the Gift of Being number two: a“Buzz aldrin” Perspective on Pioneer Missions Notto R. Thelle

he history of christian missions is usually told from less desperately afraid of being useless. “the point is not that tthe perspective of the pioneers, the daring explorers, idon’t want to leave traces after me,” he says, “but somehow the “number ones.” these werethe eloquent preachers and they don’t have to be so visible for the entireworld. idon’t need evangelists, doctors and social workers, powerful organizers my handprint in the cement. idon’t have to be interviewed for and leaders, and scholars who pioneered the study of foreign what ido. ...someone has to choose to be number two ...that’s culturesandlanguages.Mostofthem what makes the world go around” wereintelligent, dedicated men who (pp. 424–25). sacrificed their lives for what they ihonor the memory of the num- believed was adirect call from God. ber twos in christian missions in they werefeatured in reports and by reviewing the experience werewriters themselves, fascinating of my father,notto normann thelle people at home with their accounts (1901–90), amissionary Buzz aldrin and appeals. they wereboth cel- in the scandinavian exploration of ebrated and respected.1 . in 1922 he arrived in Myintentionhereisnottodimin- chinawithanothernorwegian,Karl ish the role of the number ones—in ludvigreichelt,tobeginanewwork most cases their fame is deserved. among Buddhist monks. let us call But idowant to call attention to the him n. n. thelle or,asareminder number twos and threes, those who of this perspective, just n.n. (as in walked in the footsteps of the pio- nomen nescitur,name unknown). neers, carrying their burdens, taking reichelt was amissionary neil careofthe daily duties, yet allowing armstrong who deserves fame for others to be the protagonists; they his pioneer work, though he was not themselves worked in the wings or the first to step into the unknown werejust walk-ons in the shadows. territory of Buddhism in china.3 he What about the Buzz aldrins of had studied Buddhism for almost christian missions? twenty years when he began his My perspective is inspired by christian Mission to Buddhists in aremarkable norwegian novel by 1922.thisnewinitiativewasaunique Johan harstad, Buzz aldrin: Hvor ble anddaringexploration,andreichelt det av deg ialt mylderet? (Buzzaldrin: wasthe undisputable strategist and What happened to youinall the explorer.4 Butn.n.wasthere fromthe confusion?)2 Buzz aldrin was the beginning too. he worked faithfully secondmanonthemoon,asymbolof with reichelt during his lifetime and the many number twos in the world continued to serve the mission for who tend to be forgotten because almost forty years after reichelt’s number one gets all the attention. death in 1952. they weresometimes neil armstrong, the number one, is mentioned together as pioneers, but Reichelt and Thelle outside the Brother Home remembered and celebrated for tak- reichelt predominates in the great in (1926) ing the first steps on the moon and story of the mission. saying the now-famous words, “one small step for man, one ibecameawareofn.n.’sprominentroleinthemissionwhen giant leap for mankind.” But Buzz aldrin was theretoo, taking an american researcher in approached me to learn photos, collecting rock samples, and awed by the magnificent moreabout the details of my father’s life.5 this researcher had desolation of the moonscape. Michael collins was also there. studied the records and diaries of the mission in hong Kong and he was in charge of the spaceship and saw the dark side of the discoveredthatn.n.alwaysseemedtobepresent.Whilereichelt moon, waiting for the two to return. the venturecould never was often absent, attending meetings and conferences, making have happened without the entireteam. pilgrimages, and visiting Buddhist monasteries, n.n. was on harstad develops his theme in abeautiful and touching duty at the mission, organizing, taking careofthe daily routines, story of ayoung man who essentially wants to be anumber two, teaching, preaching, receiving guests, and attending to the care satisfied with his anonymity in the world, but who is neverthe- of students and visiting monks. the researcher’s impression was that n.n. was the hub around which the entireinstitution Notto R. Thelle, Professor of Ecumenics and Missiology at the University of revolved. ihad always taken it for granted that n.n.’s name