09/09/2020 China (International Christian Concern) – A state-sanctioned seminary in Shanghai is teaching nationalism, state propaganda theory and implementation, and the “Sinicization” of Christianity in China to its incoming students for fall 2020.
In a syllabus shared by Father Francis Liu from Chinese Christian fellowship of Righteousness, the East China Theological Seminary (ECTS) in Shanghai has lined up several courses for its students. While most of the courses seem standard for a seminary, a few stand out for their political nature.
For instance, for first-year students, they are required to take “nationalism” course for two hours every Friday; second-year students are learning “United Front theories and implementation in China,” which essentially point them to state propaganda; third-year students have 80 minutes of “Sinicization of China’s Christianity” to acquire every Wednesday.
In addition, for its entrance exam held in June, ECTS also tested prospective students on their “nationalism ideology” during online interview, on top of their faith, interpersonal skills, and overall health.
This is just one of the examples that the Chinese government is increasingly putting pressure on state-approved seminaries and churches to ensure that they politically align with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s ideology. CCP seeks to insert loyalty into these seminary students so they can exalt the party as well as the Lord.
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