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![]() | Fighting Angel (1937) Portrait of a soul A non fiction book by Pearl S Buck |
This is the biography of an American missionary in China. It is the life story of Pearl Buck's father. Only the names of the people are changed.
Absalom Sydenstricker (1852 1931) (renamed Andrew in the book) was the eighth of nine children born to a Presbyterian farming family in what would become West Virginia. At 22, Sydenstricker left home to complete high school. He went on to graduate from Washington and Lee College and Union Theological Seminary in Richmond. His resulting honors degrees were in classical languages.
In 1879, just prior to seminary graduation, he was accepted by the Southern Presbyterian Mission Board to be sent out to China. A marriage was arranged, he was wed just after graduation, and a month later the couple was on their way to China.
Sydenstricker would serve in twenty missions spread all over China during his career. His background in languages and his exposure to many regional forms of spoken Mandarin molded his approach to mission work and, indeed, led him to insist that the bible, hymnals, and tracts be translated into popular Mandarin instead of the scholarly classical Chinese used by Western missionaries for more than a half-century in order to reach the common people with the gospel.
Sydenstricker was unique among bible translators due to his command of Greek and Hebrew as well as his insistence on readability for the average Chinese Christian. He had a running feud with the official translators whom he blamed for the poor state of Christianity in China. While spectacularly unsuccessful against those official translators, his work heavily influenced the bible in use in China today.
Modern scholarship has shifted away from studying individuals to focus on broad movements within the missionary community such as liberalism, anti-opium activities, or women missionaries. While these inquiries can be important and helpful, a look into personalities like Sydenstricker reminds us that there were missionaries of immense influence within their often gigantic mission fields who are not so easily classified.
Sydenstricker was a contradictory and irascible man, isolated him from the rest of the missionary community, but he was also a man of stern convictions and complex personality sufficient reason to look again into the lives of individuals in order to gain understanding of today's Chinese church.
...freely adapted from Jost O. Zetzsche in The Missionary Kaleidoscope
Absalom Sydenstricker (1852 1931) (renamed Andrew in the book) was the eighth of nine children born to a Presbyterian farming family in what would become West Virginia. At 22, Sydenstricker left home to complete high school. He went on to graduate from Washington and Lee College and Union Theological Seminary in Richmond. His resulting honors degrees were in classical languages.
In 1879, just prior to seminary graduation, he was accepted by the Southern Presbyterian Mission Board to be sent out to China. A marriage was arranged, he was wed just after graduation, and a month later the couple was on their way to China.
Sydenstricker would serve in twenty missions spread all over China during his career. His background in languages and his exposure to many regional forms of spoken Mandarin molded his approach to mission work and, indeed, led him to insist that the bible, hymnals, and tracts be translated into popular Mandarin instead of the scholarly classical Chinese used by Western missionaries for more than a half-century in order to reach the common people with the gospel.
Sydenstricker was unique among bible translators due to his command of Greek and Hebrew as well as his insistence on readability for the average Chinese Christian. He had a running feud with the official translators whom he blamed for the poor state of Christianity in China. While spectacularly unsuccessful against those official translators, his work heavily influenced the bible in use in China today.
Modern scholarship has shifted away from studying individuals to focus on broad movements within the missionary community such as liberalism, anti-opium activities, or women missionaries. While these inquiries can be important and helpful, a look into personalities like Sydenstricker reminds us that there were missionaries of immense influence within their often gigantic mission fields who are not so easily classified.
Sydenstricker was a contradictory and irascible man, isolated him from the rest of the missionary community, but he was also a man of stern convictions and complex personality sufficient reason to look again into the lives of individuals in order to gain understanding of today's Chinese church.
