The Chinese government has reportedly
banned the sale of Bibles at online
bookstores across the country to comply
with a "white paper" that is dictating
compliance with the "core values of
socialism."
Australia's ABC News reported on
Wednesday that copies of the Gospels have
been disappearing from online retailers
following the release of the "China's Policies
and Practices on Protecting Freedom of
Religious Belief" document.
The white paper in question declares that
Chinese faith communities "should adhere
to the direction of localizing the religion,
practice the core values of socialism,
develop and expand the fine Chinese
tradition and actively explore the religious
thought which accords with China's
national circumstances."
The document also states that the next five
years will see an effort to build up Chinese
Christianity and the Chinese theology to
"consciously develop Bible study talents to
lay a solid foundation for reinterpreting
and re-translating the Bible or writing the
reference books.
The move has left Chinese Christians
speaking out in "confusion and outrage"
online, the article said.
Warren Wang, a Christian who immigrated
to Australia from Shanghai in 2012, said
that believers could sense such a move was
coming.
"I'm not that surprised that they're taking
the Bible off the shelves now," Wang said.
"This is a lot like something China would do
— the Communist Party teaches atheism and
since Xi Jinping is becoming increasingly
powerful — this is expected," he added,
referring to the Chinese president.
Catholic news source UCA News reports that
there has been a long-standing rule
preventing Bibles in China from being sold
over the internet, but the directive had been
allowed to slide for years.
"It can only be sold in churches that the
government permits — it looks like the
government has started to take the matter
seriously," noted an observer, who wasn't
named.
William Nee, a researcher for Amnesty
International, said that all people need to be
allowed access to the Bible, however, urging
the government to reverse the ban.
"For a government that just yesterday
claimed to be supporting religious freedom,
it is ridiculous that the core book of a
major world religion — the Bible — cannot
be found on the major Chinese e-commerce
platforms," Nee said.
Although China claims that it allows
religious freedom, it has been carrying out
a crackdown on underground churches and
Christian activists for years, including an
ongoing church rooftop cross removal
campaign that has targeted sanctioned
churches as well.
Father Joseph, a priest in the underground
church, told UCA News that the Communist
Party has final say on all religious matters
in the country.
"In China, the Catholic Church is not
allowed to exist legally, as only the
independent, autonomous and self-managing
church is sanctioned now, but it is not the
real Catholic Church," he said.
Christians in China have been following the
developments from the Communist Party,
such as the recent move to eliminate
presidential term limits, allowing Xi to stay
in power indefinitely.
banned the sale of Bibles at online
bookstores across the country to comply
with a "white paper" that is dictating
compliance with the "core values of
socialism."
Australia's ABC News reported on
Wednesday that copies of the Gospels have
been disappearing from online retailers
following the release of the "China's Policies
and Practices on Protecting Freedom of
Religious Belief" document.
The white paper in question declares that
Chinese faith communities "should adhere
to the direction of localizing the religion,
practice the core values of socialism,
develop and expand the fine Chinese
tradition and actively explore the religious
thought which accords with China's
national circumstances."
The document also states that the next five
years will see an effort to build up Chinese
Christianity and the Chinese theology to
"consciously develop Bible study talents to
lay a solid foundation for reinterpreting
and re-translating the Bible or writing the
reference books.
The move has left Chinese Christians
speaking out in "confusion and outrage"
online, the article said.
Warren Wang, a Christian who immigrated
to Australia from Shanghai in 2012, said
that believers could sense such a move was
coming.
"I'm not that surprised that they're taking
the Bible off the shelves now," Wang said.
"This is a lot like something China would do
— the Communist Party teaches atheism and
since Xi Jinping is becoming increasingly
powerful — this is expected," he added,
referring to the Chinese president.
Catholic news source UCA News reports that
there has been a long-standing rule
preventing Bibles in China from being sold
over the internet, but the directive had been
allowed to slide for years.
"It can only be sold in churches that the
government permits — it looks like the
government has started to take the matter
seriously," noted an observer, who wasn't
named.
William Nee, a researcher for Amnesty
International, said that all people need to be
allowed access to the Bible, however, urging
the government to reverse the ban.
"For a government that just yesterday
claimed to be supporting religious freedom,
it is ridiculous that the core book of a
major world religion — the Bible — cannot
be found on the major Chinese e-commerce
platforms," Nee said.
Although China claims that it allows
religious freedom, it has been carrying out
a crackdown on underground churches and
Christian activists for years, including an
ongoing church rooftop cross removal
campaign that has targeted sanctioned
churches as well.
Father Joseph, a priest in the underground
church, told UCA News that the Communist
Party has final say on all religious matters
in the country.
"In China, the Catholic Church is not
allowed to exist legally, as only the
independent, autonomous and self-managing
church is sanctioned now, but it is not the
real Catholic Church," he said.
Christians in China have been following the
developments from the Communist Party,
such as the recent move to eliminate
presidential term limits, allowing Xi to stay
in power indefinitely.
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