Echopedia

Dr. Charles C.L. Kao / Chaolong Kao (高昭龍)

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Dr. Charles C.L. Kao / Chaolong Kao (高昭龍)

Dr. Charles C.L. Kao (Chaolong Kao, 高昭龍) was the organizing minister of the |Formosan Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles (FPCLA), called by the Presbytery of Los Angeles Southwest in September 1971 on behalf of the Formosan congregation.

Identity Snapshot

  • English names: Charles C.L. Kao; Chaolong Kao
  • Chinese: 高昭龍
  • Era: mid-20th century; active around FPCLA organization (1970–1971)
  • Geography: Taiwan (TTCS) → United States (Harvard Visiting Scholar; Los Angeles)
  • Core roles: Organizing pastor of FPCLA; former Assistant Professor, Tainan Theological College and Seminary (TTCS)

Ministry and FPCLA

According to |Dr. Albert S. Lai’s 1971 dissertation |Toward A Community of Hope:

  • With financial assistance from the Synod Office of Southern California and National Missions, Rev. Dr. Charles C.L. Kao was called in September 1971 by the Presbytery of Los Angeles Southwest as the Formosan congregation’s organizing minister.
  • He was a native Formosan, former Assistant Professor at Tainan Theological College, and before accepting the call was a Visiting Scholar at Harvard University.
  • Related secondary narrative on the Albert S. Lai page also connects him to TTCS training under the era of President Shoki Coe and to teaching at TTCS while Lai was a student — treat detailed TTCS biography as content priority B pending additional primary sources.

Disambiguation: Co-founder |Dr. Daniel Kao (高光民) is a different person. Do not merge Charles C.L. Kao with Daniel Kao.

Education

  • Tainan Theological College and Seminary (TTCS) — student under President Shoki Coe era; graduated and taught as faculty
  • Harvard University — Visiting Scholar (pre-call to FPCLA); earned master’s degree, then doctorate
  • Nanjing Theological Seminary — studied in the United States under Dr. Barclay

Timeline

  • 1932–1936 — Student at TTCS
  • 1935 — Dr. Barclay died on October 5; Kao’s father and classmates carried the coffin at the funeral (student council role)
  • Post-1936 — Taught at TTCS as Assistant Professor
  • 1965 — During TTCS centenary, returned to the U.S. to attend Harvard Divinity School for doctoral studies
  • Post-doctorate — Remained at Harvard conducting academic research
  • September 1971 — Called by Presbytery of Los Angeles Southwest as organizing minister of FPCLA
  • September 1971 — Assumed role of organizing pastor at Formosan Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles
  • First Sunday — Preached in mother tongue (Taiwanese); sermon titled “The Blessed Land”
  • May 1972 — Pastor Kao flew to San Francisco Theological Seminary to attend Albert Lai’s graduation
  • July 1972 — Officiated at Albert Lai’s wedding at FPCLA (first wedding after church establishment)

Works

albert-s-lai has 1 article where they appear in the title and 2 additional articles that mention them in the body.

Body Mentions (2 articles)

  1. 2025 — |Toward A Community of Hope (2025 reprint) — organizing minister call, Harvard Visiting Scholar, TTCS faculty
  2. 2025 — |Toward A Community of Hope (Self-Preface) — wedding officiant, graduation ceremony attendance

Publications

  • 1971 — Referenced in Dr. Albert S. Lai’s dissertation Toward A Community of Hope — A Mission to Formosan Community in Los Angeles (San Francisco Theological Seminary). Kao is documented as the organizing minister called in September 1971.
  • 2025 — Referenced in the 50th anniversary republication of Toward A Community of Hope with NTPC/PCT forewords.

Quotes

“Rev. Dr. Charles C.L. Kao was called in September 1971 by the Presbytery of Los Angeles Southwest in behalf of Formosan congregation as the organizing minister.” — Toward A Community of Hope, Ch. IV

“Dr. Kao, former Assistant Professor at Tainan Theological College, Formosa, is also a native Formosan. Before he accepted this new position, he was a Visiting Scholar at Harvard University, Massachusetts.” — Toward A Community of Hope, Ch. IV

“On the very first Sunday following the founding of the first Taiwanese church in Los Angeles, Brother Albert Lai preached in his mother tongue (Taiwanese), delivering a sermon titled ‘The Blessed Land.‘” — Toward A Community of Hope, Postscript

“I returned to San Francisco Theological Seminary to finish my doctoral dissertation. In May 1972, I completed my doctoral degree, and Pastor Kao specially took the time to fly to San Francisco Theological Seminary to attend my graduation ceremony.” — Dr. Albert S. Lai, Postscript

“In July of the same year, my fiancée, Jane Hatsuko Ueno… and I held our wedding ceremony at the Formosan Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles, officiated by Pastor Kao. This was the first wedding held after the establishment of the Los Angeles Presbyterian Church.” — Dr. Albert S. Lai, Postscript

Network

Pages that link to chaolong-kao (chaolong-kao):

People (6)

  1. albert-s-lai
  2. albert-s-lai
  3. c-c-chen
  4. daniel-kao
  5. daniel-kao
  6. jonah-chang

Organizations (2)

  1. formosan-presbyterian-church-in-los-angeles
  2. formosan-presbyterian-church-in-los-angeles

Sources (1)

  1. toward-a-community-of-hope

Source Notes and Confidence

  • Content priority A: Organizing minister call (Sep 1971); Harvard Visiting Scholar; former TTCS Assistant Professor; Presbytery call (Lai dissertation Ch IV)
  • Content priority B: Extended TTCS student/teaching narrative from later republication framing
  • Needs verification: Full Chinese name characters beyond 高昭龍, birth year 1932 claim, exact romanization preference

Name Variants / Disambiguation

  • Charles C.L. Kao
  • Chaolong Kao
  • 高昭龍
  • Not: Daniel Kao / 高光民 (co-founder)

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