The City of Darkness, an excerpt from The Mind of a Missionary
Locals called the place by its alternate name: the City of Darkness. “As I began to know it better,” Jackie Pullinger said, “I learned how true this name was. The Walled City was a place of terrible darkness, both physical and spiritual.”[vi] Jackie’s first visit brought her through a narrow gap between outside shops where she started down “a slime-covered passageway.”
“I will never forget the darkness and the smell—a fetid smell of rotten foodstuffs, excrement, offal, and general rubbish. The darkness was startling after the glaring sunlight outside,”[vii] she later reported.
In 1966, Jackie arrived in Hong Kong by boat. Her heart brimmed with great aspirations, for the British missionary had come to make a difference in the world. Jesus called her, and the young woman responded. Thus, she expected to witness great breakthrough, changed lives, and ministry “success.” Little did she understand the extent of the pervading darkness of her new mission field; her naiveté would be challenged on every level.
Category: Ministry, Winter 2019