In China, tensions rising over Buddhism's quiet resurgence

[Ahimsa]

SERTHAR, China – Breathless but beaming

, Sheng Zisu sounds confident after five months in a maze-like Buddhist encampment high on the eastern Tibetan plateau, nearly 400 miles of bad road from the nearest city.

“Look around. They could never find me here,” Sheng, 27, says of parents so anxious about their only child’s turn to Tibetan Buddhism that they have threatened to kidnap her.

Sheng is far from her home — and from the bars where she used to drink and the ex-boyfriends she says cheated on her. She is here with 2,000 other Han Chinese at the Larung Gar Buddhist Institute in Serthar, Sichuan province, the rain-soaked mountainous region of southwest China.

The province is far from the central government in Beijing and a traditional gateway to Tibet, where Tibetans have practiced Buddhism for centuries — and where, for decades, China’s Communist Party has suppressed Buddhists, sometimes brutally.

Holy chants and red-robed devotees spill down hillsides blanketed by red wooden cabins, where monks, nuns and disciples spend hours in meditation. More than 2 miles above sea level, Larung Gar is among the largest Tibetan Buddhist academies in the world, with about 10,000 mostly Tibetan students.

The academy and its rising number of converts from China’s dominant ethnic group, the Han Chinese, reflect a remarkable and quiet recovery for Buddhist teachings here. Along with a building boom of new or expanded Buddhist monasteries and teaching facilities in the Ganzi Tibetan autonomous prefecture, it amounts to a reversal of some of the damage from Chairman Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution.

 

[Hesychios]

Yes, Buddhism seems to be on the rise once again. It has certain attractions.

 

[meryemb]

Following ones religious practices without hurting anyone’s positive interests is no crime. I don’t get why Chinese suppress such a harmless right of any individual. Regarding uprising I don’t see much success to their revolt since I know how powerful and heartless suppressor are the guys they are dealing with.

 

[Hesychios]

Following ones religious practices without hurting anyone’s positive interests is no crime. I don’t get why Chinese suppress such a harmless right of any individual. Regarding uprising I don’t see much success to their revolt since I know how powerful and heartless suppressor are the guys they are dealing with.

To be frank, the country no longer suppresses these religions. In fact, the establishment of monasteries and temples has been encouraged by local governments and supported by the flourishing business community.

However, it should be recognized that the overwhelming majority of Chinese on the mainland are not devout. In fact one could say they are mostly agnostic, sceptical of religion or completely atheistic (depending upon the individual). I can only speak from my own observations, of course, I haven’t met everyone

They are proud of their past, however, and they are extremely tolerant as well as curious about these things they know their own grandparents and great-grandparents were involved in. It is integral to their culture. Filial piety (respect for the elders) is still very strong, and the traditional memorial rites for the departed have been coming back into open practice, even among Party members. The government has recently restored Qing Ming Jie as an official holiday.

It seems that most north Americans have no clear idea what is going on inside of China today.

 

[CompSciGuy]

Following ones religious practices without hurting anyone’s positive interests is no crime. I don’t get why Chinese suppress such a harmless right of any individual. Regarding uprising I don’t see much success to their revolt since I know how powerful and heartless suppressor are the guys they are dealing with.

It’s a sort of weird cliche thing; for some reason it’s like communist governments are required to persecute religious people. The Soviets did it, the Chinese did it, the revolutionaries in Spain and South America did it. I think it is because they believe religion is a control-based thing, that the priests live off of the people. As history has shown, these governments have never been representative of the people; the people always want a right their beliefs. No “people’s republic” can ever take away that desire.

 

[amber_lux]

I don’t get why Chinese suppress such a harmless right of any individual.

The Long March is an anomaly in Chinese History.

Virtually every other revolution, insurrection, and overthrow (both unsuccessful and successful) of the rulers of China was based on religious ideology.

Considering that the last major civil war in China was less than forty years ago, and there have been two or three minor civil wars since then — all of which had strong religious overtones — the opposition to religious organizations that are not controlled by the Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng by the current Chinese government is understandable.

To you, it might look like an individual exercising his/her right to religious freedom, but to the Chinese government looks like yet another group organizing to plot its overthrow. Sooner or later, it will be overthrown by a group motivated by religious ideology.

Amber

 

[Cavaradossi]

The Long March is an anomaly in Chinese History.

