China: New Rules for Foreign Religious Activities

However, the body responsible for preparing and publishing these rules is the National Religious Affairs Administration (NRAA), which is the executive branch of the United Front, itself the CCP's armed wing for religious matters. They concern foreigners professing any religion, through a five-chapter text containing 38 articles.

Article 4 states that "China respects the freedom of religious belief of foreigners within its territory and protects the religious activities of foreigners in China," but what follows shows that the CCP views this freedom and protection as subject to strict control and total supervision.

Article 5 states that foreigners must respect "the principle of independent self-government of Chinese religions and accept the management of the Chinese government in accordance with the law." This self-government, as is well known, is ensured by five "patriotic associations," notably the Patriotic Association of Chinese Catholics, which is fully subordinate to the CCP.

Chapter 2 details all the conditions that must be met to carry out collective religious activities. The location must be registered as a religious activity site; the number of participants will be determined by the religious affairs department of the provincial-level people's government; and a written application must be submitted to the religious organization of the city where the activity is taking place.

In addition, it is necessary to specify "the schedule, method, frequency, number of participants, security measures, rights and obligations of both parties (foreigners and hosts), and legal responsibility." The ceremony must be presided over by Chinese personnel (A 10), but outside of this personnel, Chinese nationals may not participate (A 16).

Chapter 3 regulates religious exchanges. These must be conducted "through national religious groups" (the patriotic associations mentioned above). Under this condition, foreigners may give lectures or sermons in churches or chapels if invited. They must also submit the main content of the lectures or sermons to be given.

Any religious material brought into China must be in "reasonable quantities" and must not endanger national security, harm public social interests, or violate the principle of China's independence and autonomy in religious matters (A 23). The permitted quantities are specified and are minimal (3 copies for periodicals, 10 for a single publication). 

A-29 provides a long list of prohibitions, such as: creating places of religious activity, promoting extremist religious ideas, organizing sermons without authorization, recruiting Chinese citizens, producing or selling religious books and periodicals, accepting donations, providing religious instruction, using the internet for illegal religious activities, and so forth.

Although the word does not appear in these Regulations, this is clearly a case of "sinicization." Beyond inculturation into the Chinese context and culture—this is the pretext—what the Beijing authorities really want is absolute control over what happens within religious groups. In temples, mosques, and churches, nothing must happen that is outside of what the Party establishes.

Thus, in China, even for foreigners, no religious expression is permitted outside the control of the CCP, because all religions in China—including the Catholic Church—must agree to be autonomous and self-governed. The universal character of the Church is undoubtedly in peril in China; the reality is total submission to national political directives.