Church and State
China and the House Church
Breaking the Stalemate
Police actions against several house churches in Guangdong province in recent weeks again point up the fragile state of China’s vast unregistered Christian community.
Solving the House Church Problem (Part 2)
Last week we posted part 1 of a proposal to resolve the status of house churches in China. In part 2, Professor Liu gets more specific as to how a house church documentation system could be set up and what would be gained by doing so.
Solving the House Church Problem (Part I)
In March, the WeChat Public account called 《宗教法治》(Religious Law) published a proposal by Professor Liu Peng, head of the Pushi Institute for Social Sciences on steps the government can take to solve the problem of house churches in China. We have translated the post and are presenting it in two parts. In this first part Professor Liu spells out why solving the problem is important and what he considers the foundation of a solution.
4 Books on the Chinese Communist Party
There was a big birthday celebration in China earlier this month. July 1 marked the 95th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party.
A Message from the Church in China
Does the Christian church require a sympathetic national government to thrive?
Death of Henan Pastor’s Wife Points to Nationwide Problem
Religious persecution or illegal land grab? Understanding the struggles faced by the people of China, including Chinese Christians.
Above or Below the Line
Facing China’s New Foreign NGO Law
A look at possible responses to the new NGO law.
4 Takeaways from Xi’s Speech on Religion
At a long-awaited national conference on religion, held in Beijing April 22-23, CPC General Secretary Xi Jinping outlined his vision for “helping religions adapt to the socialist society” under the direction of the Party. Here are a few prominent themes from Xi’s speech.
Ideology and Orthodox Authority
One of my favorite China books is The Sextants of Beijing: Global Currents in Chinese History, by Joanna Waley-Cohen. In it she chronicles China’s historical interactions with the outside world, arguing that China has never been as isolationist as historians have suggested. What the West often perceived as isolationist policies or attitudes were instead China’s insistence that authority must never be surrendered to outsiders.
We Walk This Road Together
In January Rev. Gu Yuese, pastor of Chongyi Church in Hangzhou, one of China’s largest churches, was removed by the Chinese Christian Council, the governing body of the Chinese Protestant Church. Often referred to as China’s first mega-church, the sanctuary seats more than 5000 people, and each Sunday sees around 10,000 people in attendance at the worship services.