Many people have heard about China's plan to "sinicize" Christianity. What does that mean? The government has published its plans online, both in Chinese and English. Below are some of the highlights.
To catch the flavour of the government's plan, you can simply observe its language. The word-cloud below identifies the most frequently used words in the report.
Here is a selective list of keywords that illustrates the plan's emphases. I note the number of times certain words appear.
To drive forwards the process on the Sinicization of Christianity, the following principles must be observed: Embrace and support the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. Be guided by the core values of socialism and endorse the system, ways, theories and culture of our country's development.
The plan is specific and holistic. It mentions key activities, celebrations, and objectives to be achieved by certain dates.
Accordingly, the Chinese Three-Self church will celebrate various anniversaries, such as the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China (2019), the Three-Self Patriotic Movement (2020), the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party (2021), etc.
I'm not sure how "promoting democracy" squares with the propagation of socialism, embracing communism, and the lack of term limits. However, my confusion might simply show my own lack of intelligence or insight.
What is unmistakable is the anti-Western sentiment throughout the document.
From the writers' perspective, an honest answer to that question might be "What about it?" The five-year plan obviously regards the Bible as a tool for political, cultural, and social ends.
If you know anyone working on a theological dictionary, let them know about these statements so they can quote them under the term "eisegesis." This is not biblical contextualization.
Apparently, the government has no immediate plans to replace the Chinese Union Version. A celebration of its 100th anniversary is planned for 2019.
Of course, an important aspect of the 5-year plan involves theological education.
The document speaks for itself. I'll conclude will a single thought.
If this does not motivate Christians to establish and prioritize theological education in China, nothing will.