Religious Practice In China: The Delicate Balancing Act Between Various Beliefs

The country’s five mainstream religions draw followership of about 200 million people.

A group of 27 African journalists on September 15, 2017, visited the State Administration for Religious Affairs, SARA, in the Chinese capital, Beijing, to understand how the country manages its mélange of religions and beliefs. The body is in charge of vetting applications for the registration of religious bodies and also oversees religious practice.

SARA officials said figures from other sources suggest that China’s mainstream religions - Christianity, Catholicism (it is classified differently from Christianity), Taoism, Buddhism and Islam - have about 200 million worshippers – out of a total population of almost 1.4 billion people. They however cautioned that the actual figure could be higher. Han Sang, SARA Director General, added that other Chinese believe in folk cultures, nature or their ancestors.

There are about 100 million folk believers, some 6 million Catholics, 38 million other Christians and 10 ethnic minority groups who believe in Islam. They have a combined population of 23 million people. There are 140,000 approved venues for religious activities, and 5,500 religious groups and organizations in the country. Some 91 religious institutes have been registered.

The Chinese Catholic Church has 62 bishops, 98 dioceses, 2,900 priests and about 5,000 nuns or Reverend Sisters. The church also has 9 training institutes and 6,000 activity places. Nuns and priests select and ordain bishops under strict, detailed rules, and they must be recognized by two independent Chinese Catholic bodies. These are the Ch...