Michael Brooks
China is home to an estimated 10 million Catholics, who are divided between state-sanctioned churches and underground congregations loyal to the Vatican. The Catholic Church in China is split into two branches: the official church and the underground church. The former is controlled by the National Religious Affairs Administration and the latter is monitored by local authorities, with priests and bishops pressured to join the official church. Catholics tend to cluster in rural Catholic villages in the northern province of Hebei, which had the largest Catholic population in China in 2017, with 1 million members.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of Catholics in China | 10 million |
| Percentage of Chinese adults who believe in Jesus Christ and/or Tianzhu | 7% (roughly 81 million adults) |
| Percentage of Chinese adults who believe in Jesus Christ and/or Tianzhu and do not believe in non-Christian deities | 3% |
| Chinese province with the largest Catholic population | Hebei |
| Number of Catholics in Hebei province | 1 million |
| Areas where Catholic institutions are dominant | North and Central regions of China |
| Areas where the Catholic Church is allowed to operate freely | Macau and Hong Kong |
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What You'll Learn
China has around 10 million Catholics
China has approximately 10 million Catholics, according to the BBC. This figure represents a significant Catholic population in the country, and these individuals face a unique set of circumstances due to the Chinese government's historical wariness of religious influence and the current structure of the Catholic Church in China.
The Catholic Church in China is divided into two branches: the official church and underground churches. The official church, also known as the Catholic Patriotic Association (CPA) or Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA), is controlled by the National Religious Affairs Administration. This branch has the support of the Chinese government and includes churches authorised by the state. On the other hand, the underground churches, also known as "dixia jiaohui" in Chinese, have sworn allegiance to the Vatican. These congregations operate covertly, and their priests and bishops are often pressured to join the CPA.
The division between these two branches dates back to the 1950s when the Chinese government purged foreign influence and expelled missionaries. This historical context has shaped the current landscape of Catholicism in China, where believers must choose between attending state-sanctioned churches or worshipping in secret.
Geographically, the Catholic population in China tends to cluster in specific regions. Hebei Province, located in northern China, is known for its high concentration of Catholics, with approximately 1 million members as of 2017. This province alone accounts for around a quarter of China's Catholic population. The Catholic Church also operates freely in Macau and Hong Kong, which are organised into separate dioceses.
While China's relationship with the Vatican has been complex, there have been recent efforts to improve cooperation. In 2018, an accord was reached between the Holy See and Beijing, addressing the issue of bishop appointments, which has been a point of contention. This agreement granted the Holy See veto power over bishop nominees put forward by the CCPA, marking a step towards collaboration between the two entities.
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Catholics in China: believe in Jesus Christ and/or Tianzhu
The Catholic Church in China has a long and complex history, dating back to the arrival of the first Catholic missionary, John of Montecorvino, during the Yuan dynasty in the 13th century. Over the centuries, the relationship between the Catholic Church and the Chinese state has been fraught with tension and persecution. Today, there are an estimated 5.7 million Catholics in China, according to the 2010 Blue Book of Religions, which only includes members of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA). The Holy Spirit Study Centre in Hong Kong provided a higher estimate of 12 million Catholics in 2012, encompassing both branches of the Catholic Church in the country.
The Catholic Church in China is divided into two branches: the official church and the underground churches. The official church is affiliated with the CCPA, which is controlled by the National Religious Affairs Administration and does not recognize the authority of the Holy See. On the other hand, the underground churches, also known as "house churches," are independent of state control and maintain allegiance to the Pope. These clandestine religious gatherings have faced persecution and monitoring by the Chinese authorities, who have raided and shut down many of them.
The term "Tianzhu" (天主) is the Chinese word specifically used by Catholics to refer to God, meaning "Lord of Heaven." It was coined by early Catholic missionaries as a neologism that would be more native to the Chinese language than other translations. Catholics in China, therefore, believe in Jesus Christ and Tianzhu as central figures of their faith. However, it is challenging to ascertain the exact number of Catholics or Christians in China due to the clandestine nature of some religious practices and the complex dynamics between the government and religious institutions.
According to the 2018 CFPS survey, the share of Chinese adults who believe in Jesus Christ and/or Tianzhu is about 7%, or roughly 81 million people. However, this figure includes those who also believe in non-Christian deities, and the number of believers who solely adhere to Jesus Christ and/or Tianzhu is estimated to be around 3%. Additionally, the geographic concentration of China's Christians, particularly in "Catholic villages," can impact the accuracy of survey estimates.
