Resources on Church and State

ChinaSource Blog Posts

China’s New Approach to Religion

Implications for the Church

What are the new challenges facing Christians in China?

ChinaSource Blog Posts

Get Back in the Sandbox!

Is Christianity being singled out for pressure, harassment, and restriction. Or is part of something bigger?

ChinaSource Blog Posts

Understanding the Chinese Communist Party

Understanding the role of the CCP in Chinese society and how it functions is crucial. Here are resources to help.

Chinese Church Voices

Peace in Detention

An account in three points by a believer who was detained in Chengdu.

ChinaSource Blog Posts

The Politics of Protestant Churches and the Party-State in China

A Book Review

In a society where religious life is tightly proscribed and managed by the Party-State, how is it that so many independent (“illegal, but free”) churches have sprung up and not only survived, but thrived?

ChinaSource Blog Posts

A "New" New Normal?

Management of religious affairs will be shifted from, SARA to the United Front Work Department—what questions should we be asking? 

Chinese Church Voices

When the Police Come Knocking

A Guide for Churches

Guidelines for pastors and church staff on how the church should respond to government intervention, including what to do when the police come knocking at your door.

ChinaSource Blog Posts

Persecution or Potential?

The voice of one of many Chinese Christians who are calling for believers to step into the NGO space as a means of extending the church’s witness in society and establishing its credibility in the eyes of the government.

The Lantern

New but Not Normal

April news from ChinaSource.

Blog Entries

Bibles in China: The Gray Zone Shrinks

Bibles are now no longer for sale online in China, and that is, indeed, bad news. But we need to be clear what hasn’t happened and what has happened. 

Chinese Church Voices

Being the Chinese Church in the Face of Growing Political Uncertainty

Chinese Christians are asking how they should respond to the new religious regulations. Here is one pastor's response.

Blog Entries

Goodbye, SARA

The State Administration of Religious Affairs (SARA) will be absorbed by the Party’s United Front Work Department.

Blog Entries

Congress Is in Session

What to watch for at the National People’s Congress.

Blog Entries

Religious Regulations and the Cross

Believers in the West have much to learn about suffering from our brothers and sisters in China. 

Chinese Church Voices

New Religious Regulations: Another View

Why the new regulations are necessary and why they contribute to the development of China.

Chinese Church Voices

Why Christians in China Must Prepare Themselves for the New Regulations on Religious Affairs

As a Chinese house church pastor who has studied church-state relations and followed religious legislation for a long time, I have the following five views toward these new regulations. Wang Yi

Blog Entries

The Linfen Church Demolition

What We Know and What We Don’t Know

Is this part of a broad campaign or a local dispute? At this point, it’s hard to know for sure. 

Blog Entries

Want to Work in China?

How Do You Rate?

Top Talent? Professional Talent? Or Unskilled Worker?

Blog Entries

China and the Church: 5 Trends to Watch in 2018

How the church weathers the uncertain days ahead will depend on a number of factors. Here are five areas to watch.

Chinese Church Voices

The Sinicization of Religion

A Chinese scholar’s proposal for how to “Sinofy” Christianity.