Virtually every other revolution, insurrection, and overthrow (both unsuccessful and successful) of the rulers of China was based on religious ideology.

Considering that the last major civil war in China was less than forty years ago, and there have been two or three minor civil wars since then — all of which had strong religious overtones — the opposition to religious organizations that are not controlled by the Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng by the current Chinese government is understandable.

To you, it might look like an individual exercising his/her right to religious freedom, but to the Chinese government looks like yet another group organizing to plot its overthrow. Sooner or later, it will be overthrown by a group motivated by religious ideology.

Amber

I’m not so sure if I agree. The history of China tends to be a lot more political than we portray it here in the West. Often rebellions began as peasant insurrections against a crumbling government which failed to help them in times of drought, famine, or other natural disasters. The political and religious undertones only came later as the emerging leader of such an insurrection tried to legitimize his claim to power by claiming that he had acquired the divine right to rule. The history of wars and insurrections within China is no more religious than the history of wars and insurrections within Europe.

 

[GaryTaylor]

I fail to see where anything is “fine” in China. The persecution of the Buddists has led to “ten” self-immolations this year alone. Monks and Sisters. Catholics are persecuted and the Catholic Church is “underground”. If this is all well fine, I wouldn’t want to see ones idea of chaos. The Buddists are very respectful of life, the self-immolation is a lasting message. To date"six" have now died. They only revert to this when “all” other tactics to religious freedom have failed.

11-2-2011

[WASHINGTON – The head of the Tibetan government-in-exile urged the U.S. government on Wednesday to press China for access to a region where 10 young Tibetans have set themselves on fire to protest Chinese rule.

Lobsang Sangay said the self-immolations by protesters shouting Tibetan freedom slogans and their support for exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, showed China’s “hardline policies” were not working.

Nine men and one woman, in their late teens and 20s, have set themselves on fire since March. Most of the immolations have occurred in Aba, a town in Sichuan near Tibet that has been the site of a series of protests led by Buddhist monks. At least five of the 10 have died of their injuries.

Sangay, who has been meeting lawmakers in Washington, urged the U.S. government to press China to allow an international delegation access to that region of Tibet to look into the causes behind the immolations, and to allow news media to visit too.

Darragh Paradiso, State Department spokeswoman for East Asia and Pacific Affairs, said the U.S. government repeatedly has urged access for both journalists and diplomats and has directly raised its serious concern about the self-immolations with China.

“We again call on the Chinese government to respect the rights of all Chinese citizens … and particularly to respect the rights of Tibetans and to resolve the underlying grievances of China’s Tibetan population,” she said in an email.

The Dalai Lama fled Tibet in 1959 amid an abortive anti-Beijing uprising and is reviled by China’s communist government. Earlier this year, the Dalai Lama delegated his political powers to Sangay, a 43-year-old Harvard-trained legal scholar who won an April election among Tibetan exiles.

Beijing has accused the Dalai Lama and his supporters of encouraging the immolations, which Sangay denied.

He said the Tibetan exile administration based in northern India has a sacred duty to show solidarity with the protesters, but he urged them not to resort to “desperate acts.” He said it would be better for them to leave and join the Tibetan exile movement.

“We do not encourage protest inside Tibet or for that matter self-immolation because we know the consequences,” Sangay told a news conference. “If you protest in Tibet, more often than not you get arrested, or beaten up, sometimes tortured, sometimes you disappear, sometimes you die.”

He said it was unclear why the Tibetan protesters got the idea of self-immolation. He said they may have been inspired by the Tunisian vendor who set himself on fire, helping spark the Arab Spring uprisings against authoritarian regimes. ]

The idea of self immolation is very old, nothing new here to the Buddists.

Peace

 

[Hesychios]

It’s a sort of weird cliche thing; for some reason it’s like communist governments are required to persecute religious people. The Soviets did it, the Chinese did it, the revolutionaries in Spain and South America did it. I think it is because they believe religion is a control-based thing, that the priests live off of the people. As history has shown, these governments have never been representative of the people; the people always want a right their beliefs. No “people’s republic” can ever take away that desire.

It is part of Marxist theory that religion (and superstition) are the opium of the people.

Religion, cult activities and superstitions are regarded by Marxists therefore, in the same way as a narcotic: something the people may want, but which is bad for them.

