Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
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4. Christianity
China’s crackdown on Christian venues appears to have halted the rise in Protestant churches, and slowed Catholic church registrations
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- 4. Christianity
- Chinese House Churches
- Estimates of the number of Christians in China vary, depending on the measure used
- Chinese General Social Survey finds 2% of Chinese adults formally identify with Christianity
- Many Chinese adults who believe in Jesus Christ also believe in other religious figures
- Surveys do not provide clear evidence that Christianity in China is growing
- Stronger religious commitment is more closely linked to formal Christian identity than to Christian belief
- Chinese who formally identify with Christianity tend to be female, older and have lower levels of education
- China’s crackdown on Christian venues appears to have halted the rise in Protestant churches, and slowed Catholic church registrations
- Protestant churches in China were concentrated in coastal areas, as of 2004
- In 2004, China’s Catholic churches were most numerous in Hebei, where many Catholics live
- Historical estimates, whose reliability and comparability varies, show an increasing number of Chinese Protestants, but surveys find no clear evidence of a recent rise in self-identified Protestants
- Official estimates suggest China’s Catholic population has been stable since 2010, and surveys find no growth among self-identified Catholics