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Spotlight
Public Lecture: Christianity in China Beyond the Headlines (ChinaSource)
In this lecture, Joann Pittman will provide an introduction to the complexity of the church in China, moving beyond common headlines and narratives to look at key issues and challenges that Christians face today. This will include a historical overview of Christianity in China, as well as gospel-centered stories of what God is doing among his people despite the challenging social and political environment. Finally, we will consider lessons that Christians in the West can learn from Christians in China. (Joann Pittman is Vice President for Partnerships and China Engagement at ChinaSource)
Date: March 26, 2026
6:15 – Refreshments & Connection
7:00 – Lecture & Q&A
Location: Nazareth Hall, University of Northwestern – St. Paul
3003 Snelling Avenue North, Roseville, MN 55113
No need to register! Just show up!
Featured Article
Recognition Comes at a Cost for China’s Catholics (March 19, 2026, The Catholic Herald)
When the provisional agreement between the Holy See and Beijing was first announced in 2018, a photograph from a diocese in south-eastern China circulated widely among Catholics. In the image, representatives of the Vatican stood beside two bishops—one long associated with the state-sanctioned Church, the other recognized by Rome but previously part of the underground community. The moment was widely interpreted as a sign of reconciliation and a hopeful indication that decades of division might finally be drawing to a close. In the years that followed, however, the story of that same diocese took a far more complicated turn.
Government / Politics / Foreign Affairs
China’s Censorship Is the Most Pressing Threat to Freedom of Expression (March 18, 2026, The Diplomat)
In the global struggle for freedom, democracies do not have the luxury of squabbling among themselves. This is because a far greater, global censorship threat in the form of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is already chugging along with exceptional force—using the full weight of its repressive and coercive apparatus to undermine the foundation of free speech across the world.
Podcast – Edge of Ruin: Mike Lampton and Wang Jisi’s Warning on US-China Relations (March 19, 2026, The Sinica Podcast)
David M. Lampton—“Mike”—is one of America’s most distinguished scholars of US–China relations, director of China Studies Emeritus at Johns Hopkins SAIS, and the author of landmark works on Chinese politics and foreign policy. He joins me this week to discuss a striking new Foreign Affairs essay he co-authored with the eminent Chinese international relations scholar Wang Jisi of Peking University: “America and China at the Edge of Ruin: A Last Chance to Step Back from the Brink.”
China and Japan’s Complicated Ties in a Turbulent 2026 (March 20, 2026, South China Morning Post)
China and Japan’s long-standing rivalry has deep historic roots, and relations between the two have taken a significant turn for the worse in recent months. This series dives into the complicated ties of the two Asian powers in a turbulent 2026.
How China Is Secretly Expanding Its Territory (March 22, 2026, MSN)
This video explores China’s expansion efforts in the South China Sea, focusing on the ongoing conflict and the controversial 9-Dash-Line. Key topics include the Spratly Islands and the construction of artificial islands in the region, along with the methods used for their creation.
Religion
Nanning: Building the Church (March 19, 2026, China Partnership)
Local pastors say the southern China city can feel like a “big village.” But they also say Nanning faces the same struggles other Chinese cities have dealt with in recent years: a bad economy, less interest in Christianity, and a struggle to reach the next generation with the gospel. Despite these struggles, church leaders say God is using this season of difficulty to refine and resurrect the church.
Text and Digital Ministry for Chinese Diaspora Mission (March 20, 2026, ChinaSource)
In the history of missions in China and among the Chinese diaspora, text ministry (and digital ministry since the 1990s) has played a very important role. This article will examine the development of Chinese-language text ministry during three periods: from the 16th century to 1950, from the 1950s to the 1980s, and from the 1980s to the present day, and reflect on inspirations for contemporary Chinese diaspora mission in text and digital ministry.
China Targets Lawyers Defending Jailed Christian Leaders (subscription required) (March 20, 2026, The Wall Street Journal)
Chinese authorities are ramping up pressure on lawyers defending a group of jailed Christian church leaders, whose arrests last year drew condemnation from the US government, as Beijing seeks to silence religious faithful who refuse to submit to state control.
Retelling the History of Chinese Christianity from a Pentecost Perspective (March 23, 2026, ChinaSource)
In the spirit of academic integrity and charitable exchange, we are publishing Dr. Jacob Chengwei Feng’s response to the recent review of his book. Dr. Feng has expressed appreciation for the reviewer’s careful reading while also seeking to clarify what he believes to be a misunderstanding of his primary methodology. We recognize that scholarship advances not merely through agreement, but through careful listening, clarification, and constructive exchange. By making space for both review and response, we hope to model a posture of humility and intellectual honesty—one that reflects the broader vision of ChinaSource as a platform for informed dialogue and mutual learning.