It might be of some interest to realize that Marxism is not an operating principle in Chinese government any longer (for about 30 years), and many of those aspects most representative of socialist theory still in force are really quite historically Chinese. In some ways (not all) China is more an unfettered capitalist system than anything else, businesses are more free of government regulation than any English-speaking country I know of.

China resembles much more closely a one-party capitalist state than anything Communist. The party institution endures, the economic system has evolved.

 

[Hesychios]

I fail to see where anything is “fine” in China. The persecution of the Buddists has led to “ten” self-immolations this year alone. Monks and Sisters. If this is all well fine, I wouldn’t want to see ones idea of chaos. The Buddists are very respectful of life, the self-immolation is a lasting message. To date"six" have now died. They only revert to this when “all” other tactics to religious freedom have failed.

This is a political matter.

Tibet is controlled by China in much the same way Palestine is controlled by Israel. Will the country ever be free? I have my doubts.

Will Hawaii ever be free? If Tibet goes the way of Hawaii it will eventually lose most of it’s native character and the Tibetans will be a minority in their own land, dancing for the cameras.

It might be interesting to examine the politics of Tibet a bit more closely. There are actually two high Lamas of Tibet, for the last 800 years (or thereabout). This was system established by the Mongol’s leadership centuries past

• One is the religious leader of the nation
• One is the political leader

The Dalai Lama is actually the political leader, not the spiritual leader of the nation. So while the attempted revolt, the Dalai Lamas escape, the continuing resistance of the Tibetan people to preserve their cultural uniqueness and civil rights are all political acts, these acts are not directed against the religious policy of China (religious policy has fluctuated over time, but today the government is not hostile to religion).

Tibetan Buddhism is tolerated like any other religion in China (and many Han Chinese are attracted to it, not only today but for hundreds of years), but it is coming under increasing scrutiny because it seems to be harboring and fomenting revolutionaries and ‘terrorists’. This is the same kind of scrutiny mosques are coming under in the west.

For a little perspective on this, bear in mind that Buddhist monks immolated themselves in South Vietnam in the same way, also as a political statement. I do not recall any persecution of Buddhists by either the South Vietnamese government nor the US government of those days.

Catholics are persecuted and the Catholic Church is “underground”.

This is not actually relevant to the thread, but at the risk of derailing it I have a few comments. I have been studying this for a while now.

Actually, the Catholic church in China has been almost abandoned by the outside Catholic world. It needs financial support to build itself up but cannot get it. [It is able to send some priests and other religious abroad for study at Catholic universities and seminaries though.]

The reason for this lack of support? Because Chinese law requires that a Chinese religious group has to be headed by Chinese natives. They had a lot of bad experiences in their past history where foreign religious groups used their influence, or were used by others, to undermine the Chinese nation and government.

One can argue that the law is unjust, but it is the law of the land.

One affect of this law is that bishops have to be chosen by the Chinese synod, not by the Pope of Rome. The Chinese Catholic church still regards the Pope of Rome as their spiritual leader, and they have steadfastly maintained all of their devotions and Catholic dogmas. In short, they are quite orthodox in their Latin/Roman Catholicism.

Some of the bishops of the ‘above ground’ church have been approved by the Popes, so there is a mix of bishops who have the Popes’ approval and the ones who never received it for one reason or another, but they have all been chosen locally, within China.

I don’t see that as an all bad thing, I think all bishops should be elected and installed by the local synod, just as in the early church. Hopefully in the future this practice will return to the church at large worldwide, without such laws being implemented.

The result of this ‘cutting off’ of the Chinese church by western Catholics is that growth has been very slow, in both the ‘underground’ church and the ‘overground’ church. It is languishing.

Protestantism is exploding all over, they are gaining new adherents year by year. Interest in Christianity is pretty strong (at least, there is a lot of curiosity about it), and reading materials on the subject are plentiful. Bibles are easy to buy, but they are mostly the Union Bible, a Protestant version, because the Chinese Catholic church lacks the funds to publish in sufficient quantities.

 

[sidetrack]

@amber_lux

Virtually every other revolution, insurrection, and overthrow (both unsuccessful and successful) of the rulers of China was based on religious ideology.

Considering that the last major civil war in China was** less than forty years ago**, and **there have been two or three minor civil wars since **then — all of which had strong religious overtones — the opposition to religious organizations that are not controlled by the Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng by the current Chinese government is understandable.

To you, it might look like an individual exercising his/her right to religious freedom, but to the Chinese government looks like yet another group organizing to plot its overthrow. Sooner or later, it will be overthrown by a group motivated by religious ideology.

