ZGBriefs | February 27, 2025

Featured Article

CCC&TSPM Sets Four Key Tasks for 2025 (February 20, 2025, China Christian Daily)
The China Christian Council and the National Committee of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement (CCC&TSPM) have outlined four key priorities for the year: advancing the sinicization of Christianity, strengthening religious governance, fostering talent development, and expanding foreign exchanges.

Sponsored Link

Conference – Ministry and Sacrifcie: Sustainable Service
(April 7 – April 11, Asia Member Care Network)
The Asia Member Care Network is a loose network of people working in Asia as Care Providers for non-government and humanitarian organizations. Our hope and prayer is that the keynote speaker for our 8th annual conference, Scott Shaum, and the various workshops will help all of us to pause, hear, reflect, and to live God’s call in our lives for the long haul, in sustainable and kingdom service for the Glory of God! Welcome to the 8th AMCN conference in April 2025, designed just for you!

Government / Politics / Foreign Affairs

Exporting Culture, Cementing Control: How the CCP Pursues Domestic Legitimacy Through Soft Power (February 20, 2025, The Diplomat)
On February 17, the Chinese animated film, “Ne Zia 2” took its place among the top 10 highest-grossing films of all time, with its global box office haul at $1.66 billion and climbing. This milestone followed the global success of the video game “Black Myth: Wukong.” Both are emblematic of China’s accelerating cultural exports and expanding soft power. 

Open Questions | Political Theorist Daniel A. Bell Reflects on China’s Melding of Confucius and Marx (February 24, 2025, South China Morning Post)
He was the first foreigner to be appointed as dean of Shandong University’s school of political science and public administration, and also taught at Beijing’s Tsinghua University. In this interview, Bell shares his views on the links between the ruling Communist Party’s guiding philosophy and Confucianism, as well as the fight against corruption and his outlook for the future of Chinese politics. 

Taiwan Detains Chinese-crewed Ship Suspected of Cutting Undersea Cable (February 25, 2025, CNN)
Taiwan’s coast guard detained a cargo ship and its Chinese crew on Tuesday and said it was investigating whether the vessel had deliberately cut an undersea internet cable, in the latest possible breach of the island’s communication lines. The vessel suspected of damaging the cable connecting Taiwan to its outlying Penghu Islands carried a “flag of convenience” and was crewed by eight Chinese nationals, Taiwan’s coast guard said in a statement.

Religion

Kunming: Christ’s Love in an Anxious World (February 20, 2025, China Partnership)
In today’s post, several Kunming pastors shared that these are hard times in their city. People are more hostile towards Christianity than in the past, and many reject the faith immediately as a “foreign religion.” Others are too focused on their economic troubles, and find they can’t consider faith because they are consumed with their daily, physical needs.

A Testament of Faith: The Bürklin Family’s Century-Long Partnership with the Chinese Church (February 21, 2025, ChinaSource)
For over a century, the Bürklin family has been closely intertwined with the growth of the Chinese church, walking alongside Chinese believers in faith and service. Their journey began in 1925, when Gustav Bürklin (林立德) left Germany to answer God’s call as a missionary in China. There, he met a fellow missionary equally committed to sharing the gospel. They married and raised their children in China, including Werner Bürklin (林明膽), who later continued their legacy of service.

“Shrewd as Snakes”? (February 24, 2025, ChinaSource)
In this reprint from Christianity Today, Professor Fenggang Yang explores the wisdom and shrewdness of Chinese Christians as they navigate religious repression, drawing from Jesus’s teaching in Matthew 10:16 and reflecting the cultural significance of the snake in Chinese tradition. As we mark the Year of the Snake, we hope this article encourages our Chinese brothers and sisters to persevere with resilience and discernment in challenging times. 

To Myself Ten Years Ago (February 24, 2025, China Partnership)
I began my pastoral ministry about 10 years ago. I have many things to repent of before God. Those ten years were years of apprenticeship, given me by God. Although I made many mistakes, through it all, he sustained me with his grace. If I could talk to myself from ten years ago, I would say three things.

Society / Life

Quote of the Day: “When Your Opponent Is Better Armed With Humiliating Memes, It’s Best Not to Provoke Them” (February 20, 2025, China Digital Times)
Chinese soccer team Shandong Taishan have raised eyebrows and fueled rumors with their sudden withdrawal from a match in the AFC Asian Champions League Elite, mere hours before they were due to take the field against South Korean rivals Ulsan HD. The Shandong team’s unexpected absence from Wednesday’s match in the southeastern city of Ulsan, South Korea, automatically triggered their expulsion from the entire competition.

Sanitation Job in China Sets Age Limit, Sparks ‘Curse of 35’ Fury (February 21, 2023, Sixth Tone)
“It’s hard not to feel anxious about aging in the job market,” a 39-year-old surnamed Wen from northeastern China told Sixth Tone. She added that at 34, and despite a bachelor’s degree, she was rejected for a cashier position at a bookstore because she was considered “too old” for the job.

China’s ‘OK Boomer’ Makes No Sense — And That’s the Point (February 24, 2025, Sixth Tone)
However, unlike the aggressive tone of “OK, boomer,” yidu luanhui is a more passive way to defuse intergenerational conflict. Rather than confronting their elders directly, young Chinese use indirect responses to signal a need for personal space. They are simply asking for some privacy.

