After three years of the pandemic, the world started to fully resume in 2023. So did the church in China: in-person meetings and ministries gradually regained their vigor, and international Christian exchanges were restored. The “Administrative Measures for Religious Activity Venues” came into force to manage places of worship, while Pew released reports claiming the stagnation of Christian growth in China. As the sinicization campaign kept underway across the official church, the 2023 Israel-Hamas War provoked arguments and controversies among underground church Christians. Profound changes took place in Christianity in China throughout the year.
As we begin 2024, the editorial team of China Christian Daily (CCD) has selected the top 10 Christian news stories of 2023 based on the number of views, keyword searches, shares, and prominence of articles.
Below is part 2, Nos. 6-10 of CCD'S top 10 news stories of 2023. Read part 1 of CCD's top 5 news stories of the year here.
6. Easter and Christmas celebrations returned to on-site.
After reopening, Easter 2023 became the first important festival for the church in China. Registered churches across China celebrated the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ to deepen the congregation’s spiritual roots and rekindle their enthusiasm. Lasting from Lent to Easter, daily devotionals, prayer meetings, communion services, walking the 14 stations of Jesus' cross, and other traditional activities were carried out. The Holy Trinity Cathedral in Shanghai observed Easter Sunday for the first time in decades.
Christmas celebrations returned to normal this year as churches opened their doors to the public. As December is called “the month of Christmas” in Chinese churches, church buildings are decorated with Christmas trees, lights, candles, wreaths, and other special settings.
Some official churches observed Christmas in advance, while most hosted worship and praise services, evangelistic meetings, baptism services, music performances, and programs to express praise and gratitude to the Lord.
In contrast with the past years, the celebrations in house churches presented a more diversified picture. From around 2000 to 2018, most underground churches celebrated Christmas in a similarly ritualistic or ceremonial way. The nationwide grand status and style had been pretty similar to those of the annual Chinese “Spring Festival Gala.” Every believer used to gather in a church building or a rented venue to watch “programs," which contained worship and praise, short plays or acts, singings and dances, and so on. The whole celebration ceremony would last from two to four hours in order to serve as both a spiritual family reunion for believers and an evangelical occasion for invited seekers.
However, in recent years, due to deep reflections that some churches had on the problems of Christmas celebrations and the trends of dividing churches into small groups caused by the pandemic and venue issues, the “Spring Festival Gala” style has been declining. Yet, more diversified ways to celebrate Christmas emerged quickly. The trend was particularly obvious in 2023.
Some churches just held celebrations in groups, at host families, or enjoyed Christmas Eve dinner at a restaurant. A portion of the congregations ate together and exchanged presents. In the north, some Christians celebrated Christmas with comic talks, which is a popular art among the local people. In addition to these methods, many Christians adopted the fellowship mode mixed with “chatting,” dinner, and Thanksgiving testimonies. Apart from these diversified attempts, there were still many churches that chose the familiar “Spring Festival Gala” style.
7. The Gan Yi-Chinese Parallel Bible was released after a 15-year translation.
On the occasion of 2023 Bible Day, a new Bible launch ceremony was held for the Gan Yi Language-Chinese Parallel Bible (Old and New Testaments), a translation that took 15 years to complete for Gan Yi ethnic groups in Yunnan.
In 2016, Yunnan Provincial CC&TSPM completed the translation and distribution of the "Gan Yi Language Old Testament" which was started in 2008.
The minority Yi people in Yunnan Province have branches such as Black Yi, White Yi, and Gan Yi, allowing their own languages and scripts.
Yunnan CC&TSPM started the Bible translation ministry for ethnic minorities in 2003. The ethnic language versions have been published, including A-Hmao, western Lisu, eastern Lisu, Wa, black Yi, and white Yi's New Testament.
8. The sinicization of Christianity campaign across China
The "Outline of the Five-Year Work Plan for Further Advancing the Sinicization of Christianity (2023-2027)" was launched during the eleven national Christian conferences held in Beijing in late December.
The document comes as the continuation of the “Outline of the Five-year Plan (2018-2022) for Promoting Sinicization of Christianity” which was released in 2017.