Amber

Really?.Which ones?.I can only think of the Yellow turban rebellion and the Taiping rebellion which had religious overtones.As for overthrow of rulers were’nt overthrowings of emperors and empress mostly out of pure political motivation within the royal classes?.

Also what is this about the* last major civil war in China was less than forty years ago, and there have been two or three minor civil wars since then* that your refering to?.

@Hesychios

It might be of some interest to realize that Marxism is not an operating principle in Chinese government any longer (for about 30 years), and many of those aspects most representative of socialist theory still in force are really quite historically Chinese. In some ways (not all) China is more an unfettered capitalist system than anything else, businesses are more free of government regulation than any English-speaking country I know of.

China resembles much more closely a one-party capitalist state than anything Communist. The party institution endures, the economic system has evolved.

That’s a pretty interesting insight Hesychios and similar to one I’ve been thinking about for a while.In your opinion do you think that China still has all the secrecy and enforcement tactics of a Marxist state but when it comes to actually following Marxism it’s pretty hypocritical seeing as how it’s embraced free markets and trade as well as becoming the world’s main manufacturer at the expense of it’s people’s welfare?.It’s not like other historically Communist countries have’nt done as well but what make this different is in what way;brutal work conditions in a Communist country that manufactures almost one-sidedly to benefit capitalist countires instead of blatant persecution of its people in the name of using it as a means to defend ideology.

 

[Hesychios]

Hi Sidetrack.

@Hesychios

That’s a pretty interesting insight Hesychios and similar to one I’ve been thinking about for a while.In your opinion do you think that China still has all the secrecy and enforcement tactics of a Marxist state but when it comes to actually following Marxism it’s pretty hypocritical …

The enforcement tactics (when at it’s worst decades ago) are of a one party police state, no different from Augusto Pinochet, Mohammad Rezā Pahlavi and perhaps Francisco Franco.

Very tame today by comparison, the party will still brook no potential rival. But it has always been run by committee at the top, even Mao Ze Dong never had absolute unique control, but he did a lot of bullying of the others of the inner circle.

seeing as how it’s embraced free markets and trade as well as becoming the world’s main manufacturer at the expense of it’s people’s welfare?.It’s not like other historically Communist countries have’nt done as well but what make this different is in what way;brutal work conditions in a Communist country that manufactures almost one-sidedly to benefit capitalist countires instead of blatant persecution of its people in the name of using it as a means to defend ideology.

First, in their defense let me say that in a few decades the nation under the leadership of the party has lifted more than 300 million people up from below the poverty line. No other nation anywhere has been able to accomplish such a thing in history.

You might know that the term 'Third World" was coined by Deng Xiao Ping in a speech he made before the United Nations, and he was referring to the China of his day and nations like it.

From my perspective the working conditions in China are no different than Honduras. Sweatshops? Of course, but this is more due to the capitalist reforms than Communist ideology. They have decided to “seek Truth from Facts” and generally crafted a new type of ideology, one which is comfortable with a mixed economy.

Modern American corporations have come to understand and appreciate this: Companies like General Motors and KFC make more money in real dollars from China than they do in their USA operations!

For example, until sometime in the 1990’s there was a law that specifically stated that one could not employ more than six individuals, because that was considered exploitation. With the economic revolution small business owners pressed the government to rescind that law, and others like it (which were very idealistic in their conception, but bad for business).

They got their way, and now great corporations like Foxconn for example (a Taiwan company) have huge manufacturing campuses, with housing much like old college dorms that are shared with bunk beds, cafeterias medical clinics and even theatres. The thousands of employees cannot easily leave the premises, and they work horrendous hours making Ipods and circuit boards for the rest of us. It breeds a sense of hopelessness and apathy among the workers. The suicide rate is disturbing and the company has had to string nets over the sidewalks.

The party itself has no shortage of applicants, but as I read somewhere they accept just one in every thirteen applications. The focus today is on people with business skills and entrepreneurial talent. Small wonder.

I am sure there must be some idealists still among them, but corruption is rampant. In order to get a business license it is very helpful to have a friend in the local party and a big wad of investment capital, and very likely your ‘friend’ will want to be your partner.

These people are not communists (most especially not Marxists), they don’t even pretend to be. They are real estate speculators and financial gurus, entrepreneurs and business managers. To be rich is glorious, get yours while you can.