Economics / Trade / Business

How China Is Weaponising Its Dominance in Critical Minerals Trade (February 19, 2025, East Asia Forum)
Export curbs applied to technology or critical raw materials are often justified by the need to promote downstream industries, the raising of revenue and environmental protection. But there are other motivations, including the desire to gain an upper hand on a geopolitical rival.

Can a Budget Phone Help Apple Overtake Huawei in China (February 21, 2025, CNN)
Apple offered the latest version of its budget-friendly phone for pre-sale in key markets on Friday, in an effort to woo price-sensitive customers in countries like China and India. The launch of the iPhone 16e, which costs $599 and is equipped with artificial intelligence, came in the same week that Chinese rival Huawei rolled out its flagship trifold phone in a rare overseas launch event. Apple’s iPhone 16 starts at $799.

Science / Technology

‘DeepSeek Moved Me to Tears’: How Young Chinese Find Therapy in AI (February 12, 2025, BBC)
Before she goes to bed each night, Holly Wang logs on to DeepSeek for “therapy sessions”. Ever since January, when the breakout Chinese AI app launched, the 28-year-old has brought her dilemmas and sorrows, including the recent death of her grandmother, to the chatbot. Its responses have resonated so deeply that they have at times brought her to tears. 

Geopolitical Currents Dissuade Chinese Tech Talent Emigres (February 19, 2025, China Digital Times)
As geopolitical competition and national security continue to dominate the China-U.S. relationship, Chinese nationals are finding it increasingly difficult to live in the U.S. This month, Tsinghua University highlighted top chip expert Sun Nan, who returned to China with the hope of “training chip professionals for China” after spending ten years in the U.S.

Will the Traditional Chinese Medicine Industry End the Pangolin? (February 20, 2025 The Smithsonian Magazine)
Experts who monitor wildlife trafficking believe poaching is significantly driven by the multibillion-dollar traditional Chinese medicine industry, which mass-produces pangolin-scale-derived pharmaceuticals to treat a variety of common ailments. Such scales are made of keratin, a common substance found in human fingernails and hair, and no scientific evidence demonstrates the effectiveness of these medicines.

Meet Wang XingXing, the Young Chinese Robotics Star from Unitree at Xi Jinping’s Symposium (February 21, 2025, South China Morning Post)
Wang Xingxing, the robotics aficionado who founded China’s industry-leading Unitree Robotics, made headlines when the 35-year-old was seated in the front row at President Xi Jinping’s high-profile business symposium earlier this week. Born in 1990, Wang was the youngest among an elite group of executives that included Huawei Technologies founder Ren Zhengfei, Alibaba Group Holding founder Jack Ma and Tencent Holdings founder Pony Ma Huateng, who all attended the Monday meeting.

Travel / Food 

Chinese Take Record 9 Billion Domestic Trips During Lunar New Year, Xinhua Reports (February 23, 2025, Reuters)
China notched a record 9.02 billion domestic trips during the 40-day Lunar New Year travel rush, the state Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday, surpassing the 8.4 billion trips taken in the same holiday period a year earlier.

Language / Language Learning

Navigating Linguistic Hierarchies in Tibet (February 24, 2025, Global China Pulse)
Language has long been a powerful tool for shaping national identity, but in countries as vast and diverse as China, it also reveals deep tensions between cultural preservation and state-driven integration. This tension is particularly pronounced in Tibet, where the Chinese Government’s promotion of Mandarin intersects with the Tibetan people’s desire to maintain their linguistic heritage.

Mandarin Monday: Decoding Chinese Number and Letter Slang (February 24, 2025, The Beijinger Blog)
Over time, Chinese netizens have developed a playful and efficient way to communicate online using letter abbreviations and number codes that correspond to slang terms. So, whether you’re scrolling through Red or chatting with friends over WeChat, understanding these slang terms will help you stay ahead of the latest digital trends. 

Arts / Entertainment / Media

News Media and the Feminist Movement in China: A Brief History (February 19, 2025, Made In China Journal)
Twenty years ago, few journalists or readers could have anticipated the seismic shifts in Chinese journalism we see today. The once-dominant high-profile male journalists and opinion leaders have largely faded from the scene, while women now make up more than half of the journalistic workforce in China. Reporting on gender-based violence has become mainstream, and young women have emerged as the benchmark for journalism’s public role measured in terms of serving both ‘the public interest’ and ‘the interest of the public’. 

Hidden for Centuries, Chinese Treasures Finally See the Light of Day (February 21, 2025, Reuters)
The painstaking work to restore ornate treasures amassed by Chinese emperors in centuries past has accelerated in the past decade amid President Xi Jinping’s push to preserve China’s heritage and project its cultural power on the global stage.

Chang’an Review – Animated Chinese Tale of Poet-Warriors Is Spectacular Work of Art (February 25, 2025, The Guardian)
If you know nothing about this period of history, which unfolds during the Tang dynasty, you’ll certainly learn a lot, but you’ll need to pay close attention to the welter of journeys to far-flung provinces, battles fought in mountain passes, and characters of note met along the way.

Pray for China

February 24 (Pray For China: A Walk Through History)
On Feb. 24, 1842, William J. Boone (文惠廉) and David Abeel (雅俾理)—the first Protestant missionaries to reside in Fujian—arrived in Xiamen. Boone’s wife died in Xiamen that same year, and he re-located to Shanghai where he served for 20 years until his death in 1864. Poor health forced Abeel to leave Xiamen in 1845 and he died the following year at age 42. Pray for the Holy Spirit to bring many to repentance in Fujian. For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:3-7

Praying for China | Prayercast (January, 2025, ChinaSource)