Notes 1-10 - Background of the Work in South America
Brother Dong did not initiate the work in South America. The Lord's recovery spread to South America when saints from various parts of Southeast Asia responded to a call from Brother Lee to migrate to the West. In the early years, the Lord's work in South America was overseen by Chang Wu-Chen and Samuel Cheng. Brother Dong migrated to Brazil as a businessman in 1960 but only entered into the work at a later date and only began to speak in the conferences in the mid-1970s.
1Brother Lee's Charge to the Saints in Taiwan to Migrate
Dong Yu Lan, testimony given in Taipei, Taiwan, November 23, 1981:
In 1958 and 1959 Brother Lee returned from his visit to Europe and America. He told us, "You have been enjoying the Lord so much in Taipei, while Christianity in the West is still in a state of desolation. You should receive the burden to migrate." Thank the Lord; at that time, not knowing anything, I moved to Brazil in a simple way.
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Chang Wu-Chen, testimony given in Taipei, Taiwan, November 23, 1981:
In 1958 and 1959 Brother Lee shared in a conference that the Lord's recovery had not yet spread out. Although in Taiwan many people had been under the leading and received training, they just "occupied the nest without laying eggs." At that time, a few brothers had the burden to go to Brazil. Brother Dong went to Brazil in 1960. In 1970 I visited Brazil and stayed there for two weeks.
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2The Saints' Response to Brother Lee's Charge to Migrate
Marco Mello with Dong Yu Lan and Pedro Dong at Brother Lee's memorial meeting, July 9, 1997:
The Lord's recovery in South America began in 1959 when a few families from Taiwan, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and other places started to meet in São Paulo. (A Memorial Biography of Brother Witness Lee, p. 60)
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Click the icon to see a picture of Marco Mello, Pedro Dong, and Dong Yu Lan
at the memorial meeting for Brother Witness Lee on July 9, 1997.
See also note 1.
3Brother Dong Moved to Brazil as a Businessman
See note 1.
Interview with Samuel Cheng, May 8, 2008:
Dong Yu Lan owned a chicken farm in Brazil. For a long time there were just Chinese-speaking saints in São Paulo.
Statement from Fernando Monte-Serrat, October 26, 2007:
In the beginning Brother Dong humbly sought diligently the words of Brother Lee, attending the trainings, listening to the tapes of the trainings, and conferences, and seeking to convey those words in the different conferences he gave in South America. In his testimonies, he used to say that he didn't go to Brazil to do a work, because he was not a Christian worker, but just a businessman.
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4Brothers Serving in the Lead in São Paulo in 1965
From "A Turning Point in the Testimony of the Church," The Ministry of the Word, Vol. 7, pp. 962-965. This is a report on Brother Lee's visit to Brazil, co-signed by three brothers: Liu Xian-zhou, Zhang Xing-rong, and Dong Yu Lan.
Brother Lee's early visits to Brazil were also mentioned by Marco Mello with Dong Yu Lan and Pedro Dong at Brother Lee's memorial meeting, July 9, 1997:
In 1964 Brother Lee came to São Paulo and confirmed the church there. He visited us again in 1965 and 1969 and shared with us the exercise of the human spirit by calling on the name of the Lord and pray-reading the Word. (A Memorial Biography of Brother Witness Lee, p. 60)
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at the memorial meeting for Brother Witness Lee on July 9, 1997.
5In 1965 the Church in São Paulo Was Entirely Chinese-speaking
Dong Yu Lan, National Conference in San Bernardo, Chile, April 4, 2009, Message 1:
At the beginning of the work in South America, we preached the gospel to the Chinese immigrants from other countries.
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Dong Yu Lan, testimony given in Taipei, Taiwan, November 23, 1981:
In those years, however, we were unable to bring in local people. The brother often told us that a church must bring in the local people. We made an effort but did not succeed. In 1972 the Lord sent Brother Chang Wu-chen to Brazil, thus opening the door to the local people.
[Note: There is no plural in Chinese. When Brother Dong says, "The brother," the translator understands this to refer to Brother Lee.]
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Chang Wu-Chen, testimony given in Taipei, Taiwan, November 23, 1981:
When I was staying in Brazil, among us there were only Chinese, no Brazilians yet.
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6Brother Lee's Charge to Bring in Local People
See note 5.
7Chang Wu-Chen Sent to Open the Door to Local People
See note 5.
8Chang Wu-Chen and Samuel Cheng Sent by Witness Lee to Work in Brazil
Statement from David Franco, June 18, 2008:
A co-worker called Samuel Cheng from Taiwan, who had been in Indonesia, moved to Brazil to help with the young people and the work in Brazil. In the mid-1970s Brother Chang Wu-Chen also visited Brazil often. Brother Samuel Cheng was especially effective in helping the young people and young adults among the Brazilians.
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Notes from an interview with Samuel Cheng, May 8, 2008:
Chang Wu-Chen had fellowship with Brother Lee in Los Angeles about me going to Brazil. Brother Lee felt good about it. I received letters from Chang Wu-Chen and Witness Lee about my going to Brazil. In 1974, I went there, arriving on January 1, 1974.
9Chang Wu-Chen and Samuel Cheng Giving Conferences
Statement from David Franco, June 18, 2008:
Both co-workers would visit the churches and give conferences. Brother Dong would travel with them but he did not share very much during those times.
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Statement from Fernando Monte-Serrat, October 26, 2007:
By that time [in the mid-1970s], it was Brothers Chang Wu Chen, and Samuel Cheng (Cheng Pao Shu) who released conferences in Brazil.
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10In 1977 Brother Dong Begins Speaking in Conferences
Statement from Fernando Monte-Serrat, October 26, 2007:
In 1977, because of an urgent need, Brother Dong was forced to give some messages in a conference in the city of Belo Horizonte, together with Brother Samuel Ma (Ma Shou Tao). From that time on Brother Dong started to give conferences throughout Brazil as well as in other South American countries.
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