 

[Warrior1979]

I’m glad to see that there are others that actually have a grip on what is going on in China.

With regard to religion, Christianity is on the rise in that country. It reputedly is the second largest religion in the country. I have no stats to back it up, that’s just what I was told during one of my visits.

There is a definite suspicion with the government over religion. It’s really not religion in particular, but simply anything that can be viewed as having authority greater or other than the Chinese government.

 

[GaryTaylor]

A grip, you can call it what you want, I call it “oppression”. The only rise in Christianity is with Government control. If its not controlled by them, its non-existant. And where you do see it, it is controlled by China’s Government. The fact that some blindly cooperate with this and call is “success” has little do do the suppression of “religious freedom”.

Why do you suppose the Catholic Church is persecuted? Because all is well and fine? No different than Russia a few short years ago, and could be again overnight. And there are Chinas Natives who are Catholic Bishops in China well supported by Rome. Chinas not content with this. They want to place their own Officials in to lead the CC. Just as Russia did with the EO. And no I’m not mistaken, I’ve been following it for months now and weekly. Why do suppose I posted a November 2 2011 article for you?? If all was “well and fine” I would be argeeing with it. Its oppression, and religious persecution…period.

What about the slave labor force which China refuse’s to pay in accord to the cost of living and the growth of their economy. “WHICH IS DOING SO WELL” Fair Trade doe’s not exist, and the funding “is” to build a “military” though economy. To equate to world war at they level the need to succeed.

And the issues with Buddists are exactly what? What one connects with 50-years ago has nothing to do with last weeks article. The Buddists are not protesting their own country. They are protesting religious freedom, which “is” under serious attact in China. Aba is not in Tibet and Tibet is not the cause of the protests. Its Religious Freedom. Thats the PROBLEM. And the article above clearly states this. Hawaii has zip to do with the conversation, and they wanted to be part of the US. If they want to leave who’s persecuting them?

It oppression at its worst and imprisonment lasts for decades, and its violenece when one choose’s their own path of belief. Its a Socialist Government period. Theirs a Democracy their is in Russia…NONE! So fairy tale idea of what in truth is total Government Control and at the moment only to appease the non thinking mass, that everthing is OK. Its their belief. and their way, or you are persecuted. Christianity is growing where Government allows it to grow and “does” control it. And calls this a success. I call it oppression and mind control. You go for that you’ll be drinking the poison Kool-Aide together also.

They “CHINA” chose the leaders of the Churchs no different than Russia did with the EO.A few short years ago, and very easily could again overnight if they so choose.

And the Catholic Church is lead by Chinese natives so maybe it is “you” who ought to study it a bit more. And they are persecuted and imprisoned and underground. The fact they are in communion with Rome and not led by the Chinese Government is un-acceptable to China. I don’t need to study it, I suggest others do. And it does relate to this tread because its RELIGIOUS FREEDOM in China which is persecuted. And they could care less, if its Christian, Buddists, Hindus, or anyone else. Its fine when China rules its leadership.

And the enforcement tactics have gone NO-Where. The exist today, the fact that slaughter is re-placed with decades if incarceration means what? There’ s a new tactic used to appease the unthinking mass.

And the fact the have been lifted above the poverty level is a credit to exactly what? The insane Fair Trade policy promoted by slavery and unfair wage, while the government continues there agenda, Tax of manufacturing in the USA another issue where major coorperation’s such as GE, I-POD etc are now manufactered in China. The US hasn’t made One Cent on the fair trade policy with Obama since he stepped in. In fact in world-wide the US has lost on every single deal…all of them. But economy has nothing to do with this thread.

The fact the that someone one received the false impression Chistainity is well and fine and an the rise? That those controlled by Chinas Socialist government. Which revert to force whenever true religious freedom stands to form of its agenda. Which is total control.

EWTN the BBC and C-Span has been covering this weekly. There is NO Catholic is the world which would argee everything is fine “exept” the misinformed. Its splattered on the news weekly.

 

[GaryTaylor]

China: Persecution against Catholic Church, Bishops Compelled to Attend Gathering!

BEIJING, China (Catholic Online) - We have followed with deep concern the heavy handed efforts of the Regime in mainland China against the legitimate leadership of the Catholic Church in China. Though there seemed to be a warming in relations, the latest reports out of China show that hopes are being dashed. The Chinese Regime has forcibly coerced Catholic Bishops who are faithful to Church authority to attend an illegitimate gathering where a meeting of the “Patriotic Association” ¶ and the “Council of Bishops” will take place. They have even used violence.

