Biography
Liang was born in Gaoming, Zhaoqing, Guangdong, China in 1789. Coming from a poor family, he quit formal schooling at the age of 15 and went to work, first as a pen-maker, then in printing in Guangzhou. In 1810, he was employed in a printing house in Guangzhou. Even though it was illegal at the time to print materials related to Christianity, Robert Morrison sought Liang's help to print the Chinese version of the Bible that Morrison translated. It was through these close contacts with Morrison and his associate, William Milne, that Liang began to have some understanding of the Christian faith.
In 1815, as a result of the restrictions against preaching of Christianity in China, Milne moved to Malacca, Malaysia to continue his missionary work among overseas Chinese. Liang was employed by Milne and went with him to Malacca. Gradually, Leung became a devoted Christian in Malacca. He was baptised by Milne on November 3, 1816.
Liang's interest in evangelism continued to grow. In 1821, Liang was ordained by Morrison in Macau to become a minister with the London Missionary Society. Liang was accompanied by another Chinese Christian, Keuh Agong on a 250-mile trek in 1830, distributing Christian tracts across China. Liang's evangelising eventually went beyond Guangdong to Singapore and Malacca. He also started writing books and pamphlets introducing people to Christianity. One of the books was "Good Words Exhorting Mankind" (1832), which might have prompted Hong Xiuquan to join the society of "Worshippers of Shang-ti". Hong later became the leader of the Taiping Rebellion which tried to establish a theocracy.
In 1834, Liang's missionary work was threatened by the Imperial Chinese Government and he fled to Malaysia. While there at Malacca he worked alongside English missionary Samuel Dyer with his printing and translation efforts. He returned to China five years later at the dawn of the Opium War. Liang did not support the war. He argued that if Britain waged war against China, the Chinese would not believe in the Bible and the British missionaries any more. His effort was ultimately in vain.
Benjamin Hobson (1816-1873), a medical missionary sent by the London Missionary Society in 1839, set up a highly successful Wai Ai Clinic (惠愛醫館). Liang, Hok Chau 周學 (also known as Lai-Tong Chau, 周勵堂) and others worked there. Due to the ban on evangelism by the Qing (清) Chinese Government up to 1845, there was persecution. Liang was thus given a beating of 30 strikes, as ordered by the court. Liang (age 63) baptized Chau in 1852. The Methodist Church based in England sent missionary George Piercy to China. In 1851, Piercy went to Guangzhou (Canton), where he worked in a trading company. In 1853, he started a church in Guangzhou. In 1877, Chau was ordained by the Methodist Church, where he pastored for 39 years (incumbent 1877-1916).
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