The Shanghiist posted a picture of a new, modernist Christian church in Beijing:
The new ultra-modern Haidian Christian Church in Zhongguancun, Beijing, is the largest church standing in west Beijing today. According to Answers.com, approximately 3-5% of the Chinese population is Christian (40 to 65 million). And while the powers that be state that only 1% of the population is Christian, western demographers say underground churches house as many as 80-100 million believers. [Full Text]
The Chinese government has had two distinct reactions to Christianity. One one hand, the government-sanctioned churches are regulated, controlled, and well-funded. On the other, unsanctioned house churches and their pastors and believers are persecuted and arrested. See more:
From the American Spectator in May 2007:
Believers are arrested, jailed, and tortured. Reports the Commission: “Every religious community in China continues to be subject to serious restrictions, state control, and repression. The most severe religious freedom abuses are directed against Tibetan Buddhists, Uighur Muslims, Roman Catholics, house church and unregistered Protestants, and spiritual groups such as the Falun Gong.” [Full Text]
From China Daily in June 2007:
China has printed more than 43 million copies of the Bible in the past three decades, and the number of Protestants in the country now exceeds 16 million, a top leader of the country’s Protestant churches said.
The free expression of Christianity in China is ensured and the Bible is widely available, said Rev Cao Shengjie, president of the China Christian Council, at the “Bible Ministry Exhibition of the Church in China”, which concluded in Germany yesterday.“People in China enjoy religious freedom, I never heard anyone being persecuted for their religious belief,” she said. [Full Text]