Christianity Growing at an Alarming Rate in China!

[Banana]

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BEIJING -- Christianity in China is booming despite the government's rigorous attempts to control religious practice. Yet in the past 15 years, Protestantism has grown at more than twice the rate of Catholicism, a fact that may reveal as much about the government's hold on the churches as it does about the spiritual vitality of China.

Worshippers pray during a mass in the morning at the Liuhe Catholic Church in Liuhe village on the outskirts of Qingxu county, northern China's Shanxi province, September 11, 2011. Liuhe is one of the largest parishes in mainland China, where about 90% of the population are Catholics.


But the trend holds even in studies factoring those who worship outside the state-approved churches. According to a December 2011 report by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, Protestants worshipping in both the official and unofficial churches were estimated at 58 million, while Catholics numbered 9 million in total. Other, more high-end estimates of Catholics reach around 12 million.

The primary reason for this growth disparity is generally agreed upon by experts both within and outside of the Church: It's simply tougher to become Catholic.

Lucia Cheung, the China editor of the Union of Catholic Asian News, explained that the process of Catholic conversion usually takes a year and a half of study, though the process is accelerated in some places in China. "Catholics [are] more strict in accepting a new member," she said. "It is not like the Protestants. Some of them just need to say, 'I believe,' and they're regarded as a Protestant."

As China has urbanized and liberalized, many people have found the much-lauded attainments of wealth or status unfulfilling. Foreign religious workers often reference China's exceptional "spiritual curiosity." And unlike in the West, large portions of the population have no previous contextual knowledge of religion whatsoever.

Protestantism's simplicity has fueled its spread -- but China's Christian population is increasingly urban, educated and sophisticated. Such converts pose hard questions to their spiritual leaders, and they want thoughtful answers.

The Catholic Church is, at least theoretically, in a better position to answer tough theological questions. Priests-in-training generally study around seven years, preparing not only to preach but also to administer sacraments. Their Protestant counterparts, whose responsibilities are simpler and less ceremonial, typically graduate from Bible school in fewer than four years. Many Protestant pastors have one year or less of formal training.

In China, educational opportunities are sparse for both Catholics and Protestants. There are only 12 official Catholic seminaries and fewer than 25 Protestant seminaries in all of China. And because Catholics spend more time in study, the official Catholic seminaries graduate fewer than 20 each year, while Protestant schools graduate up to 200.

While priests can get training outside the state-run schools, either abroad or in unregistered Chinese-Catholic seminaries, they face significant hurdles because they must operate covertly. Even counting those trained in so-called "underground" seminaries, there are only about 3,500 priests for China's entire Catholic population. One could justifiably suspect that this leadership deficit contributes to Catholicism's slower growth.

Another factor may be that Catholicism is often perceived to be more politically loaded within China, where politics often remain a decisive factor in career success.

In China, Protestantism's Simplicity Yields More Converts Than Catholicism - International Business Times

[Gnimgnay]

Theoretically, China has no catholics. Vatican has never admitted China branch.
Muslims, Christians, Buddists...no matter what religion are treated equally in China. They can proceed their religious activities including preach in their church/mosque/temple. But not in public. They can also elect their representatives to attend the congress to vote for national policies every 4 years.
The majority of Chinese are still atheist or agnostic, due to the influence of Confucius.

[perplexed]

Theoretically, China has no catholics. Vatican has never admitted China branch.
Muslims, Christians, Buddists...no matter what religion are treated equally in China. They can proceed their religious activities including preach in their church/mosque/temple. But not in public. They can also elect their representatives to attend the congress to vote for national policies every 4 years.
The majority of Chinese are still atheist or agnostic, due to the influence of Confucius.

Good. I just hope some random imam sitting in peshawar don't brand chinese as infidels and issue a fatwa to kill them.

[Gnimgnay]

Good. I just hope some random imam sitting in peshawar don't brand chinese as infidels and issue a fatwa to kill them.

Well, if considering confuciusm as a religion, maybe majority of Chinese people belongs to this 'religion'. It provides ethic and behavior standards but no comments on gods.

[DRaisinHerald]

Good. I just hope some random imam sitting in peshawar don't brand chinese as infidels and issue a fatwa to kill them.

Well, your post and your "location" tell me exactly the ignorant mind you have, but i'll say this: we don't need to issue "fatwas" or whatever crap to anyone, unless they first do or say something against Muslims (eg. Salman Rushdie).
Also no fatwas a needed anyway, anyone that is not a muslim is "infidel", "non-believer". But it doesn't mean they should be killed.
Also, do remember if Muslims we're as half as crazy as you claim we are then India wouldn't exist today. We ruled you for well over 500-600 years, and had grand chances to kill you or convert you.

