China Rising

by Wesley J. Smith

China’s unexpected economic vibrancy almost masks its authoritarianism—but after a few days, the authoritarianism is plain to see. Continue Reading »

9 Dec 2016

The Vatican, China, and Evangelical Prudence

by George Weigel

Recent remarks by the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, have fueled speculation about a possible exchange of diplomatic representation between the Holy See and the People’s Republic of China. Unfortunately, the cardinal’s remarks did not address any of the serious questions that have been raised about the evangelical and prudential wisdom of such an agreement at this moment in history. Continue Reading »

21 Sep 2016

China's Christian Future

by Yu Jie

( English Version | Simplified Chinese | Traditional Chinese ) At the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949, when the Communist party defeated the Nationalists and founded the People’s Republic of China, Christians in China numbered half a million. Yet almost seventy years later, under the Chinese . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Aug 2016

Only Francis Can Go to China?

by George Weigel

The Holy See's puzzling passion for getting a deal done with Beijing. Continue Reading »

1 Jun 2016

Civil Obedience

by William A. Wilson

The Barefoot Lawyer: A Blind Man’s Fight for Justice and Freedom in China by chen guangcheng henry holt, 352 pages, $30 A nnihilating a civilization that has withstood more famines, invasions, peasant revolts, civil wars, and tyrants than historians can keep straight takes work. It can’t be done . . . . Continue Reading »

1 Feb 2016

China’s Population Crisis: An Evangelical Opportunity?

by George Weigel

State-sponsored cruelty has been a staple of the human condition for millennia. But has there ever been a more wicked policy, with more disastrous social consequences, than the “one-child policy” China began to implement in the early 1980s—a state-decreed population-control measure that . . . . Continue Reading »

27 Jan 2016

The Crisis in International Religious Freedom

by David D. Corey

In September of this year, Baylor University sponsored two lectures on the topic of religious persecution. The presenters were former congressman Frank Wolf (now the Jerry and Susie Wilson Chair of Religious Freedom at Baylor) and Princeton Professor Robert P. George, who currently serves as the . . . . Continue Reading »

6 Oct 2015

China's New Consumerism

by Richard J. Mouw

On a chilly afternoon last October, as my son and I walked through a bustling shopping district in Xi’an, China, we passed a group of teenage girls who were chattering loudly in Mandarin. Obviously they had been shopping in a nearby mall, as several of them were carrying bags labeled with familiar names, including “Gap.” What struck me especially, though, was that one of the young women wore a t-shirt featuring a picture of Justin Bieber.Earlier that day I had given a lecture to 120 pastors from midwestern and western China, who had been brought together by the Three-Self church leadership for continuing education. In our conversations, several pastors expressed concern about a growing penchant for consumerism in the younger generation, a reality that was confirmed for me by my brief encounter with the teenagers. Continue Reading »

12 May 2015

Evangelical Challenges for Vatican Diplomacy

by George Weigel

The bilateral diplomacy of the Holy See is unique in world affairs, in that it has little or nothing to do with the things with which diplomats typically occupy their time: trade issues, security matters, visas. Rather, the reason why the Vatican engages in bilateral diplomacy is to secure the freedom of the Catholic Church to be itself in the countries with which the Holy See has, or wishes to have, diplomatic relations. To be sure, in crisis situations, the Holy See’s representative in a crumbling or violence-ridden state can also serve as an honest broker amidst contending local parties, or a voice for persecuted Catholic communities, or a channel for humanitarian assistance. But whatever the situation, the first task of the pope’s representative to another sovereignty is to help maintain free space for the Church’s evangelical, sacramental, educational and charitable missions, all of which are essential to what it means to be “the Catholic Church” in any human situation. Continue Reading »

4 Feb 2015

What Christianity Contributes to China’s Economic Rise

by Brian J. Grim

What has fueled China’s remarkable economic growth that has lifted more than 500 million people out of abject poverty and positioned it to become the world’s largest economy? Continue Reading »

5 Jan 2015