TruthBook Religious News Blog

Mary-Anne Toy, Beijing
February 9, 2007

CHINA'S dramatic turn towards religion has been officially acknowledged for the first time, with a poll showing that the number of Chinese who describe themselves as religious has tripled from the long-quoted figure of 100 million to 300 million.

The poll of about 4500 people, conducted by professors at Shanghai's East China Normal University from 2005 until this year, found that 31 per cent of Chinese aged over 16 are religious.

Most of the religious respondents, 67 per cent, were adherents of Buddhism, Taoism, Catholicism, Christianity or Islam.

The poll shows a striking revival in traditional Chinese religions, with about 200 million being Buddhists, Taoists or worshippers of legendary deities such as the Dragon King and the God of Fortune. Also significant is the big rise in Christianity, from an official figure of less than 10 million in the late 1990s to about 40 million now.

The other main trend is that it is the young who are turning to religion. More than 60 per cent of those who described themselves as religious were in the 16-39 age bracket. Only 9.6 per cent were 55 years or older.

Survey co-author Professor Liu Zhongyu said that in the 1950s Chinese were atheists. In the 1990s, there was a surge in religious belief among the middle-aged. But the poll shows that new believers are younger and not necessarily poor farmers seeking an opiate for poverty.

Nearly 30 per cent of the religious respondents said their faith "helps cure illness, avoid disasters and ensures that life is smooth", while 24 per cent said religion "shows the true path of life".

Liu Cuimin, a minister at one of Beijing's official churches, the Chongwenmen Christian Church, believes the number of religious Chinese is much higher than indicated by the poll, because it probably only took into account those registered at official churches. Ms Liu says many believers attend underground churches.

China has five officially sanctioned religions — Buddhism, Taoism, Islam and Catholic and Protestant Christianity — but the People's Republic bans party members from belonging to any religion, though this is frequently ignored.

Confronted with a grassroots surge in new temples, churches and mosques all over the country, Beijing has increasingly begun to harness religion in its campaign to build a "harmonious society" and maintain social stability. It has been reviving Confucian belief, with its emphasis on maintaining social order and obedience ahead of individual desires, through a series of Confucian institutes around the world.

And last year, China hosted the world's first Buddhism forum, in Hangzhou. But significantly, the world's most famous Buddhist, exiled Tibetan leader the Dalai Lama, who is reviled by Beijing, was not invited.

China's refusal to allow Chinese Catholics to owe allegiance to the Pope and the continued suppression of Falun Gong show that there still remain firm limits on religious expression.