Following World War 2, the political climate in China underwent a great number of changes which resulted in difficult challenges for the Adventist Church.
Prior to 1949, the Adventist Church experienced unparalleled freedom in spreading its message and had around 21,000 Adventists across China.1 But in 1948 a new law required the registration of mission schools, prevented the Bible from being taught and prohibited any kind of religious instruction (Adventist Record, February 9, 1989). The work of the Adventist Church in China was forced to pivot significantly—relinquishing all foreign control, with all leadership positions in church administration, publishing, schools and hospitals being handed over.2 In addition, all financial ties were severed between China and the broader Adventist Church (Adventist World, SPD Edition, February 1995).
The early communist government in China was strongly advancing anti-imperialist rhetoric and introduced the Three-Self Patriotic Movement, which sought to erase denominations of Christianity by unifying them under one church which was regulated closely by the government to support their own political agendas. It was required that Seventh-day Adventists “shall abolish their daily morning prayers, and they shall work on the Sabbath. Their tithe system for the support of the clergy shall be abolished” (Gao 1996:347)3. Despite claiming that denominational structures were still functioning, and that Seventh-day Adventists were allowed to hold services on Saturday, this was far from the truth as experienced by many.4
Between 1966 and 1976, the Cultural Revolution began under Mao’s reign in China. With this revolution, communism rose to its heights and Christianity was abolished, erasing even the Three-Self movement. Believers who disobeyed were arrested, imprisoned and tortured for their faith, while Bibles and other religious writings were destroyed, and churches and Christian homes were looted.5 There was perhaps no more dangerous time to spread the gospel than during the Cultural Revolution, yet it was during this period that the gospel spread the most.
Many Christian church groups went underground and began to proliferate abundantly in secret small meetings to avoid detection. In one such gathering, a preacher noticed a lady at the front who was not moving. When he touched her, he realised she was dead! The small gathering was frightened of what would happen if the government found out, so they prayed and sang hymns and after 12 minutes, the lady opened her eyes and was restored to life. This miracle caused many to become believers in God.
Mao’s death effectively ended the Cultural Revolution. The Three-Self church was restored and Christianity was allowed to return to China. Underground churches were finally able to come out of hiding. In the Australasian Record on July 20, 1985, Brother Chang reported that for nearly the first time in 40 years, Adventists were legally permitted to worship in churches on Saturday. While the Three-Self Patriotic Movement still controlled religious practice, this was a major step towards freedom of religion.
By the end of 2000, 20 years after freedom of religion slowly started being reintroduced, the estimated membership of Adventists in China had grown to 297,232. According to a December 2019 CHUM Annual Council report, the number of Adventists has since grown to 472,107 members for China, Hong Kong and Macau!
There are now reportedly more than 100 million Christians in China, with China being among the fastest, if not the fastest, growing country in the world for Christianity. It is also home to the largest Adventist Church in the world. The Shenyang Beiguan Seventh-day Adventist Church has a membership of more than 7000 and was established and is led by a woman who is a pastor.
The growth of the Church in China is a testament to the faithfulness of those who continued to meet in the face of persecution, and the incredible work of the Holy Spirit.
- https://encyclopedia.adventist.org/article?id=B8AZ
- Trevor O’Reggio and Jomo R Smith, Christianity With Chinese Characteristics: The Origins and Evolution of Adventist Mission in a Chinese Province, p9.
- ibid.
- ibid.
- Zhang Lianming and Huang Yibing, “History of the ‘Three-Self’ Patriotic Movement (TSPM) and Its Impact on Christian Organizations”, Shanghai Seventh-day Adventist Church, China.
Olivia Fairfax is an assistant editor for Adventist Record.
