Founded by the Duke Initiative in Theology and the Arts, the first Yage Prize for Chinese Christian Literature & Arts held an awards ceremony on December 17.
“The Yage Prize was created on December 1, 2019 to promote the production of excellent Chinese Christian literature, music, and visual art. The prestigious award is given to Chinese writers and artists. “Through this award, we hope to promote the indigenization of Christianity in China, encourage faith through artistic expression, and promote the development of Chinese Christian literature and art,” its official website said.
Dr. L. Gregory Jones, dean of Duke Divinity School welcomed the participants to the Awards Ceremony. As "this year's theme was inspired by the words of Christ in Luke 6:20," Dr. Jone added: "Christ's blessing of the poor, the marginalized, and those who are without power and influence, speaks to the up-side down nature of God's kingdom. Each entry in this competition, in its own way, has lifted our own eyes and ears to this radical vision of God's reign.
“Since November 2019, the first Yage Prize has received over 900 entries from four continents, of which 27 were chosen as winners of the prizes, and 26 were awarded special merit prizes,” said the host.
Based on Luke 6:20, the 202 Yage Prize is divided into four categories: literature, visual arts, and two types of music.
The novel Renegades or The Apostate written by Wei Shi won the first prize in literature. Two works were chosen for the second prize and three for the third prize. There are two special prizes for a drama and compilation of poems and eight contributions received merits.
In the part of the visual arts, the film “Songs from Maidiching” and the printmaking series “Contemporary Martyrdom” produced by Jie Hu won the first prize. The song “Redemption of Love,” composed by Xuefeng Yan, won the first prize in Music Category A. In Category B, three works received merits.
Most of the winners are from mainland China, the United States, and Singapore.
