Registered churches across Shaanxi Province celebrated the anniversary of the CCP’s founding

(Xi’an, Shaanxi Province – July 11, 2024) On the 103rd anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party’s founding on July 1st, registered churches in cities and counties across Shaanxi Province in northwest China held various forms of celebratory activities. This indicates that registered churches in China have completely lost their “political neutrality,” with the politicization agenda of local grassroots churches becoming increasingly severe.

According to news from the Shaanxi Province Committee of the Three-self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Churches and the Christian Council, and local church updates, to celebrate the 103rd anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party’s founding, at least seven major cities in Shaanxi Province held celebratory activities around July 1, 2024. As a faith community, Christian church’s high-profile involvement in praising a political party is a phenomenon unparalleled in today’s world.

Christian groups in cities holding party celebration activities included over 80 members, clergy, and key personnel from the Committee of the Three-self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Churches and the Christian Council in Xianyang City and Jingyang County, Shaanxi Province. A flag-raising ceremony was held before the activities. They watched the patriotic film “Sparkling Red Star.”

The Committee of the Three-self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Churches and the Christian Council in Hanzhong City of the province held a meeting on July 5, supervised by government representatives. Pastor Qi emphasized implementing comprehensive strict governance of the church, focusing on politics, implementation, and learning.

The Committee of the Three-self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Churches of Gaoling District, Xi’an City, organized flag-raising ceremonies to celebrate “July 1st” Party Founding Day at 16 grassroots church locations across the district. Grassroots church locations such as Gucheng Church, Xinzhuang Church, Jijia Church, Rencun gathering venue, Luojia gathering venue, Yawang gathering venue, and Gaoqiang gathering vanue held flag-raising ceremonies. All church locations in Gaoling District firmly support the Party’s leadership.

The Committee of the Three-self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Churches and the Christian Council of Qishan County in the province held a comprehensive training course (July 2-4), with 72 people from various church locations attending. This training was to study and implement General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important discourse on religious work. A flag-raising ceremony was held after the opening ceremony. The county’s Committee of the Three-self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Churches and the Christian Council also organized participants to visit the Fumei War Martyrs Memorial Hall for patriotic education, commemorating revolutionary martyrs and inspiring patriotic sentiments.

The report stated that the Three-Self Patriotic Movement of Protestant Churches in Fugu County, Shaanxi, held a celebratory activity themed “Welcoming July 1st, Praising the Party’s Grace, Forever Following the Party.” This activity also included a flag-raising ceremony. It recalled how the Chinese People’s Liberation Army revolutionary martyrs dyed the flag red with their blood. Christians in the Fugu Christian Church lined up neatly, holding five-starred red flags, passionately singing songs praising the Communist Party, the party-state, and the leader, such as “Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No New China,” “My Chinese Heart,” “I Love You, China,” “My Motherland,” and “The East Is Red.”

The activity was designed to make believers feel as if they were in the revolutionary era, experiencing ups and downs with the Communists, and to recount China’s current prosperity to the deceased revolutionary martyrs.

Christian churches in Luonan County celebrated the 103rd anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party’s founding. Yongfeng gathering venue and Bao’an gathering venue held flag-raising ceremonies, expressing high respect and best wishes to the country and the Chinese Communist Party. The Luonan County Christian church claimed: We firmly support the Party’s leadership, adhere to the direction of Sinicization of Christianity, actively guide believers to adapt to socialist society, and contribute to the high-quality economic development of Luonan.

The official-controlled Committee of the Three-self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Churches and the Christian Council across Shaanxi used their organizational power and mobilization capabilities to dominate the ideology of clergy throughout the province. They fully utilized their weak political awareness and carefully selected pro-Communist personnel, fully involving them in the worship of the Communist Party and the party-state hybrid.

These party-worshiping celebratory activities and flag-raising ceremonies turn churches into halls for celebrating the Party, sacred temples into places for praising the Party and singing red songs, change praising the Lord’s grace into praising the Party’s grace, and transform churches into propaganda departments for the Communist Party. These churches have become nominal. All these activities and forms that distort and alienate Christian faith do not conform to basic Christian doctrines and church traditions, and even contradict Christian believers’ consciences.