NEWS//Christmas in China's churches

We have good news and bad news about Christmas in China.

Good news

Posts on Facebook have made these photos public. They show Chinese Christians celebrating the Savior’s birth. (See the video below.) These congregations are officially sanctioned churches. Chinese churches make the Christmas celebration a huge worship and evangelism opportunity. Many churches include meals and holiday parties in their festivities.

Bad news

China restricts the public displays of Christmas. A number of news outlets have reported that “several cities, schools, and government institutions have ordered citizens not to celebrate the holiday and to instead focus on promoting traditional Chinese culture.”

“Chinese citizens are allowed to practise any of the five religions officially recognised by the government, which includes Protestantism and Catholicism. However, religious activities outside of officially sanctioned institutions is banned.”

Source: The Guardian, KTLA, Independent