was , served for many years as associate director of the NCC Center for the Study seldom mentioned, and he himself seemed perfectly satisfied of Japanese Religions, Kyoto, Japan. He is the author of numerous books and with that level of anonymity.But the observation struck me as articles dealing with interfaith dialogue, spirituality,and missions, including correct in many ways: the mission could never have succeeded seeking God’s face (Paulist Press, 2008). without n.n. and some other number twos.6 april 2008 81 History of the Christian Mission to Buddhists God had sown the seeds in the religious systems of the east, and the time was ripe for harvesting, if one could only meet them the official history of the christian Mission to Buddhists is with insight and sympathy,showing them that the inner aspira- described in numerous books and articles, and it shall not be tions of their faith werefulfilled in .the timing was revisited here. it is almost identical to the story of Karl ludvig perfect: n.n. was waiting for acalling from God, and reichelt reichelt, at least for the first three decades until his death in wassearchingforyoungpeoplewhocouldassisthiminhiswork. 1952. it is afascinating attempt to promote christian mission n.n. reflected, “how wonderful that God would use me, of all amongchineseBuddhistsandreligiousdevoteesbyestablishing people, in this work. What agrace!”9 institutions formission anddialogue. allreligious seekers were this encounter led to adeep, lifelong friendship and mutual welcomed as “brothers” and “friends in the Way/Dao” (daoyou), trust, in spite of the generation gap and their radically different positions. theremust have been tensions and conflicts between the two, but ihave never found any recordofn.n. saying or He was reared in awarm writing one negative wordabout reichelt. fromreichelt’sperspectiven.n.musthavebeenanextraor- and affectionate dinary resource in nanjing. his professional background made community with strong him aperfect secretary almost from the beginning, enabling reichelt to “plunge into the real work as soon as possible.”10 in commitments to missions, addition to his own language studies, n.n. took careofeveryday evangelism, puritan values, dutiessuchasmanagingfinances,accounts,andcorrespondence, editing reichelt’s writings, conducting morning and evening and otherworldliness. worship, and teaching in the small school. since reichelt was often out traveling, n.n. was increasingly put in charge of even preaching and worship. to some extent he also accompanied andtheinstitutionswerehenceoftencalledBrotherhomes.they reichelt on visits to local Buddhist monasteries. weremodeled after Buddhist monastic institutions, with adaily Whenreicheltwasaskedtoreturntonorwayinthesummer rhythm of worship, meditation, work, and study,and with ample of1925inordertonegotiatewiththenorwegianMissionarysoci- opportunity for dialogue. ety about the futureofthe mission, n.n. was given responsibility the official story,with reichelt as the “soul” of the mission, for the entirework of the Brother home. for one whole year,with is also n.n.’s story,which he loved to tell. Probably no one else, onlytwoandahalfyearsofexperienceinchina,andwithlimited including even reichelt himself, has contributed morethan n.n. education and no theological training, he was responsible for to keep this story alive.7 the entirecommunity.inatime of escalating political unrest and anti-Western agitation, this was aheavy burden. no wonder he The Pioneer and His Assistant was relieved when reichelt returned after one year and resumed his position as the undisputed master and leader. Karl ludvig reichelt was already in his mid-forties and an ex- reading letters and diaries, both private and public, one is perienced missionary to china when he returned with his new struck by the relationship between the two. it was arespectful assistant in 1922. he had served as amissionary evangelist in relationship in which aconsiderate boss was initiating aconsci- ()andlaterasprofessorofthenewtestamentat entious and capable apprentice to his futurework. the relation- the lutheran seminary in shekou (). he had been involved ship was affectionate, nurtured by deep spiritual fellowship and in revisions of liturgical books and hymnals, and not least, he had mutual friendship. already gained some fame for his research on chinese religions, notably Buddhism. Agonies of Loneliness and