The new "Outline" consists of five parts, outlining the overall requirements, target principles, major tasks, annual themes, and focal points of work for the next five years in advancing the sinicization of Christianity. The yearly themes from 2023 to 2027 are “Patriotism and Reverence for Faith: Nurturing a Flourishing Church,” “Reverence for Life: Witnessing Beauty and Splendor,” “The Incarnation of the Word: Honoring God and Benefiting Humanity,” “Loving Others as Oneself: Embracing a Brilliant Life,” and “Fostering Unity: Striving for Harmony,” respectively.
Reviewing the past five years of efforts in the sinicization campaign, CCC&TSPM stated the registered churches across China launched specialized research, and visits to churches and theological colleges, and the findings were deliberated upon in over a hundred dedicated symposiums.
One of the highlights was that CCC&TSPM and the Hong Kong Christian Council jointly hosted a symposium on the sinicization of Christianity in Hong Kong on May 18 and 19. In addition to the Chinese Christian delegation comprising 24 people, more than 120 people from major Christian denominations, seminaries, and social service organizations in Hong Kong attended the conference centered around mission and pastoral care, theological education, and church history.
On September 8, the Shorter Catechism (Revised Edition), the most widely read book in the Chinese church concerning basic beliefs, was released. While maintaining the basic principles, characteristics, and content, the number of questions has been expanded from the original 100 to 120. It has added questions and answers related to the challenges faced by seekers and believers in today's context and made necessary revisions to the original entries, including parts about localizing Christianity in the Chinese context.
The “Eight Beatitudes Theology" and the interpretation, preaching, and application of the Bible within the Chinese cultural context symposium took place in Fujian. CC&TSPMs in three districts of Shanghai created the "From a Common Origin" brand project to promote the sinicization of Christianity. Cultural exhibition halls were inaugurated in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Wuxi, while a research center was unveiled in Nanjing. Other forms included lectures, training, praise meetings, and debriefing on musical achievements.
9. The 2023 Israel–Hamas war sparked controversies among the Chinese Christian community.
On October 7, Hamas, the Palestinian militant group, attacked Israel, leading to Israel’s subsequent counterattack, including an air strike over Gaza. Lasting more than two months, the Israel-Hamas conflict caused at least 21,672 deaths, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza.
The debate in favor of Israel or Hamas, one of the hottest topics lingering in China for months, also sparked controversies in the Chinese Christian community. A majority of Christians in China backed Israel out of its biblical roots, but a percentage of Chinese believers opposed the country, holding that our Christian faith was not necessarily linked up with political issues.
A Christian columnist observed that firm supporters of Israel who were likely to be Zionists were mostly from the Evangelical and Pentecostal communities, coupled with some denominations who celebrate the Sabbath, while many traditional church members (Reformers, Lutherans, Anglicans, and Catholics) fought against blindly supporting Israel. The latter argued that Jews who were chosen by God, have not accepted Jesus since Judaism and Christianity are different faiths.
A professor interpreted the conflict from the perspective of "land theology" in an online lecture, concluding that two sides should find a way to coexist with each other.
10. Persecution continued and worsened.
Open Doors launched its World Watch List 2023 in early 2023, where China ranks 16th among the 50 countries where Christians are most persecuted.
The cross that had topped the Hudson Taylor Memorial Tower, which stands behind Xuande Church in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, was removed, according to an unverified source. The Hudson Taylor Memorial Tower has been open to the public since June 2018. British missionary couple Hudson and Maria Taylor were buried under the ground of the memorial building after their tombs were moved to Xuande Church (Hudson Taylor Memorial Church) in 2014.
In August, two house churches in Guangzhou were banned by the local government. The Bible Reformed Church in Panyu District, Guangzhou, had been shut down "without registration," and Huajing Church was closed as well.
Located in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, the Nangang Church, worth tens of millions of RMB, was torn down after the church did not agree with the local government’s compensation plan.
It is said that religious people in Henan, one of the most Christian-populated provinces in China, were required to make an online reservation to attend a service in a church, mosque, or Buddhist temple. Worshippers have to select the religious venue they would like to attend before making a reservation through an application named “Smart Religion" while filling in their personal information.
Karen Luo, Ruth Wang, and Grace Zhi contributed to these reports
