As this article looks at the three key government documents that address religion in China, it focuses on the use of the word "normal." It looks at the definition of normal, the restrictions the government regulations actually place and the thinking that undergirds the regulations. The principals underlying them are discussed as well as the distinction between belief and practice.
The guest editor's point of view
I spend a lot of time in taxis in Beijing and since I am a blondish, big-nosed foreigner who speaks Chinese, many drivers are eager to chat. They want to know what work I do and how much money I make. When I tell them that I am an educator and don't make much money, they wonder what in the world I am doing here.
It is exhilarating to move to a new country and communicate with people so different from ourselves. Whether through Chinese you have learned or English you have taught, the sense of accomplishment can be deep and genuine.
A Beijing house church pastor shares his reflections on the Asian Church Leaders Forum in Seoul, South Korea.
When I first went to China in the mid-1980s the rural/urban population ratio was 80/20. Today, after three decades of urbanization, that ratio is roughly 50/50.
Gangwashi Church, Beijing's oldest Protestant congregation, celebrates the 150th anniversary of its founding
The two big stories that came out of China this week were China's announced "adjustments" to its infamous one-child policy and the upcoming departure of US Ambassador Gary Locke.
A house church in Beijing prays for Japan.
Most of the news out of China this week was political, as the Third Plenum wrapped up their meeting in Beijing and issued their long-awaited communiqu. Details are still emerging and analysts are still trying to figure it all out. In this week's ZGBriefs, we included a special section with links to nine different articles. They are all helpful preliminary takes on the meeting.
A Chinese Christian calls on the church to be engaged in evangelism and global missions.
The Atlantic magazine just published an article about a move within the Vatican to canonize Matteo Ricci, the first Jesuit missionary to China, titled "Can Matteo Ricci's beatification mend China's rift with the Catholic Church?"