“dozens of bishops of the official Church have been forcibly deported to the capital to ensure their participation at the Assembly of representatives of Chinese Catholics, which the Pope considers incompatible with Catholic faith.” The Assembly opened today in Beijing on a low profile and is being shrouded in secrecy: it is impossible to contact anyone and not even Xinhua is reporting on the event. The meeting should lead to the election of the national president of the Patriotic Association and president of the council of Chinese bishops, two bodies that are unacceptable to the Catholic Church because they aim to build a separate Church, detached from the pope.

Reliable reports from inside this officially [COMMUNIST] Nation - which presents a public face of tolerance but acts with impunity against Christians and other religious believers - reveal the use of coercion and violence against Catholic Bishops. Bishop Feng Xinmao was seized by 100 police officers and government agents. His priests and members of the lay faithful reportedly fought for hours to prevent his arrest. Eventually, the Bishop was arrested by Police and placed in isolation.

Pope Benedict XVI, expressed the Holy See’s willingness to engage in a respectful and constructive dialogue with the authorities of the People’s Republic of China, with the aim of overcoming the difficulties and normalizing relations. In reaffirming this willingness, the Holy See notes with regret that the authorities allow the leadership of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association, under the influence of Mr. Liu Bainian, to adopt attitudes that gravely damage the Catholic Church and hamper the aforesaid dialogue.

We urge our readers around the world to pray for the Catholics of China. They are experiencing a growing persecution precisely because they are Catholic Christians, faithful to the profession of the ancient faith. We urge all Catholics, other Christians, other people of faith and all people of good will to condemn the unjust actions of the Chinese regime and to insist upon the recognition of religious freedom as a fundamental human right in mainland China.

“No different with Buddists who refuse to follow anything but their own faith, and by their choosen leaders. Its called religious freedom.”

Peace

 

[GaryTaylor]

China “read also: Buddhism in China”
Since the communist revolution, Buddhism was at times severely restricted and brought under “STATE-CONTROL”. During the cultural revolution, Buddhists were actively persecuted and sent for re-education, and temples, statues, and sutras were vandalized and destroyed. In recent years, Buddhism has been enjoying a revival but most Buddhist institutions are within the CONFINES OF THE STATE! Wiki-Pedia

This isn’t acceptable to those who which to enjoy true religious freedom. No different than with the Catholics.

Google and read on it.

 

[Warrior1979]

Many people think they can impose their own religious and political beliefs on a culture that is older than their own. Sorry, folks, but its not going to happen.

 

[CompSciGuy]

Many people think they can impose their own religious and political beliefs on a culture that is older than their own. Sorry, folks, but its not going to happen.

What are you talking about?
We are talking about human rights. These are universal.

 

[Warrior1979]

What are you talking about?
We are talking about human rights. These are universal.

That’s true in theory and to westerns that enjoy such rights. For the remaining majority of the world’s population, things are different.

 

[meryemb]

The Long March is an anomaly in Chinese History.

Virtually every other revolution, insurrection, and overthrow (both unsuccessful and successful) of the rulers of China was based on religious ideology.

Considering that the last major civil war in China was less than forty years ago, and there have been two or three minor civil wars since then — all of which had strong religious overtones — the opposition to religious organizations that are not controlled by the Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng by the current Chinese government is understandable.

To you, it might look like an individual exercising his/her right to religious freedom, but to the Chinese government looks like yet another group organizing to plot its overthrow. Sooner or later, it will be overthrown by a group motivated by religious ideology.

Amber

But in my view it is the basic theory of Communism to suppress every religious group since they take it in negative sense.

Karl Marx on Religion: Religion is the Opiate of the Masses.

I’m not so sure if I agree. The history of China tends to be a lot more political than we portray it here in the West. Often rebellions began as peasant insurrections against a crumbling government which failed to help them in times of drought, famine, or other natural disasters. The political and religious undertones only came later as the emerging leader of such an insurrection tried to legitimize his claim to power by claiming that he had acquired the divine right to rule. The history of wars and insurrections within China is no more religious than the history of wars and insurrections within Europe.

I agree with your views over the topic. Suppression of religion is their basic tool to nip any uprising of their tyrannical activities before it(uprising supportive) ever become part of it.