Romance his young assistant, n.n., was only twenty-one years old, an inexperienced man from Kristiansand, aprovincial port city other aspects of the relationship between this number one and in southern .after middle school and acommercial number two areeasily forgotten. hereweconsider some of the course n.n. served as aclerk in aship-broker company.he agonies and challenges. n.n.’s private diary,written during his was reared in the evangelical tradition of lutheran , a first years in nanjing, was his confidential dialogue partner.it warm and affectionate community with strong commitments affirms the mutual friendship and confidence described above to missions, evangelism, puritan values, and otherworldliness, but also reveals hidden hardships. the first sentence in the diary and with arather harsh stance against anything that smacked sets the tone: “i am herealone.” it was new year’s Day 1923, of liberal theology. and three months had passed since they arrived. reichelt was n.n. was ahappy and trusted member of that community, in , and the young n.n. had time to think and to feel. appreciated by the christian establishment as an up-and-coming he was desperately lonely and was longing for his family,for leader.Photos from those early years show ahandsome young friends, and for somebody to confide in, someone with whom man who was quiet and serious. But he seems to have been he could sharehis “many thoughts and struggles.” he wrote, somewhat depressed, or was he just pensive? his own letters “now iunderstand to some extent what aprecious gift from and notes reveal that he had two “most serious questions in life”: the lordagood friendship is. ihave no one. iamalone. ihave the feeling that he had been “called to something else” and the entered the new year alone.” desperate need for awoman to love.8 the heavy work schedule probably dulled the pain. the first his situation changed drastically in 1921 when he met Karl year was too busy to leave room for much emotion or private ludvig reichelt, who was on home leave and was sharing his reflection. the next entry in the diary was made morethan half a vision about work among Buddhists. the Buddhists in china year later,during summer vacation, and then afew entries were seemed prepared to receive the christian Gospel, he proclaimed. made in the fall of 1923. n.n. was so busy that he did not even

82 international Bulletin of Missionary research,Vol. 32, no. 2 have time to answer personal letters.11 But he was still haunted by also felt the pressure, especially his mother,who was an ardent loneliness. he tried to convince himself that he was not longing follower of the conservatives and hence feared that he would for something else—how could he do that when he knew that end in hell.18 Most of his friends withdrew their support, and God had led him to serve in china? But he had to be honest: there some even regarded him as an apostate.19 he later mentioned was no one with whom he could sharehis emotions.12 that during this period only one of his friends still supported n.n.’s encounter with reichelt had to some extent solved him in his continued involvement in the mission. his first agony—the call to “something else” as his life work. for the rest of his life n.n. identified himself with the liberat- But the question was still burning. he was in china serving as ing vision, but to some extent it continued to be aburden, even amissionary,acalling that was admired in his home community though that burden was not his own but reichelt’s. as the highest possible. Why was he still uneasy? had not God fulfilled his longings? yes, he was grateful for the opportunity Humility,Inferiority,and Dignity to serve, and he was ready to commit everything to his calling. But he was not surethat his work was good enough. n.n. was basically happy to be anumber two. he grew up in a athomehiswork hadalwaysbeen appreciated, butin china piety that nurtured aspirit of humble service, voluntary work, it seemed almost impossible to do anything to please people. and commitment to evangelism. sometimes, however,italso Washeofany use at all? therewas no gratitude, no response, nurtured such negative elements as feelings of inferiority and everything was so ...hecould not even find the right words. even self-contempt. things just slipped by.Would it ever be possible to communi- hisprivatediaryispackedwithreflectionsonhumbleservice cate his thoughts