Christianity around the world

Christianity in China

Christianity has reached China in several waves across more than a thousand years. The Church of the East arrived as early as 635, recorded on the famous Xi'an (Nestorian) stele. Catholic Jesuits like Matteo Ricci came in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and Protestant missions from the nineteenth. Despite long restriction, the church in China has grown remarkably, especially through unregistered house churches, and China now has one of the largest Christian populations in the world.

How Christianity came to China

The gospel reached China surprisingly early. In 635 a mission of the Church of the East, the Syriac-speaking church often called Nestorian, arrived at the Tang capital of Chang'an (today Xi'an). Their presence is recorded on a stone monument erected in 781, the famous Nestorian stele, which tells how the 'luminous religion' was welcomed. This early church faded, but the seed had been planted long before any European arrived, a reminder of how far the first believers were sent.

Later waves followed. Franciscans reached the Mongol court in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. In 1582 the Jesuit Matteo Ricci began a patient, learned mission, immersing himself in Chinese language and culture at the Ming court. Protestant work began with Robert Morrison in 1807, who translated the Bible into Chinese, and grew through the nineteenth century, though it was entangled with a painful era of foreign pressure.

The church here today

After 1949 the church came under heavy state restriction, and foreign missionaries left. Yet rather than dying out, Christianity grew, often quietly, in homes. Today there are officially recognized churches (the Protestant Three-Self Patriotic Movement and the state-sanctioned Catholic body) and a very large number of Christians in unregistered house churches. Estimates vary widely because much of this life is unofficial, but China is now home to one of the largest Christian populations in the world, a faith that has grown most where it was least free.

If you are seeking here

If you are living in China or of Chinese heritage and quietly wondering about Jesus, you are not alone, and you are welcome. Faith is not a nationality or a family tradition you are locked into or out of; it begins wherever one person turns to Christ and asks. You can start today by reading a Gospel, by praying honestly in your own words, and by finding a community that follows Jesus near you.

Frequently asked questions

When did Christianity first reach China?

As early as 635, when the Church of the East (often called Nestorian) arrived at the Tang capital. Their presence is recorded on the Xi'an stele of 781, long before any European mission.

What is the house-church movement?

It refers to the very large number of Chinese Christians who gather in unregistered churches, often meeting in homes, outside the officially recognized bodies. Much of China's church growth has happened through them.

How many Christians are in China?

Estimates vary widely because so much of the church is unofficial, but China is now home to one of the largest Christian populations in the world, spread across both registered and house churches.