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By Micah McCartney
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A spate of police raids that swept up dozens of people affiliated with a prominent church, reported just days before Christmas, serves as a stark reminder of China’s tight regulation of religion.
Why It Matters
While China does not ban Christianity outright, it maintains some of the strictest controls on organized religion in the world, restricting not only the estimated 1 percent of its population that practices Christianity but also foreigners living in the country.
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Public worship outside of state-sanctioned venues is forbidden; all places of worship must register with the government, and sermons are subject to review for content deemed critical of the state or threatening to public order—a vaguely defined offense often used to justify crackdowns on those seen as a threat by Communist Party authorities. The Vatican and China reached a provisional agreement in 2018 allowing Beijing to propose bishops, but critics say this gives the government undue influence over church affairs.
Newsweek reached out to the Chinese State Administration for Religious Affairs by email with a request for comment outside of office hours.
What To Know
Commercial trappings of Christmas, such as decorations and shopping promotions, have become common across Chinese cities as economic prosperity has grown. Party officials, however, always wary of foreign cultural influence, often crack down on celebrations or messaging they believe could undermine their authority—whether directed at foreign residents or Chinese citizens.
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Children under 18 are banned from participating in Christmas celebrations, even at legally registered churches, which are themselves under pressure to inject Communist Party messaging into religious services.
Wang Huning, a senior member of the Politburo Standing Committee, two years ago called on Chinese Christians to "adhere to the direction of the sinicization of Christianity," ensuring churches align with "the requirements of contemporary China’s development, core socialist values, and excellent Chinese traditions."
President Xi Jinping has tightened controls over religious expression and Chinese society at large, repeatedly calling over the past decade for greater "cultural confidence."
Without a nationwide directive, enforcement varies by locality. Some cities reportedly ban Christmas-themed advertising and remove Santa Claus displays from shopping malls.
Yet a recent New York Times report highlighted the lengths to which authorities will go to clamp down on religion practiced outside official oversight. Around 30 people connected to Zion Church, a network of unregistered house churches and one of China’s largest unofficial Protestant congregations, were detained—marking the largest single crackdown in years.
The pressure isn’t limited to Zion Church. According to the Washington Post, hundreds of riot police recently swept a small town in Zhejiang province, arresting two pastors and dozens of others.
What People Are Saying
Bob Fu, founder of Texas-based nonprofit ChinaAid, told the Post: "This is the first time there has been a nationwide hunt targeting an urban house church in many years. […] [U.S. president] Trump’s policy is not consistent on China, and that gives Xi Jinping too much room to maneuver."
Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State, wrote in an October press statement: "The United States condemns the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s recent detention of dozens of leaders of the unregistered house Zion Church in China, including prominent pastor Mingri ‘Ezra’ Jin.
"This crackdown further demonstrates how the CCP exercises hostility toward Christians who reject Party interference in their faith and choose to worship at unregistered house churches."
What Happens Next
Chinese authorities are likely to continue their crackdown on unregistered churches, and it remains to be seen whether the White House will be able, or willing, to press for religious freedom as President Donald Trump pursues a high-stakes trade deal with Xi.
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