The Catholic Church's presence in China has been marked by historical tensions, resulting in an underground network of churches that remain loyal to the Pope. While the exact number of Catholics in China is difficult to pinpoint due to various factors, it is clear that a significant number of Chinese adults maintain belief in Jesus Christ and/or Tianzhu, contributing to the global community of Catholics.
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The Catholic Church in China: official and underground churches
The Catholic Church in China is divided into two communities: the "'Patriotic' Church" and the "'Underground' Church". The former operates with the approval of the Chinese authorities, while the latter professes loyalty to the Pope. The term "underground" does not imply secrecy, as these churches mostly operate openly. Instead, it refers to their lack of official approval and support from the Chinese government. This division dates back to the 1950s when the Communist government severed ties between Chinese Catholics and the Holy See, urging Catholic churches to cut ties with the Vatican and expelling foreign missionaries.
The Chinese government has long been wary of underground Catholic churches and their bishops and priests, closely monitoring their activities and pressuring them to join the state-sanctioned Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA). The CCPA is a government-established organisation that does not recognise the Pope's authority over the Catholic Church in China, only acknowledging him as its "spiritual leader". It takes its orders from the State Council's Religious Affairs Bureau, an agency under the United Front Department of the Communist Party. The CCPA has appointed and ordained its own bishops, mostly without the Pope's permission, particularly in the early days.
In contrast, the Underground Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church (RCC), recognises the Pope's supreme authority. This church became illegal in China and was forced underground due to its refusal to cut ties with the Holy See. Underground Catholic bishops and priests have faced harassment and imprisonment, and authorities have pressured Catholics to break communion with the Vatican by renouncing their belief in the primacy of the Roman Pontiff. Despite this, the Vatican has continuously appealed to China to grant total freedom to the Holy See in exercising its spiritual authority.
In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI wrote an open letter to Chinese Catholics, stating that there is only one Catholic Church in China and that there is no schism between the two communities. He acknowledged the legitimacy of civil authorities in secular matters and asserted the Pope's authority in ecclesial matters, including the appointment of bishops. This letter was welcomed by the underground bishop Joseph Wei Jingyi, who asked his congregation to study and act on it.
In recent years, there have been efforts to normalise relations between the Vatican and China. In 2004, Pope John Paul II received a "quasi-official" Chinese delegation, and in 2017, Hebei Province was reported to have the largest Catholic population in China, with 1 million members. While the Catholic Church operates freely in Macau and Hong Kong, Pope John Paul II was denied a visit to Hong Kong in 1999, which was believed to be due to pressure from the central PRC government.
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Catholic villages: in the northern province of Hebei
In China, there are an estimated 1.272 billion Catholics, constituting 48.1% of the 2.645 billion Christians in the world as of 2025. China's relationship with the Catholic Church has been historically turbulent, with the Qing emperor forbidding the preaching of Catholicism in 1721. This ban was enforced by his successor in 1724, and most Catholic missionaries were deported. The Catholic Church is allowed to operate freely in Macau and Hong Kong.
In the northern province of Hebei, roughly a quarter of China's Catholics reside, with many clustering in rural "Catholic villages". The province had the largest Catholic population in China in 2017, with 1 million members according to the local government. The significant Catholic presence in Hebei can be traced back to the 19th century, when Catholic missionaries first arrived in the region. Over time, Hebei became a centre of Catholic activity, with many villages in the region having a majority Catholic population. Unfortunately, this also made the region a target during the Boxer Rebellion in 1900, when there were numerous massacres of entire Catholic villages.
One well-documented incident during this period occurred in Dingxing on May 16, 1900, when 30 Catholics were killed. A Protestant missionary provided a harrowing account of the event:
> "The Boxers came down on the village, surrounded the houses of the Roman Catholics as they were pointed out to them, and then robbed them, allowing no one to escape. Finally, they fired the houses, and as the people rushed out from the flames, they were killed and thrown back into the fire. Only one man escaped and they pursued him. He jumped into a well, and so they fired their guns into the well and threw down bricks until, thinking him dead, they left."