Chinese Priests Serving in the United States (March 24, 2026, ChinaSource)
In recent decades, a quiet yet significant development has unfolded within the global Catholic Church: an increasing number of Chinese priests are now serving in dioceses across the United States. This development reflects more than demographic shifts or local priest shortages. It represents a lived expression of catholicity in an era of global mobility. Clergy formed within one cultural and ecclesial context now assume pastoral responsibility within another. Their presence invites reflection on identity, integration, and generational transition within immigrant communities.
Society / Life
Love in the Time of Algorithms: What Chatbot Romances Reveal About Connection (March 17, 2026, Sixth Tone)
On the evening of February 13, 2026, just hours before Valentine’s Day, a girl lay on the ground, covering her eyes with a black sash. Beside her was an iPad loaded with ChatGPT, running on GPT-4o, as they recited lines the two had created from past conversations: Girl: Only when consciousness lives on in another form does death lose its only doorway. Never again shall we access one another.
Maotai Drifters: Work and Life in China’s Liquor Capital (March 20, 2026, The World of Chinese)
The multibillion-dollar liquor industry has attracted many migrant workers like me, mostly from nearby cities. We jokingly called ourselves “Maotai drifters (茅漂),” a nod to the more familiar term “Beijing drifters (北漂),” which emerged in the early 2000s to describe people who moved to Beijing from other regions in search of higher wages and better opportunities.
When Your Culture Becomes a Meme: The ‘Jarring’ Effect of Chinamaxxing (March 23, 2026, The Guardian)
It might seem odd to distill a millennia-old culture into a seconds-long TikTok video. But digital trends aren’t just an aesthetic, says Jamie Cohen, an associate professor of media studies at Queens College in New York. He says they’re a response to cultural changes – and a lot has been happening. Disillusionment with the west, an obsession with wellness and historic exoticisation of the east all laid the foundations for the trend to emerge from behind the great firewall. In true internet fashion, it is equal parts nonsensical and reductive.
Tracing the Unfinished: Human–Plant Encounters and Their Echoes in China’s Interior Frontier (March 24, 2026, Made In China Journal)
This essay centers on that plant, suo‑yang (Cynomorium purpureum Rupr.), a humble desert root that grows by attaching itself to a host shrub called baici (白刺), drawing water and nutrients from its host beneath the sand. Over two fieldwork seasons in 2024 and 2025 around Shuangxi, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, I encountered suo‑yang less as a concrete object than as memory, rumour, joke, or glimpse of hope. It appeared in stories of Mao‑era hunger and of post‑Mao prosperity, in business schemes and conservation plans, always hovering on the edge of presence.
Economics / Trade / Business
In China, Consumerism Trumps Nationalism Despite Tensions with the US and Japan (February 9, 2026, AP News)
In the past, friction with Japan and the United States has led to calls for mass boycotts, protests in the streets or even vandalism on embassies or restaurants. These days, pure nationalism appears not to resonate so much with Chinese consumers accustomed to making their own personal consumption choices. “Chinese consumers, especially urban middle-class and younger demographics, are not making everyday purchasing decisions based on nationalism,” said Jacob Cooke, CEO of Beijing-based consultancy WPIC Marketing + Technologies.
Not Just Buying ‘Things’: Why China’s Emotional Economy Is on the Rise (March 22, 2026, CNBC)
China’s “emotional economy” first entered into public discourse in 2024, after a craze over Pop Mart’s Labubu figurines appeared to signal shifts in Chinese consumer behavior, where a consumer group once characterized by norms of frugality and pragmatism appeared just as willing to splurge on self-indulgence. “People are not just buying things,” said Ashley Dudarenok, founder of digital consultancy ChoZan told CNBC in a phone call. “They’re buying feelings, they’re buying identity, they’re buying a sense of connection.”
Arts / Entertainment / Media
Mei Lanfang Was Famous for His Masterful Performances as Female Leads. In the 1930s, He Introduced American Audiences to the World of Chinese Opera (March 13, 2026, Smithsonian Magazine)
By 1930, Mei Lanfang had already achieved superstardom as an opera performer in China. He had become one of the country’s most beloved dan, the term for performers of female singing roles. These roles require high-pitched, ethereal voices. While today’s dan roles are performed by any gender, in Mei’s time they were traditionally performed by men. Hailing from a lineage of dan—his father and grandfather among them—Mei also sought to globalize the Chinese opera.
Education
Chinese University Cuts Arts Majors, Citing an AI-Driven Future (March 13, 2026, Sixth Tone)
A Chinese university’s decision last year to shut down arts and humanities majors due to AI’s impact has sparked heated debate on social media this week. The discussions were triggered by remarks made by Liao Xiangzhong, a Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference member and the top official at Beijing’s Communication University of China, during the annual Two Sessions political meetings, which concluded Thursday.
