Source: www.MNNonline.org
Date: September 29, 2025
China (MNN) — What’s your mental picture of the Church in China? New guidelines from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) this month may help you see the challenge but also the courage believers there have.
New regulations published September 15 by the CCP outline how clergy can and cannot use internet platforms to preach and teach. They are no mere suggestions but rather statements of the new normal in a nation with a formidable surveillance infrastructure.
“They have the capacity to track down and shut down as they please. I have friends that will testify to that,” says Joe Handley with A3.
Yet at the same time, we shouldn’t think of Christians in China as being in retreat. Years ago, one pastor told Handley, “We grew up in an era where our churches went from underground to overground and back underground. We know how to pivot on the fly.”
“No matter what thing comes their direction, they’re resilient,” says Handley.
Photo courtesy of Timothy Eberly via Unsplash
Don’t take that the wrong way, though. The resilience of Chinese believers comes from God, so there’s every reason to keep praying. The new regulations limit the use of social media, prohibit short-form content and more for clergy. They also require support for socialist values and government oversight, among other CCP goals.
(Read the full translation of “Regulations on the Online Behavior of Religious Clergy” here.)
“It’s critical that we pray that those of us [who] are involved in the leadership development space are thinking ahead of the curve,” says Handley.
Pray especially for God’s grace upon future church leaders in China. They have not experienced faith under pressure in the same way that their parents and grandparents have.
“The next generation is going to be critical, because they’re the generation that will carry the gospel. So pray for the young people of China, that they will be able to weather the storms that come their way,” says Handley.
“Pray for A3 as we try to equip the church around the world. They’re hungry for the gospel. The church leaders are hungry for leadership [and] equipping. It’s one of the greatest needs of our era.”
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Rosalind Chang via Unsplash.