The aim is not to align religions with Chinese principles but to subvert religions by forcing them to adhere to the regimeโs Marxist doctrines, say analysts.
According to the Chinese regimeโs constitution, its citizens enjoy full religious freedom.
However, policies created by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in recent years expose the aim of not only controlling religions but also modifying them to suit the regimeโs Marxist principles.
Analysts and former U.S. government officials told The Epoch Times this is being done through a policy called โSinicizationโ applied nationwide to religions in China.
โUsing the word โSinicizationโ is actually a CCP fraud,โ Massimo Introvigne, an Italian sociologist of religions, founder of the Center for Studies on New Religions, and editor-in-chief of Bitter Winter, an online magazine that exposes religious persecution in China, told The Epoch Times.
โHistorians and missionaries coined the word โSinicizationโ to designate the adaptation of the external forms of religion to Chinese culture. The Jesuits started โSinicizingโ Christianity in the 16th century. The word is used by the CCP with an entirely different meaning. For them, โSinicizationโ means adapting religion to Marxism and to the CCP ideology.โ
A report published in September by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) highlighted the issue, describing in detail how the regime has subverted religions through this โcoercive religious policyโ which has โfundamentally transformed Chinaโs religious environment.โ
โUsing the word โSinicizationโ is actually a CCP fraud,โ Massimo Introvigne, an Italian sociologist of religions, founder of the Center for Studies on New Religions, and editor-in-chief of Bitter Winter, an online magazine that exposes religious persecution in China, told The Epoch Times.
โHistorians and missionaries coined the word โSinicizationโ to designate the adaptation of the external forms of religion to Chinese culture. The Jesuits started โSinicizingโ Christianity in the 16th century. The word is used by the CCP with an entirely different meaning. For them, โSinicizationโ means adapting religion to Marxism and to the CCP ideology.โ
A report published in September by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) highlighted the issue, describing in detail how the regime has subverted religions through this โcoercive religious policyโ which has โfundamentally transformed Chinaโs religious environment.โ
Byย Emmanuele Khouri
