China is Removing Crosses From Churches, Replacing Images of Christ With Xi Jinping

By Free Republic | Created at 2024-10-04 15:46:49 | Updated at 2024-10-08 06:47:30 3 days ago

China is Removing Crosses From Churches, Replacing Images of Christ With Xi Jinping
National Catholic Register ^ | October 4, 2024 | Tyler Arnold

Posted on 10/04/2024 8:37:05 AM PDT by Morgana

A new report details the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) efforts to “exert total control” over the Catholic Church and other religious faiths within its borders and to “forcibly eradicate religious elements” that the party deems contrary to its political and policy agenda.

The analysis, published by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) last week, asserts that the CCP’s “sinicization of religion” policy consistently violates the internationally protected right to freedom of religion. The term sinicization means to conform something to Chinese culture, but the policy essentially subordinates faiths to “the CCP’s political agenda and Marxist vision for religion,” according to the report.

Chinese officials have ordered the removal of crosses from churches and have replaced images of Christ and the Virgin Mary with images of President Xi Jinping, according to the report. They have also censored religious texts, forced members of the clergy to preach CCP ideology, and mandated the display of CCP slogans within churches.

To subordinate religions to the party, the government forces religious groups to enroll in various “patriotic religious associations” and their local branches. For Catholic churches, this means enrolling in the Bishops’ Conference of the Catholic Church in China, which is officially under the control of China’s State Administration for Religious Affairs and the CCP’s United Front Work Department.

Anyone who practices religion outside of the state-approved associations is considered to be in a “cult” and subjected to anti-cult provisions in Chinese law, a policy that has resulted in mass arrests and imprisonment, according to the report. Chinese officials have enforced the anti-cult provisions against underground Catholics who do not recognize the authority of the government-backed clergy and the distortion of the faith.

(Excerpt) Read more at ncregister.com ...

TOPICS: General Discusssion
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1 posted on 10/04/2024 8:37:05 AM PDT by Morgana

To: Morgana

More evidence that Xi is moving to a cult of personality.

2 posted on 10/04/2024 8:39:12 AM PDT by maro (MAGA!)

To: Morgana

Hitler did the same thing. Didn’t help hin any.

For that matter, Antiochus Epiphanes replaced the God of Israel in the Temple with Zeus, and sacrificed a pig to him. Didn’t help him any either.

3 posted on 10/04/2024 8:41:38 AM PDT by chajin ("There is no other name under heaven given among people by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12)

To: Morgana

My mother told me that’s what Mussolini did in Italy.

He replaced all the crosses in the classrooms with giant posters of himself. The kids had to sing a fascist anthem to his image every morning.

My mom FREAKED when she saw a video of kids singing an anthem to 0bummer in school.

4 posted on 10/04/2024 8:41:40 AM PDT by Westbrook (.ts are wizards at two things: Finding votes and losing evidence.)

To: Morgana

Coming to a country near you! I suppose they’ll use Obama’s face here.

We have drifted so far away from God, I fear the country deserves what’s coming.

5 posted on 10/04/2024 8:42:03 AM PDT by brownsfan (It's going to take real, serious, hard times to wake the American public.)

To: Morgana

Is this really surprising? Communism is officially atheistic. It’s part of communist ideology. I know China has made free market reforms, but still is a communist totalitarian country.

To: Morgana

“Chinese officials have ordered the removal of crosses from churches and have replaced images of Christ and the Virgin Mary with images of President Xi Jinping, according to the report”

And Pope Francis is just fine with that.

7 posted on 10/04/2024 8:43:35 AM PDT by I-ambush (From the brightest star comes the blackest hole. You had so much to offer, why didya offer your sou?)

To: Morgana

At least they are doing so under duress. Churches in the US have done the same thing voluntarily.

8 posted on 10/04/2024 8:44:05 AM PDT by nwrep

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