My name is Melissa Inouye.
I am a historian of modern China and global Christianity. I have a particular interest in the history of global charismatic Christian movements, including the True Jesus Church and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. My recent book, China and the True Jesus: Charisma and Organization in a Chinese Christian Church, explores the relationship between miraculous power and bureaucratic power in the history of a Chinese Christian Pentecostal church. In addition to publications on the history of modern China, I have also written articles on topics such as global Mormonism and women’s participation in religious movements.
Currently I work as a historian at the Church History Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am also an honorary Senior Lecturer in Asian Studies at the University of Auckland. I am in currently researching the life of Chieko Okazaki, a Japanese American Latter-day Saint who was the first person of color to hold a prominent general-level position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.