[gambit]

Good. I just hope some random imam sitting in peshawar don't brand chinese as infidels and issue a fatwa to kill them.

It is hopeless. Soon -- not later -- enough, an imam will make such a fatwa.

[DRaisinHerald]

It is hopeless. Soon -- not later -- enough, an imam will make such a fatwa.

Another Ignorant. Read #5

[harpoon]

Well, your post and your "location" tell me exactly the ignorant mind you have, but i'll say this: we don't need to issue "fatwas" or whatever crap to anyone, unless they first do or say something against Muslims (eg. Salman Rushdie).
Also no fatwas a needed anyway, anyone that is not a muslim is "infidel", "non-believer". But it doesn't mean they should be killed.
Also, do remember if Muslims we're as half as crazy as you claim we are then India wouldn't exist today. We ruled you for well over 500-600 years, and had grand chances to kill you or convert you.

No another 'We ruled you for xxxx years' crap.

[gambit]

Another Ignorant. Read #5

I have...

Well, your post and your "location" tell me exactly the ignorant mind you have, but i'll say this: we don't need to issue "fatwas" or whatever crap to anyone, unless they first do or say something against Muslims (eg. Salman Rushdie).

To 'say' something? Like what? Like saying that there is no god but only a giant reincarnation cosmic and karmic wheel? Remember the Islamic declaration of 'There is no God but Allah'. So in believing and espousing that there is no God a person in effect is another Salman Rushdie.

[KS]

Also, do remember if Muslims we're as half as crazy as you claim we are then India wouldn't exist today. We ruled you for well over 500-600 years, and had grand chances to kill you or convert you.

Buddy were they were double crazy and tried their arse off...but the Hindus kept resisting and resisting (both physically and spiritually) and ultimately they had to give up to save their own skin and kingdom.

[kalu_miah]

After the fall of Soviet Union, both Orthodox Christianity and Islam made a come back in former Soviet countries. I would recommend that the Chinese allow more religious freedom to return to their old traditional religions or belief system, like Neo-confucianism or Buddhism:
Neo-Confucianism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This will ensure more cultural continuity and keep out alien faiths such as Christianity that have little history in China.

[Hu Songshan]

As long as they keep Religion out of the state affairs and out of public keep within homes and churchs.

Theoretically, China has no catholics. Vatican has never admitted China branch.
Muslims, Christians, Buddists...no matter what religion are treated equally in China. They can proceed their religious activities including preach in their church/mosque/temple. But not in public. They can also elect their representatives to attend the congress to vote for national policies every 4 years.
The majority of Chinese are still atheist or agnostic, due to the influence of Confucius.

Correctly stated.

[Gnimgnay]

After the fall of Soviet Union, both Orthodox Christianity and Islam made a come back in former Soviet countries. I would recommend that the Chinese allow more religious freedom to return to their old traditional religions or belief system, like Neo-confucianism or Buddhism:
Neo-Confucianism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This will ensure more cultural continuity and keep out alien faiths such as Christianity that have little history in China.

The Neo-Confucianism can be considered as a detailed explaination of original Confucius. Just as original Confuciusism, You can treat it as a philosophy but not a religion. You study it instead of believing in it...And it is quite popular for Chinese to read those books.
About Buddhism. People are free to believe in it. But note that Buddhism in China is a hermit-style religion. They tend to dwell in old temples deep in mountains. That is perhaps you don't see the monks very often. (well, except for Shaolin...)

There is no restriction of these religions you mentioned.

[Hu Songshan]

Good. I just hope some random imam sitting in peshawar don't brand chinese as infidels and issue a fatwa to kill them.

Chinese Imams are pretty Tolerant, Muslims in China don't try to convert but will take in converts with open arms Hans mostly, they keep religion to themselves within their houses and mosques. FYI my Uncle is an Imam in ningxia. we even have female imams.

[notsuperstitious]

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Also, do remember if Muslims we're as half as crazy as you claim we are then India wouldn't exist today. We ruled you for well over 500-600 years, and had grand chances to kill you or convert you.

Your apologetic claim is not rooted in ignorance as may seem in first instance but in apology.

Who brought back jaziya and killed Gr Tegh Bahadur and who faced the maximum revolts and the 27 year war and after whose death kaffir forces were in delhi within years???

OTOH you consider Akbar a kafir and not a muslim because he started din e ilahi.

Your lie is pretty lame, try a better one.