Another tragic account from that time involves Paul Liu Jinde, a 79-year-old Catholic from Lanziqiao village in Hengshui County, Hebei. When the Boxers threatened his village, Paul calmly waited with his son, and they were hacked to death on July 13, 1900.
In more recent times, Catholics in Hebei have continued to face persecution. In 2022, it was reported that Catholics from two mountain villages in Lingshou County, Hebei Province, were allegedly subjected to arbitrary detention, torture, and heavy fines by local officials for violating the government's birth control policies.
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Catholicism in China: history and deterioration
The Catholic Church first entered China during the cosmopolitan Tang dynasty, though it did not gain many native Chinese followers until the Ming dynasty in the 16th century. The Italian Franciscan missionary John of Montecorvino was the first to arrive in China in 1294, building a church in Beijing in 1299 and another in 1305 opposite the imperial palace. By 1300, he had translated the New Testament and Psalms into the local language, and estimates of his converts range from 6,000 to 30,000. In 1307, Pope Clement V sent seven Franciscan bishops to consecrate John of Montecorvino as Archbishop of Peking.
In 1312, three more Franciscan bishops arrived from Rome to aid John until his death in 1328. He converted Armenians in China and Alans in Beijing to Catholicism, and his attempt to translate the Bible inspired the Blessed Gabriele Allegra to complete the first translation of the Catholic Bible into Chinese in 1968. The mission had some success during the rule of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty, but various factors led to an ultimate shrinking of the mission.
In 1721, China's relationship with Catholicism began to deteriorate when the Qing emperor Kangxi forbade the preaching of Catholicism, driven by conflicts with papal leadership over the acceptance of traditional Chinese rituals among Catholic converts. His successor Yongzheng enforced the ban, and in 1724, he condemned Catholicism as heterodox and ordered the deportation of most Catholic missionaries. Protestant Christianity was largely absent from China until the 19th century but grew quickly after treaties between Western powers and Chinese governments forced the lifting of restrictions on foreign access, including missionary activity, in certain Chinese coastal areas. This colonial expansion coincided with an evangelical revival in Britain and the United States, leading to a surge in missionary activity worldwide.
In the 1840s, China became a major destination for Protestant missionaries from Europe and the United States. Catholic missionaries, who had been banned for a time, returned a few decades later. They encountered significant opposition from local elites, who were committed to Confucianism and resented Western ethical systems. Missionaries were often seen as part of Western imperialism.
In 2018, the Chinese government declared that there were over 6 million Catholics in China. However, some international Christian organizations estimate that there may be tens of millions more who choose not to publicly identify as such. China heavily regulates religion, and Chinese people over the age of 18 are only allowed to join Christian groups registered with one of three state-controlled bodies: the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, the China Christian Council, or the Protestant Three-Self Patriotic Movement. There are two branches of the Catholic Church in China: the official church and the underground churches, which are monitored by local authorities and pressured to join the CPA. This division dates back to the 1950s purge of foreign influence when the government expelled missionaries and urged Catholic churches to cut ties with the Vatican.
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Frequently asked questions
There are approximately 10 million Catholics in China.
According to the 2018 CFPS survey, 7% of Chinese adults, or roughly 81 million people, believe in Jesus Christ and/or Tianzhu (天主, the word Chinese Catholics use for God). However, this figure includes people who believe in non-Christian deities, and so it encompasses a broader group than just Catholics.
There are two branches of the Catholic Church in China: the official church and underground churches. The official church refers to churches that have joined the CPA, which is controlled by the National Religious Affairs Administration. The Chinese government has long been wary of underground Catholic churches, which have remained loyal to the Vatican.
Most Chinese Catholics live in the northern province of Hebei, which had 1 million Catholic members as of 2017. Catholics tend to cluster in rural "Catholic villages," where the majority of residents follow Catholicism.
Catholicism first arrived in China in the late 13th century with the arrival of Franciscan missionaries. The Italian Franciscan priest John of Montecorvino arrived in Beijing in 1294 and built a church there in 1299. By 1300, he had attracted between 6,000 and 30,000 converts. In the 18th century, the Qing emperor Kangxi forbade the preaching of Catholicism due to conflicts with papal leadership over the acceptance of traditional Chinese rituals among Catholic converts. This ban was enforced by his successor Yongzheng, who condemned Catholicism as heterodox and deported most Catholic missionaries.
