Foreword:
Greetings! We are China Christian Daily, the first comprehensive English Christian news website about the church in China. Thank you for your sincere love, prayers, and contributions to the Chinese church.
On June 9, the Pew Research Center released a new report, "How the Global Religious Landscape Changed From 2010 to 2020," featuring a revised method for measuring religious affiliation in China. It found that 1.3 billion people—90% of China’s population—were religiously unaffiliated in 2020, making it the country with the largest unaffiliated population globally. China’s Christian population did not rank among the world’s ten largest.
Departing from past "custom estimates," Pew now uses standardized measures of "zongjiao (formal religious affiliation), allowing for better international comparisons and internal consistency over time. In early 2025, Pew’s Conrad Hackett published a follow-up paper suggesting that Christianity in China may have stopped growing since 2010, based on data from a 2023 report. The claim drew varied responses at home and abroad—but the actual number of Christians in China remains uncertain. This issue brings together new and past articles that examine this important and complex subject.
You can also read trending news, features, and more recently published items.
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According to Pew's recent report, 1.3 billion people in China—90% of the population—identified as religiously unaffiliated in 2020, making China the country with the largest unaffiliated population in the world. Meanwhile, China's Christian population remains outside the world's ten largest.
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A Christian Times survey of 12 Chinese house church pastors reveals mixed views on whether the number of Christians in China is growing, declining, or plateauing, with many highlighting a shift toward quality-focused development over numerical expansion.
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Christianity in China has stopped growing since 2010, according to an academic paper. Controversies have been aroused among Chinese Christians ever since. China Christian Daily interviewed five experts and scholars from China and the U.S. to share their perspectives on this paper.
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Whether Christianity's growth in China has ended is subject to confirmation. But this is a wake-up call to Christians in China and all over the world. This report has given global Christians an assignment to prioritize China in the mandate of world evangelization.
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After 17 years of reconstruction, a centennial church in Sichuan Province that was destroyed during the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake has been rebuilt on original site.
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Gu Jingqin, interim chief of the Overseas Relations Department of the China Christian Council, has been elected as a member of the second Executive Committee of the World Council of Churches.
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The Trilingual Old Testament—featuring Chinese, Greek, and English texts—was recently officially unveiled, following the 2023 publication of the Trilingual New Testament in Chinese, Hebrew, and English.
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An exhibition honoring Nobel laureate Pearl S. Buck, daughter of Southern Presbyterian missionaries, opened June 7 at Shanghai Library, highlighting her literary legacy and bridge-building between China and the West through nearly 200 exhibits.
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On June 10, the official Facebook account of Billy Graham, remembered 105 years ago when Ruth Bell Graham, wife of Billy Graham, was born in China.
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During a recent live broadcast, the famous Jingjiao Stele, which can trace back to Nestorianism during the Tang Dynasty, was showcased.
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In recent years, many churches in China have observed a noticeable decline in the number of young people attending services or participating in church life. While this trend is not unique to China, it has prompted leaders and believers to reflect more deeply on its causes.
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On a rainy night, an unexpected encounter with two Jehovah’s Witnesses members around a hot pot underscored the pressing need to deepen one’s understanding of Christian beliefs and to remain steadfast in the faith.
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"Churches in mainland China have been shaped by historical and cultural constraints, leading to relatively conservative worship styles. Conservatism itself is not wrong, but it does not justify dismissing the worship explorations of other regions," said a season worship minister.
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Many unsung veteran pastors, serving with meager pay and daily life imbalance, have weathered countless storms. Through a recent program, some began reordering their priorities to become healthier—highlighting the urgent need to care for those who have long cared for others.
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Academics & International Exchanges...
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