Christians in Asia: persecuted, oppressed … but keeping the faith

Christians in Asia face persecution on a scale unheard of since the Cultural Revolution, yet if anything this has brought new life to their beliefs

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An underground church in China, after being demolished as part of Beijing’s crackdown on unsanctioned religious organisations. Photo: AP

Published: 11:30pm, 18 Jan 2019Updated: 8:37am, 19 Jan 2019

Christianity in Asia is facing its biggest threat since the rise of communism, experts say, but its faithful masses are proving the religion’s resilience and enduring appeal by embracing underground movements and megachurches.

The region may by the “new hotbed of persecution for Christians”, as described by a watchdog group this week, but attacks, oppression and intolerance have done little to dent the religion’s popularity – in fact, the number of believers is swelling.

From a little more than 62 million Christians in East and Southeast Asia in 1970, by 2015 the number of faithful had grown to more than 266 million. The World Christian Database estimates that by 2050 there will be 431 million Christians in Asia, nearly 20 per cent of the projected population.

But nearly 140 million Christians in Asia suffered hostility last year, according to the annual Open Doors World Watch List.

Some of the worst abuses take place in North Korea, while in China, the watchdog estimated 50 million people in the country would face persecution because of their beliefs.

“Christianity in Asia faces its biggest challenge since the aftermath of the Vietnam war, which brought the rise of Pol Pot in Cambodia, and the end of the Cultural Revolution,” said Nina Shea, former head of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom.