Rudolf Lechler
Rudolf Christian Friedrich Lechler () (26 July 1824 – 29 March 1908), was a
German evangelical Christian missionary to
China, and is one of early leaders of the
Basel Mission evangelizing to the
Hakka people. Lechler spent 52 years in China. The Basel Hakka Mission that he administered was responsible for establishing over 51 mission stations, 56 schools with over two thousand members.
Lechler is known today for administering to the early
Hakka Christian church and, together with his mission coworkers, facilitated in the resettling of Hakka Christian communities fleeing from persecution to Southeast Asian countries of which new congregations such as the
Basel Christian Church of Malaysia and the
Lutheran Church in Malaysia and Singapore were subsequently formed. Lechler appreciated China's cultural heritage and was able to preach in several
varieties of Chinese, including
Mandarin,
Hokkien, and
Hakka, the last of which he knew well enough to help prepare a Romanized Hakka edition of the
Gospel of Matthew and
Gospel of Luke. Today the Hakka Christian community is estimated to have 150,000 members worldwide.
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