Scenarios for China
Part two of the series "Positioning for Growth in Uncertain Times" takes a look at using the tools of strategic planning to develop future scenarios for China.
Ideas
Editorial reflection and analysis on issues shaping Chinese Christianity.
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The Right Tools for Strategic Planning
The first in a two-part series, we take a look at the need for long-term strategic planning tools and scenarios specific to China.
Church-State Relations in Light of the Cross Demolition Campaign
On July 16, the website of the Pushi Institute for Social Science published a long piece titled "Considering the Future of church-state relations in China after the 2-14-2015 Zhejiang Cross Dispute." It had originally been published in the Christian Times. It’s a rather long piece so we have decided to excerpt two parts.
Taiji
In 2000, a Chinese writer named Huo Shui wrote an article for the ChinaSource Quarterly titled “Living Wisely in China.” In it he takes a look at four essential elements of Chinese culture that westerners must grapple with (and hopefully get) in order to be effective in China.
The first one is taiji (tai-chi), the slow-motion martial art that is popular among people of all ages in China. Taiji requires inner strength and patience, both of which are required in order to accomplish things in China.
Stewarding the Environment
Taking a look at the global implications of China's environmental crisis.
Young People in China
This past month has seen a flurry of articles written about the religious sentiments of Chinese youth, all triggered by the release of a survey conducted by the National Survey Research Center of the School of Philosophy at People’s University in Beijing. Many of the stories picked up the angle that Islam was the most popular religion, while others highlighted the growing popularity of religion in general among Chinese young people.
These stories actually prompt deeper questions about what life is like for youth in China today. What are Chinese youth like? What are the issues they wrestle with? How are they coping with the pressures of life? Are they really interested in spiritual matters?
When All Roads Lead to Beijing
China’s foreign policy under Xi Jinping has witnessed a significant shift. Formerly focused on China’s relationship with the world’s major powers, China’s leaders are now redirecting their attention to relations with the nations around China, as well as to those nations beyond with which China seeks to develop closer economic ties.
Islam has the largest number of under-30 believers in China?
Is Islam the most popular religion for China's youth?
Continuing Class Struggle and the Politics of Religion in China
In a recent post I wrote about the paradoxical treatment of religion in China’s Constitution. On the one hand, Article 36 of the Constitution guarantees freedom of religion. On the other hand, the same article puts clear conditions on this freedom, making it subject to the needs of the state as defined by the Communist Party of China.
A Discussion of the Divorce Rate
On July 8, Global Times, an English language newspaper in China published an editorial in response to statistics recently released by the Ministry of Civil Affairs on the divorce rate in China. It was only one of numerous editorials and comment pieces examining divorce in China. The Christian Times took a look at some of the commentary, and offered their own opinion. It's an interesting look at a difficult problem that we don't often hear about, as well as a reminder to pray for God to strengthen marriages in China.
Explaining China’s “Religious Awakening”
Rodney Stark and Xiuhua Wang’s new book, A Star in the East, combines data from a major study on religion in China conducted during the past decade together with keen sociological insights in order to explain the factors behind China’s phenomenal church growth.
Are Chinese People Religious?
When I was teaching on a university campus, one of the things that surprised me was the admission by many of my students that they were afraid of ghosts. One of them put it to me very succinctly: “We are atheists during the day, but when the lights go out it’s a different story.”