State-approved churches in China that were forced to close due to the pandemic are being allowed to reopen only if they use their sermons for “patriotic education” and to support the Communist Party, according to a new report.
In one region of China, pastors even were required to slander the United States.
The controversy involves churches that are part of the Three-Self movement and that are allowed to operate legally under government restrictions.
The report was released by Bitter Winter, a watchdog that monitors violations of religious liberty in China.
“Those that fail to meet the prerequisites are not allowed to reopen,” Bitter Winter reported.
In June, the Religious Affairs Bureau of Zhengzhou, the capital of the province of Henan, released a list of 42 prerequisites for churches that want to reopen. Among them, churches are to “intensify patriotic education” and “study China’s religious policies,” Bitter Winter reported.
Churches also must promote the so-called “four requirements,” a nationwide campaign that originated in 2018 and involves: 1) requiring religious communities to ritually raise the national flag, 2) promoting the Chinese constitution and laws, 3) promoting “core socialist values,” and, 4) promoting “China’s excellent traditional culture.”
In Henan, one church was not allowed to reopen because officials did not approve the…
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