Opinion | Deck the halls with media sensationalism, the subject of Christmas in China
By Tom Fowdy
Christmas in China brings glittering decor and foreign influence concerns"- Leads an article on Reuters. The cliché nature of this piece is not surprising, setting out that Christmas is seen as an object of "foreign influence" in China and therefore viewed with suspicion by the Communist Party. My experience of course in the country, begs to differ, while Christmas day is of course not an observed public holiday in China, and why for that matter should it be, there is no oppression so to speak of this festival and millions of Chinese continue to observe it irrespectively.
In addition to that of course, Christmas, as it also has in the West, has established itself firmly in China in its "commercial" and irreligious character. If one walks around the biggest shopping areas of Beijing and Shanghai at Christmas time, it's not hard to see huge Christmas trees and decorations everywhere. This is of course part of the consumerist reality it is now known for throughout the world, a sort of "novelty" in the way Westerners may otherwise see Chinese New Year, Divali, and St. Patrick's Day, amongst other things. After all, just because you use St. Patrick's Day as an opportunity to buy a Guinness or revel in Irish culture, it does not mean that the festival actually means something to you, does it?
In that case, Christmas isn't that truly relevant to China and it is silly for the Western media to assume that a consumer-associated festival, adhered to by a minority, is truly a threat to the state. Of course, the angle at which the media approaches it is that all religion in China is hyperregulated by the government. Although the constitution of China provides for religious freedom in general, the Chinese state is suspicious of religion when it becomes an instrument of politics or when it spurs conflicting identities or separatist movements, and therefore requires that it exists on terms and conditions they set.
Most notably, this attitude is associated with the state's regulation of Islam as well as Buddhism in Tibet. Critics of course like to attack China's policies on these matters opportunistically, hence the efforts to hyperregulate religion and identity in Xinjiang amongst the Uyghur minority have been weaponized to forward anti-China objectives. However, religions are permitted to exist but the fundamental point the state wishes to push is that they are "loyal" to China and subject to its legal system and authority. It particularly dislikes the Islamic concept of Sha'ria law proposing a legal system of its own. Nevertheless, there are millions of indigenous Chinese Muslims who are known as the "Hui".
Christianity, however, has a different relationship with the Chinese state. While it is not linked to separatism, Chinese skepticism of Christian evangelism is linked to its legacy as a form of colonialism and therefore the assumption it is "exporting" Western ideology. In 1850, the Qing Dynasty suffered a civil war known as the Taiping Rebellion whereby a man known as Hong Xiuquan declared himself the brother of Jesus Christ and attempted to overthrow the government in a violent conflict that took 10 million lives. This event has entrenched itself in the mind of Chinese statecraft that unregulated religion is a threat to national sovereignty, and therefore ought to be treat with scepticism.
In turn, religious Christian missionaries are also not permitted to preach in China. The logic behind this is that Chinese people must find, establish, and operate religion by themselves rather than be subject to an external "authority" that is deemed to potentially challenge the state. This has led to a complicated relationship between China and Vatican City, where any bishops of the catholic church operating in the country must also be approved by Beijing, leading to a "deal" to negotiate it. This creates the scenario that the Vatican has less power over its churches in China than in other countries. But this does not mean Christianity is being banned, but is rather operating "under Chinese characteristics" as it might be called.
But as a whole, Christmas itself is not seen as a "foreign influence", that's because it is rarely adhered to as a religious festival in the west alone, but rather an increasingly consumerist gimmick and an opportunity for a family gathering, neither of which are a "threat" to China even in the most absurd way. In this sense Chinese have little interest as to what it truly means, with it having zero cultural, let alone faith-based significance to some. The Chinese state of course is sceptical of organized religion, but not to the point it will ever bat an eyelid over private observance at home or a few shopping centres sticking up trees with the view to peddling more goods. Is that going to lead to another Taiping rebellion? Probably not.
The author is a well-seasoned writer and analyst with a large portfolio related to China topics, especially in the field of politics, international relations and more. He graduated with an Msc. in Chinese Studies from Oxford University in 2018.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of DotDotNews.
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