...freely adapted from Jost O. Zetzsche in The Missionary Kaleidoscope
Used availability for Pearl S Buck's Fighting Angel
See all available used copies of this book at: Abebooks UK or Abebooks US
Hardback Editions
September 1978 : Hardback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck ISBN: 0-85997-374-3 / 978-0-85997-374-8 (UK edition) Publisher: C.Chivers Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
January 1969 : Hardback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Cedric Chivers Availability: Amazon UK More details... |
January 1947 : Hardback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Methuen Availability: Amazon UK More details... |
1944 : Hardback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S Buck Publisher: Methuen & Co Availability: Amazon More details... |
1941 : Hardback
| Title: Fighting Angel : Portrait of a Soul Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Triangle Books Availability: Amazon More details... |
1940 : Hardback
| Title: Fighting Angel: Portrait of a Soul Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Triangle Availability: Amazon More details... |
January 1939 : Hardback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Triangle Books Availability: Amazon More details... |
1938 : Hardback
| Title: FIGHTING ANGEL - Portrait of a Soul Author(s): PEARL S BUCK Publisher: Collier Availability: Amazon More details... |
1937 : Hardback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl Buck Publisher: Methuen Availability: Amazon Amazon UK More details... |
January 1936 : Hardback
| Title: FIGHTING ANGEL Author(s): Pearl S Buck Publisher: Reynal & Hitchcock Availability: Amazon More details... |
Paperback Editions
August 2011 : Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel Portrait of a Soul Author(s): Pearl S. Buck ISBN: 1-178-65133-9 / 978-1-178-65133-1 Publisher: Unknown Availability: Amazon Amazon UK More details... |
March 2009 : Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck ISBN: 1-59988-006-7 / 9781599880068 (USA edition) Publisher: EastBridge Availability: Amazon More details... |
March 2007 : Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel - Portrait of a Soul Author(s): Pearl S. Buck ISBN: 1-4067-0539-X / 978-1-4067-0539-3 (UK edition) Publisher: Unknown Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
January 2000 : Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck ISBN: 0-671-80323-9 / 978-0-671-80323-0 (USA edition) Publisher: Pocket Books Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
May 1994 : Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck ISBN: 0-7451-1898-4 / 978-0-7451-1898-7 (UK edition) Publisher: Chivers Large print (Chivers, Windsor, Paragon & C Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
December 1993 : Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel (Curley Large Print Books) Author(s): Pearl S. Buck ISBN: 0-7927-1579-9 / 978-0-7927-1579-5 (USA edition) Publisher: Chivers North America Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
1976 : Mass Market Paperback
| Title: Fighting angel Author(s): Pearl S Buck Publisher: Pocket Books Availability: Amazon Amazon UK More details... |
1975 : Mass Market Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Pan Books Availability: Amazon More details... |
January 1964 : Mass Market Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Cardinal Availability: Amazon CA More details... |
1963 : Mass Market Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Availability: Amazon More details... |
1936 : Mass Market Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Pocket Books Availability: Amazon More details... |
Paperback
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck ISBN: 0-330-24540-6 / 978-0-330-24540-1 (UK edition) Publisher: Macmillan Availability: Amazon Amazon UK Amazon CA More details... |
Other Editions
1972 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting angel;: Portrait of a soul Author(s): Pearl S Buck Publisher: John Day Availability: Amazon Amazon UK More details... |
January 1964 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Pocket Availability: Amazon CA More details... |
January 1964 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Cardinal Edition GC 208 Availability: Amazon CA More details... |
January 1964 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Cardinal Availability: Amazon UK More details... |
January 1964 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting Angel. Author(s): Pearl Buck Publisher: 1964 Availability: Amazon UK More details... |
1964 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting angel (Giant Cardinal) Author(s): Pearl S Buck Publisher: Pocket Books Availability: Amazon UK More details... |
1964 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting Angel: Portrait of a Soul Author(s): Pearl S. Buck Publisher: Pan Availability: Amazon UK More details... |
1956 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting angel;: Portrait of a soul Author(s): Pearl S Buck Publisher: Methuen & Co Availability: Amazon Amazon UK More details... |
1950 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting angel;: Portrait of a soul Author(s): Pearl S Buck Publisher: Methuen Availability: Amazon Amazon UK More details... |
1937 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting angel,: Portrait of a soul Author(s): Pearl S Buck Publisher: Methuen Availability: Amazon UK More details... |
1937 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting angel: Portrait of a soul (Tauchnitz edition of British and American authors) Author(s): Pearl S Buck Publisher: Bernhard Tauchnitz Availability: Amazon UK More details... |
1936 : Unknown
| Title: Fighting Angel Author(s): Pearl S Buck Publisher: Reynal & Hitchcock Availability: Amazon More details... |
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