in chinese?13 Would he ever be able to preach andwithsincereprayersforstrengthtoforgethimselfandcommit christ with aliberated tongue?14 had he ever meant anything himself to God. at the same time, however,hewas struggling to anyone in china? “the feeling of loneliness, the terrible feel- withthetensionbetweenhumilityanddreamsofrecognition.he ing of not being able to mean anything to anybody was about wantedtobehiddenbehindchristso“healonecanshinethrough to overpower me.”15 me,” to suffer with him “in unforgettable sacrificial love,” but he this feeling of loneliness probably would not have been so was depressed by “this damnable striving for human glory.”20 awfulifhehadhadsomeresolutiontohissecondagony:awoman he simply wanted to be seen; he needed recognition and was to love. he thought that he perhaps had agirlfriend in norway desperately afraid of being of no use to anyone.21 when he left, but therewas no place for open proclamation in one of n.n.’s problems was his lack of academic training. that culture, and he could not really expect aseventeen-year-old he came as an assistant but could not help asking why the lord high school student to commit herself to aman who would be had sent him to china without an education. other missionary gone for such along time. his private agonies shall not be de- students, even the women, had at least finished college. Why scribed here, but the young man’s ups and downs in this matter shouldhebeanexception?“ithoughtGodcouldmakesomething arequite moving.16 out of what is small in the eyes of the learned,” he commented, hoping that God in this way might educate him through his The Burdens of aLiberating Vision spirit. “But how often it is painful and preys upon the flesh that ishould be inferior to the others.”22 it was atremendous privilege for n.n. to assist reichelt in the With such abackground, one may easily understand his initialphaseofauniquepioneerworkamongBuddhistmonks.he delight whenever his contributions wereappreciated, which had been pulled out of acommunity with clearly defined cultural happened quite often. early in his language studies at nanjing andreligiouscodesandplacedinanentirelynewworld.reichelt’s approach to Buddhism was the obvious model, one in which it was studied with sympathy and fascination but essentially with This feeling of loneliness the intention of preparing for growth towardchristian faith. n.n. accepted reichelt’s ideas as aliberating vision. it opened probably would not have his awareness that God was not confined to the narrow world been so awful if he had of churches and pietistic communities; it even introduced him to the totally unknown world of Buddhism, which hitherto had had some resolution to figured only as part of the world of dark paganism christianity his second agony: awoman was to conquer. therewas, however,adifference between the two men. to love. reichelt had made along journey in which his new relationship to people of another faith was the result of his own exploration, research, and direct contacts. for n.n., in contrast, his was abor- university,hewas first in his class. reichelt and his chinese rowed position, at least initially,based only on trust in reichelt. coworkers described him as “unique and outstanding.”23 But he he was thereforemuch morevulnerable to criticism from con- still was not surethat he was good enough. servative circles in norway,especially when negotiations with Withn.n.’sintellectandenergyhemighteasilyhavebecome the norwegian Missionary society forced reichelt to leave the anumber one in his field, given the right circumstances. But the societyandestablishhisownorganizationin1926.itwasaperiod situation was not favorable for such adevelopment. the mission of harshtheological struggle in norway.reichelt was severely alreadyhaditspioneer.Wemightwonderwhetherthestoryofthe attacked by conservative christians for mixing Buddhism and mission would have been different if n.n. and other coworkers christianityandforpreachingan“amputated”Gospelthatcould had been given the opportunity to be moreindependent in their save neither the chinese nor the norwegians.17 n.n. received work.thereare goodreasonstobelievethatsuchascenariomight warnings and admonitions from his friends, who expected him havebeenproblematic.reicheltcertainlyhadsomefundamental to leave the mission as soon as he returned to norway.his family beliefsaboutequalityandcollegiality.hereceivedthesamesalary