How a US-China Trade War Threatens Christian Publishing

Quick to Listen

Christianity Today

Religion, Christianity, Religion & Spirituality

4.3 • 622 Ratings

🗓️ 26 June 2019

⏱️ 52 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

China is home to some of the worst religious repression in the world. But it also prints more Bibles than any country, thanks to the Nanjing-based Amity Press, which has printed almost 200 million Bibles since 1988 in partnership with the United Bible Societies. So when the Trump administration recently announced that the latest round of tariffs would include books, Christian publishers were alarmed. Last week, several leaders in the industry made their case before trade representatives to exempt Bibles from these proposed economic measures. But how did an industry that just decades ago was operating like a family business become a global one? And what makes China uniquely capable of printing millions of Bibles and other Christian books? Stan Jantz, the executive director of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, joined digital media producer Morgan Lee and editor in chief Mark Galli to discuss how globalization transformed the Christian publishing industry, why China is such a crucial place for Christian publishing, and why he hopes his testimony can help the book industry overall. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This episode is brought to you in part by The Apologetics Guy Show, the podcast that helps you find clear answers to tough questions about Christianity.
0:11.1	Learn to explain your faith with courage and compassion. Join Moody Bible Institute professor Dr. Mikhail del Rosario at apologeticsky.com.
0:21.9	This episode of Quick to Listen is brought to you in part by classic Christian thinkers,
0:26.6	the new book by author and theologian Kenneth Samples.
0:29.9	It highlights the lives of some of Christianity's greatest historical figures.
0:34.3	Get your copy today by visiting www.org.reasons.org slash quick to listen.
0:40.3	Today is Wednesday, June 26th, and you're listening to Quick to Listen, where each week we go beyond hashtags and hot takes discuss a major cultural event.
0:49.3	And today we will be talking about how the U.S.'s trade war with China is affecting the world of Christian publishing.
1:06.1	I'm Morgan Lee, Associate Digital Media Producer here at Christianity Today.
1:12.2	I'm joined by my co-host,
1:17.5	Mark Galley, who has actually been to one of the places that we'll be talking about today,
1:21.2	which is China, so have I. But that's going to be something cool, huh?
1:22.8	Yeah, looking forward to.
1:25.8	All right. Who are we bringing into? Our guest today is Stan Jantz. He's executive director of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. And he's worked in the Christian book industry for his entire professional life and his co-author of some 60 books, many of which have become bestsellers. So we're really grateful to have him on the show. He's definitely an expert in this field. So welcome, Stan.
1:46.0	Thank you, Mark and Morgan. That's a great pleasure to be with you today on this important topic.
1:51.8	Okay, I have a less important question, Stan. What was your parents' idea in giving you a name that rhymed?
2:05.7	Yeah, well, you know, my mother called me Stanley, so maybe that was more, less, you know, duplication there, so, but only, only her and occasionally my wife still call me
2:12.1	that. So, yeah, I kind of like it. It kind of flows real nice, Stan Jan, so, you know, can't help it,
2:17.4	but I like it. No, I mean, you can definitely like it, and I of flows real nice, Dan, Jan. So, you know, can help it, but I like it.
2:18.2	No, I mean, you can definitely like it, and I'm a fan of it, too. Sometimes I just wonder about, like, you know, not like you would have special insight on your parents, right? It's really the parents that you want to ask.
2:28.0	That didn't inquire anyway. Well, I'm really glad that you can join us. Yeah, I think this is going to be an important conversation. Actually, he should tell our listeners where he's calling us from, because that's kind of,
2:38.2	it's pretty relevant. Yeah, where are you, Stan? I'm in Chicago, and I'm at the, on the campus of Moody
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Christianity Today, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Christianity Today and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.