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Concept
Christianity in China
Summary
Christianity in China has been present since the early medieval period and it has gained a significant amount of influence during the last 200 years.
The Syro-Persian Church of the East (frequently mischaracterized as Nestorianism) appeared in China in the 7th century, during the Tang dynasty. Catholicism was one of the religions patronized by the emperors of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty, but it did not take root in China until it was reintroduced by Jesuit missionaries in the 16th century. Beginning in the early nineteenth century, Protestant missionaries attracted small but influential followings, and independent Chinese churches were also established.
Accurate data on Chinese Christians is difficult to access. There are estimates that say Christianity is the fastest growing religion in China. There were some four million before 1949 (three million Catholics and one million Protestants).
In the early 2000s, there were approximately 38 million Protestants and 10-12 million Catholics, with a smaller number of Orthodox Christians. The number of Chinese Christians had increased significantly since the easing of restrictions on religious activities during the economic reforms of the late 1970s. In 2018, the Chinese government declared that there are over 44 million Christians in China. On the other hand, some international Christian organizations estimate that there are tens of millions more, who choose not to publicly identify as such. These estimations are controversial because the organizations which make them are often accused of deliberately inflating them.
The practice of religion was tightly controlled in dynastic times and it is also tightly controlled today. Chinese who are over the age of 18 are only permitted to join officially sanctioned Christian groups which are registered with the government-sanctioned Catholic Patriotic Church, the China Christian Council and the Protestant Three-Self Church.
Official source
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