance and Grace" Part 1 six years ago. Lord, please tell me the follow-up. In fact, as a responsible media, we have always paid close attention to the latest developments of the major reports our magazine has made, so as to understand God’s real and living deeds in this generation.
Thank you Pastor Ji for opening your bleeding heart and sharing candidly. God does not despise a contrite heart and a sad spirit. May Pastor Ji pick up the repaired sail of life in the waters of faith, in the hometown where he was born and raised, and set sail again against the rising sun of blessing.
We would like to express our sincere respect to the wife who reorganized herself in the stormy sea, worked hard to support her family, raised her two children, and finally looked forward to her husband's return home.
The pastors and brothers and sisters who have accompanied Pastor Ji through the "helping road" of humiliation, sorrow, and shock for twenty years, please ask the Lord to remember your tolerance in love and your practical helping hand. All these efforts will not be in vain, and will definitely bear the fruits of peace and righteousness.
We grieve with you all the families who have suffered the loss of their loved ones. May you find a foothold in faith again, turn tears into laughter, and accept this new creation who has devoted the rest of his life to serving thousands of tortured people and has sincerely repented.
To the public whose hearts have been shocked, I hope this interview will help you understand: There is no sin in the world that is so big that the blood of Jesus Christ cannot cover it; there is no suffering in the world that is so heavy that the shoulders of Jesus Christ cannot bear it. May we see it together:
Although sin must be punished, fortunately, repentance must be rewarded with grace!