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A new report details the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) efforts to “exert total control” over the Catholic Church and other religious faiths within its borders and to “forcibly eradicate religious elements” that the party deems contrary to its political and policy agenda.The analysis, published by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) last week, asserts that the CCP’s “sinicization of religion” policy consistently violates the internationally protected right to freedom of religion. The term sinicization means to conform something to Chinese culture, but the policy essentially subordinates faiths to “the CCP’s political agenda and Marxist vision for religion,” according to the report.Chinese officials have ordered the removal of crosses from churches and have replaced images of Christ and the Virgin Mary with images of President Xi Jinping, according to the report. They have also censored religious texts, forced members of the clergy to preach CCP ideology, and mandated the display of CCP slogans within churches. ...Anyone who practices religion outside of the state-approved associations is considered to be in a “cult” and subjected to anti-cult provisions in Chinese law, a policy that has resulted in mass arrests and imprisonment, according to the report. ...
Overview: Revival and rapid church growth have characterized China’s churches since the 1990s. About 130 million Chinese are Christians, most of whom worship within the house church movement. Millions of others worship with the Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM), which, as the only legal church, is controlled by the Communist government. Despite continuous pressure and oppression from the Communist government, house church leaders refuse to compromise the gospel by joining government-controlled churches. Because of decades of government oppression, many Chinese Christians do not have their own Bible or access to discipleship literature.Major Religion: Influenced by their atheistic government, many Chinese are nonreligious. About 20 percent are Buddhists and another 20 percent practice Chinese folk religion. 9 percent are Christians.Persecutor: The main persecutor is the government.What It Means To Follow Christ In China: In the early 2000s, many unregistered churches enjoyed some freedom from government intrusion and harassment despite their illegal status. However, in recent years restrictive religious regulations and persecution have increased significantly. Hundreds of churches have been forced to close, pastors and church members have been arrested or detained and the online sale of Bibles has been prohibited. The government has installed hundreds of millions of facial recognition cameras, many in or near churches, to identify those who attend worship services. Church leaders are under intense pressure to join the government-controlled TSPM. It is illegal to disciple anyone younger than 18. Christians are often charged with participating in cults or with other spurious accusations, such as “bad business practices” or “intent to undermine the state.” ...
