The revival of Christianity in the world’s most populous country during the past thirty years might be the most significant, yet least understood events of our time.
The Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976 purged any form of known religion (save worship of Chairman Mao) from Chinese society. Generations of Chinese people grew up to be atheists. Religion, children were taught, is the opium of the people.
But economic reform and China’s integration with the world over the past several decades changed people’s lives dramatically. Materially, Chinese people are enjoying great prosperity unparalleled in its history. The wakening of spiritual fulfillment, however, began more recently.
It is only in the past ten years that Christianity entered the consciousness of possibly the majority of China’s population. Almost everyone knows someone who has converted. In cities and countryside, old churches are expanded and new ones are erected. The cross is a symbol no longer foreign to many Chinese.
Mainstream media, including The Times and The Chicago Tribune, have examine the phenomenon with depth. But there is no one single website devoted solely to Christianity in China (except one outdated website hosted by the official Chinese church), a topic of great importance.
ChristiansInChina.com hopes to be the source for anyone who wishes to become more knowledgeable on China’s Christian population. The website will feature only first-hand stories, photos and videos about the individuals, the officials, the clergy and the churches in China.
The website is maintained by several keen students of human spirituality during their spare time. They either live in China or travel frequently to China. They include Chinese and non-Chinese, Christians and non-Christians. The aim of the site is to bring to you what regular residents of China would see and hear about Christians in China.
For the authors, this is an exciting and long-term social science project. We will show you where our explorations take us, and we will be thorough, objective and critical.
(We are looking to expand our network of contributors around China. If you are interested in writing for us, please email us at [email protected]. Thank you)
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