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The taxi pulled into the driveway, 10 minutes late for the meeting. Inside the car, we were sweating from the mix of nerves and the strong sun beating down on the roof of the car—typical weather in Zambia during the hot season.
“Here we are, as I promised,” said our driver, Simapuyo.
“The Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Hall where they are worshipping in Chinese.”
A Witness himself, Simapuyo had generously offered to drive me and Zhang Xiu, a friend who sometimes accompanied me on research outings, to the meeting free of charge.
Zhang and I hurried into the building.
As soon as we entered, two Zambian men rose from their seats with what appeared to be reactions of surprise and then delight. With broad smiles, they came to shake our hands vigorously with whispered words of “你好, 你好” (in Mandarin, “hello, hello”), then quietly directed us to seats in the back of the hall.
Zhang and I sat, not quite knowing what to expect. Nearby congregants passed us the worship meeting agenda, which was printed in Chinese. A large quote topped the agenda: “耶和华守护侨居的外人” (Jehovah is protecting the foreign residents). The congregation of around 50 people, almost all Zambian, had apparently read an article on this subject before the meeting, and a man at the front was leading the congregation through a question-and-answer session.
Both the questions and answers were in Mandarin. The discussion focused on the growing numbers of Chinese and Indian entrepreneurs and Congolese refugees in Zambia, and the importance of being able to speak with these foreigners in their own languages.
After about an hour, the meeting ended, and many congregants warmly greeted us. With typical expressions of Chinese 谦虚 (modesty), they apologized for their poor Mandarin skills. They also shared recently published pamphlets, available in both Mandarin and English, titled “偏见有药可治吗” (Is There a Cure for Prejudice?). The congregants explained they endeavored to distribute these pamphlets to both Zambians and Chinese migrants, depending on the language of their target audience.