Is a “religious revolution” underway in China?
As reported by The Atlantic, just in the past few years, there are now at least 60 million Protestant Christians in China, two-thirds of whom do not attend government-approved churches ( https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/04/china-unregistered-churches-driving-religious-revolution/521544/?utm_source=feed ). This is not counting non-Protestant or Roman Catholic Christians.
Says a former human rights lawyer–a profession not encouraged by the Chinese government–who now pastors a growing Christian church, Christianity in China is coming out of the shadows. Despite years of persecution, “unregistered churches”–also known as house churches–have continued to grow.
The pastor says his congregation has left behind “that old underground church mentality” and now worships openly. But it’s not quite like America. The local police officer “comes every week to get the list of those who attended church.” The church has complied. “We’re not challenging them,” he says.
But of course they are. Christ is always a challenge to Caesar. The Atlantic reporter perceives that the church of Jesus Christ is “a parallel realm outside of the party’s control.” Bull’s eye! In fact, that’s almost exactly the language that the German government, since the early days of the Third Reich, uses to outlaw Christian homeschooling–they don’t want those Christians inhabiting a “parallel culture.”
And that’s precisely why American liberals hate Christianity, too.
Maybe someday missionaries will come from China and help America get back on track.
It would seem that God’s will is always accomplished. The Chinese can’t stop worship of the True God, neither could the Soviets, the Nazis or any other reigning power, all the way back to Nimrod.
“Christ is always a challenge to Caesar.” Excellent quote Lee, I’ll have to remember that one. Christianity is like fire, the more you try to stomp it out, the faster it spreads.
“Maybe someday missionaries will come from China and help America get back on track.” True enough. There’s a quote by Dinesh Dsouza that has stuck with me, and forgive me If I have posted it here before. I post on different forums, so its hard to keep track of what I’ve said where. Anyways it goes, “At one time Christian missionaries went to the far continents of Africa and Asia, where white priests in robes proclaimed the Bible to wide-eyed and uncomprehending brown and black people. In the future, we may well see black and brown missionaries proclaim the Bible to wide-eyed and uncomprehending white people in the West.”
Let’s hope so. We keep sending missionaries out abroad, but seem to be ignore how desperately they are needed here. America is quickly becoming a neo-pagan nation, and that will not bode well for the Christians living here.
For the past decade or so, it seems that the churches in Africa and parts of Asia have been the ones holding the line against the “modernizing” (aka un-Christianizing) trends in the churches of the West. This seems to be true for both Protestants and Catholics. We may indeed have to depend on African and Asian missionaries to bring Europeans and Americans back to Christ.
Archbishop Peter Akinola, in Nigeria, was a warrior for the truth in the Anglican Communion. Even he couldn’t save the Episcopal Church USA–although a lot of congregations dropped out of ECUSA and put themselves under his aegis.
I have noticed the same thing. There are many mainstream churches that I would not be able to defend. There is definitely something wrong with many denominations.
Overall, I am heartened to know that there are people earthwide endeavoring to worship the One True God. Their efforts will not be in vain.
This is so encouraging! God’s will cannot be stopped.
That’s a good thing to remember. We all do our part, but the overall effort is God’s doing and it will not fail.
Isa 55:11 So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.