april 2008 83 as his coworkers, in spite of the difference in age and education, sonal invalidation.” Knowing from experience the somewhat and he apparently trusted them with agreat deal of freedom. the heavy air created by disagreement, Prip-Møller continued, the relationship between reichelt and n.n. is abeautiful example result was often that one preferred to “give in for the sake of of mutual friendship and trust. reichelt, however,did not seem domestic peace.”25 to be interested in allowing n.n. and other coworkers to pursue reichelt needed committed people who would support his their own independent studies, or even to exploreBuddhism and work, participate in the daily activities as preachers and litur- chinese religions in moredepth. gists, engage in dialogues with visiting monks, and teach the reichelt did not seem to want independent spirits who novices and students at taofong shan. But he was the master, engaged in creative dialogue about strategies and theological the respected pioneer,the undisputable number one. positions.n.n.commentedthatindiscussionsreicheltassumed thatallagreedwithhispositionandcouldbeirritatedifsomeone The Gift of Being Number Two dared to criticize him. he never checked the opinions of new staff, but he nonetheless expected them to sharehis views.24 My sketches of the beginning of the christian Mission to Bud- amuch harsher comment was made by amoreindependent dhists in nanjing in the 1920s from the perspective of anumber two missionary do not detract anything from the well-known story,but they add some nuances that areseldom expressed. N.N. was among those n.n. is arepresentative for the countless other number twos, and he was basically happy in this role. his mental chemistry,his with the gift of being home and childhood, and the religious cultureofhis community number two, amissionary had prepared him for such arole, and he filled it with commit- personality without whom ment and gratitude. irealize that therehave also been many number twos (and threes and fours) in christian missions who no pioneer could succeed. wereunhappy with their roles, people with abilities and dreams that werenever realized, among them many women. But n.n. was among those with the gift of being number two, amissionary spirit, Johannes Prip-Møller,the Danish architect who designed personality without whom no pioneer could succeed.26 the taofong shan christian centreinhong Kong. Prip-Møller alluding to harstad’s above-mentioned novel, one might felt that reichelt’s tendency to micromanage was an oppressive say that n.n. did not want to be visible to the entireworld—he deprivation of freedom. he commented that reichelt’s excep- did not need his handprint in the cement—but he did want to tional vision and empathy with others were“limited exclusively be seen, and he struggled with the overpowering fear of being to the sphereofreligion.” in all other areas therewas no room useless. in harstad’s words, someone has to choose to be number for real discussion, for reichelt regarded disagreement as “per- two—that’s what makes the world go around. Notes 1. this article is an abbreviated version of adetailed analysis to 5. carl i. smith’s detailed analysis, based on the available reports and be included in acollection of articles dealing with norwegian diaries at taofong shan christian centre, is available at the center’s contributions to mission in china that is to be published in 2008 reichelt library. under the title “a Passion for china.” 6. among other number twos in the early phases wereaxel hamre 2. Johan harstad, Buzz aldrin: Hvor ble det av deg ialt mylderet? (Buzz (the engineer who supervised the building of taofong shan), stig aldrin: What happened to youinall the confusion?) (oslo: hannerz, Gerhardreichelt (son of the pioneer), and some important Gyldendal, 2005). chinese coworkers. their wives wereprobably regarded somewhat 3. for reference to early missionary pioneers of Buddhist studies in as number threes, especially in acommunity wheremany visitors china, see my article “changed by the east: notes on Missionary weremonks. communication and transformation,” International Bulletin of 7. n.n. described reichelt as the “soul” of the work. see his account de Missionary Research 30, no. 3(July 2006): 115–21. første ti år (the first tenyears) (oslo: Den Kristne Buddhistmisjons 4. for morecomprehensive analyses of reichelt, see notto r. thelle, forlag, 1932), p. 19. n. n. thelle’s other books about the mission are, “Karl ludvig reichelt, 1877–1952: christian Pilgrim of taofong in addition to the above-mentioned biography, Fra begynnelsen til nu shan,” in Mission Legacies: Biographical Studies of Leaders of the Modern (fromtheBeginninguntilnow)(oslo:DenKristneBuddhistmisjons MissionaryMovement,ed.Geraldh.andersonetal.