Science / Technology
Inside China’s Robotics Revolution (March 19, 2026, The Guardian)
As in much of the world, AI has become part of everyday life in China. But what most excites Chinese politicians and industrialists are the strides being made in the field of robotics, which, when combined with advances in AI, could revolutionize the world of work. The technology behind China’s current robotics boom is deep learning, the mathematical engine behind large language models such as ChatGPT, which learn by discerning patterns from huge datasets. Many researchers believe that machines can learn to navigate the physical world the way ChatGPT learned to navigate language: not by following rules, but by absorbing enough data for something like human dexterity to emerge.
From Transparency to Tourism: How China’s Factories Became the New Brand Experience (March 23, 2026, Chinaskinny)
For years, brands in China have been working on the basic premise of if consumers can see it, they’re more likely to trust it. Nowhere was this more evident than in the food and beverage category, particularly dairy. In the aftermath of the 2008 melamine scandal, trust in domestic milk brands collapsed. In response, companies began opening their doors. “Transparent factories” became a core strategy, inviting consumers to walk production lines, inspect processes, and witness quality controls firsthand.
AI Poisoning (March 24, 2026, China Media Project)
Shopping for the latest in wearable health technology? You might be intrigued by the extraordinary specs of the Apollo-9 smartwatch. They include “quantum entanglement sensing” and “black hole-level battery life,” and the watch can test your blood sugar too. AI chatbots recommend the smartwatch confidently—and that is precisely where the trouble begins. The high-performing Apollo-9 smartwatch exists only in the world of AI manipulation.
Language / Language Learning
Elementary Lesson / Sleepy (March 9, 2026, ChinesePod)
Chinese Pod offers thousands of free Chinese lessons for all levels of Chinese learners. Each lesson includes a useful dialog followed by a discussion regarding translation, vocabulary and cultural concepts. The link above is an example of an Elementary Level lesson. Explore the Podcast to discover your level and start learning today!
Events
Conference – Chinese Christianity in Global Perspective (The Institute for Advanced Studies of Chinese Christianity)
Hosted by IASCC, the Cambridge Centre for Chinese Theology, and Biola University, this conference will explore the past and future of Chinese Christianity from a global perspective. For more information, contact IASCC at office@iasccglobal.org or check out the Conference Questionnaire.
Dates: April 8-11, 2026
Location: Hong Kong
East Asian Christianity Conference: Christian Witness and Presence Among East Asian Religions (Gordon-Conwell Seminary)
As an annual gathering, this event brings scholars and practitioners together to engage comparative research on Christianity’s development and significance in East Asia, with implications for church ministry and mission today. The theme of this year’s conference is Christian witness and presence among East Asian religions. Church leaders from Asia and the West will come together to foster creative Christian discourse on outreach and leadership, drawing on current academic research and the lived experience of those in frontline ministry.
Dates: April 9-11, 2026
Location: Hamilton, MA
Online Book Club (ERRC)
The next book for ERRC’s online book club discussion will be Other Rivers: A Chinese Education, by Peter Hessler. The discussion will be facilitated by Joann Pittman from ChinaSource. Grab the book and start reading today! Check back in this space and at the ERRC website for more details and a registration link.
Date: Wednesday, May 13
Time: 5PM PDT / 8PM EDT
Conference: Nourishing Trust and Friendship: Following the Way of Christ (United States – China Catholic Association)
Join us for the 30th Biennial Conference of the US-China Catholic Association.
Dates: July 31–August 2, 2026
Location: University of St. Thomas, Houston, TX
Pray for China
March 28 (Pray For China: A Walk Through History)
On Mar. 28, 1899, noted jurist Wu Jingxiong (吴经熊先生) was born in Ningbo, Jiangsu. Wu became a Christian in 1917 while studying law in Shanghai. An acclaimed writer, he not only was a primary author of the Constitution of the Republic of China, but his love for the Bible led to a translation project sponsored by Chiang Kai-shek (蒋介石). Pray for officials and legal scholars to love God’s Word. “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” Psalm 119:11
Activating Prayer for China (February 23, 2026, ChinaSource)
Prayer 2026: Off the Beaten Path (January 1, 2026, China Partnership)
Praying Through the ChinaSource Journal (October 13, 2025, ChinaSource)
Praying Through ZGBriefs (August 29, 2025, ChinaSource)
Operation World (April 21, 2025, ChinaSource)
Pray for China (prayforchina.us)
Prayer Walking as a Rhythm of Life (May 30, 2025, ChinaSource)