Religion in China is a tricky issue, to put it mildly. The students want to know everything about me but I'm not really supposed to talk about my faith which feels a little strange since it's a big part of who I am. The scary thing is, once I got scared about talking about my beliefs I found it hard to talk about it to anyone, even other foreigners. Hiding that part of my life became like a habit which is obviously not at all the point of being a Christian. This is word-for-word what my teaching contract says: "You are free to keep your own religious belief and to have your own religious life, but you are not allowed to talk about religion to the students either in class or outside class, nor to the Chinese teachers or anybody else. And you cannot invite other religious people to do anything relating to religion with the students. It is prohibited to convert anybody who is not religious before, either on campus or off campus."

If students ask if I'm religious (and they do often) I say that I'm a Christian but that's as far as I go. Many of them are very curious about it and frequently try to start conversations relating to it during English Corner. Another place where students constantly ask questions about my faith is at my second jobs downtown, particularly at Web. The questions they ask are tough and I always feel at a loss how to answer. Here's some examples that I've jotted down from last year:

"Do you think you're better than us because you believe?"
"How do you know it's all true?"
"How does your religion affect your life?"
"If religion is so important to you, why don't you try and convert me too?"
"Are you saying that all of the other religions are wrong?"
"Is it true that if I don't believe then my family and I are going to hell?"
"Why do you believe in God?"
"Why do you need to believe in God - why don't you just believe in yourself?"
"Do you believe that everybody should believe in God?"

I'm not trying to get in trouble or rock the boat - precisely the kind of actions that usually occur while following Christ even in the States - and I'm left constantly feeling inadequate and guilty since I usually change the subject or give a short answer to the questions I get regarding faith.

Not all people here are scared to talk about their beliefs, however, and one of my Chinese friends is incredible at sharing his faith. Because of him, there are many new believers at some of the places I work. He also runs a home church which he has to keep secret where he holds Bible studies and dinners. It's pretty impressive. The students who are new Christians are the ones who are usually most eager and enthusiastic about talking with me. It's pretty amazing to watch the slow spread of Christianity take place in an area that feels devoid of religion.

According to Wikipedia, since loosening of restrictions on religion after the 1970s, Christianity has grown significantly within China. It is still, however, tightly controlled by government authorities and only certain religious organizations are allowed. Many Christians choose however to meet independently of these organizations, typically in house churches. These fellowships are not officially registered and are seen as illegal entities that are persecuted heavily. For this reason some meetings take place underground, coining the term "underground church". These Christians have been persecuted throughout the 20th century, especially during the Cultural Revolution, and there remains some official harassment in the form of arrests and interrogations of Chinese Christians. At the same time, there has been increasing tolerance of house churches since the late 1970s.

Growing up in a place where it was safe, accepted, encouraged and actually considered "cool" to be a Christian (in West Michigan), being religious in a place where it is frowned upon is something of a shock and an experience that I feel unprepared, afraid and inadequate at dealing with. I guess I hope that who I am and what I do as a person can make some kind of difference instead of what I say, but I don't really know.

0 comments