(Maryknoll,n.y.: forlag,1939)andEnbuddhistmunksveitilKristus(aBuddhistMonk’s orbisBooks,1994),pp. 216–24,and my articles,“‘the conversion Waytochrist) (copenhagen: Gads forlag, 1939). after returning of theMissionary’:changes in Buddhist-christian relationsinthe from hong Kong in 1949, n.n. served as general secretary of the earlytwentieth century,” Ching Feng,n.s., 4, no. 2(2003): 1–25; mission from 1951 to 1972 and continued to serve the mission as a “a christian Monastery for Buddhist Monks, pt. 1, Karl ludvig retired volunteer and speaker,keeping the memory of the pioneer reichelt’s sacred Mountains,” Ching Feng,n.s., 6, no. 1(2005): 1–35; period alive for new generations of supporters. and “a christian Monastery for Buddhist Monks, pt. 2, Buddhist 8. aletter written December 21, 1920, but never sent, to Kjeld stub, rhetoric in Karl ludvig reichelt’s christian liturgies,” Ching Feng, leader of the norwegian christian youth association, n. n. thelle’s n.s., 6, no. 2(2005): 131–77. private archives, presently in the possession of the author. amongmajorstudiesofreichelt,seehåkaneilert,Boundlessness 9. reichelt-thelle correspondence (hereafter rtc), December 26, 1921, (aarhus: forlagetaros, 1974); filip riisager, Forventning og opfyldelse n. n. thelle’s private archives. (expectation and fulfillment) (aarhus: forlaget aros, 1973), and 10. reicheltinChinaMissionYearbook,1924(shanghai:christianliterature Lotusblomsten og korset (the lotus and the cross) (copenhagen: society for china, 1924), p. 76. Gads forlag, 1998); eric J. sharpe, Karl Ludvig Reichelt: Missionary, 11.n.n.thelle’s diary from nanjing, 1922–27 (hereafter tD), october Scholar,and Pilgrim (hong Kong: taofong shan ecumenical centre, 14, 1923, n. n. thelle’s private archives. 1984); and notto n. thelle, Karl Ludvig Reichelt—en kristen banebryter 12. tD, october 1, 1923. iØst-asia (Karl ludvig reichelt: achristian Pioneer in east asia) 13. tD, april 10, 1924. (oslo: Buddhistmisjonens forlag, 1954). 14. tD, June 7, 1924.

84 international Bulletin of Missionary research,Vol. 32, no. 2 come. learn. serve. www.asburyseminary.edu

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asburytheological seminary, 204north lexington avenue, wilmore, ky 40390 15. tD, april 27, 1924. copies at the reichelt library at taofong shan, hong Kong, and at 16. Whenn.n.returnedtonorwayafterfiveyearsinchina,heproposed the areopagos office, oslo. to the young woman, rannfrid Danielsen, and five years later,when 24. n. n. thelle, Karl Ludvig Reichelt,p.103. he had completed high school and theological training, they finally 25. Prip-Møller,quoted in hans helge Madsen, Prip-Møllers Kina (Prip- married. she joined him when he returned to china in 1933, this Møller’s china) (copenhagen: arkitektens forlag, 2003), p. 158. time in hong Kong. 26. since the present essay is primarily an analysis of the pioneer 17. the most prominent attack came from the conservative theologian period of the christian Mission to Buddhists from the perspective ole hallesby; for adetailed analysis of the struggle, see riisager, of reichelt’s assistant, many aspects of n.n.’s biography have been Forventning og opfyldelse,pp. 23–44. omitted. But one relevant observation might be added: With his 18. rtc, february 23 and 28, 1926. appointment to the position of general secretary of the mission in 19. tD, July 29, 1926. 1951, one year beforereichelt’s death, n.n. not only became the 20. tD, october 1, 1923. unchallenged leader of the mission but was also reichelt’s official 21. see notably tD, January 1, 1925. biographer and the authoritative interpreter of his legacy.reichelt 22. tD, December 3, 1923. to some extent became n. n. thelle’s reichelt. from that point of 23. the official nanjing Diary of the Mission to Buddhists, March 13, view thelle, the number two, ultimately became apowerful number 1927. the original diary is located in the national archives, oslo; one in the missionary establishment.

86 international Bulletin of Missionary research,Vol. 32, no. 2