Chinese Christians celebrate first church permission in 70 years

The Chinese Catholic community in Yan'an, a city in the Shaanxi province in China, is celebrating a landmark decision that has allowed it to build its first church in more than 70 years.

The move is being touted by religious freedom experts as another sign of religious revival taking over the country.

Yan'an is recognised as the centre of the Chinese communist revolution from 1935 to 1948, and Chinese communists celebrate Yan'an as the birthplace of the revolution.

Now after years of negotiations between the city's small but growing community of Christians, and the Communist Party leaders, an agreement has been reached that will allow a church to be built in the suburbs of the city.

The development is in stark contrast to seven decades ago, when Christians fled the city's cathedral as Chairman Mao arrived at the end of the Long March, a massive military retreat undertaken by the Red Armies of the Communist Party of China in the mid-1930's.

The old cathedral in the southern part of Yan'an was completed in 1934 but was abandoned the following year. It was then used as a meeting hall by Mao.

The Church has repeatedly asked for it back but authorities have refused. However, they have now eventually agreed to compensate the Catholics and are allowing them land in a less prominent location outside the city centre.

Fr Peter Zhang, a priest who ministers to approximately 600 Catholics in the town, said, "This is a sacred place to the Communist Party."

He also said he believed there were more secret believers in the city who were too scared to come out before, but who he now hoped would have the confidence to reveal themselves and join the new church.

Zhang said, "People who lived through the Cultural Revolution still worry that they might face another disaster like that. But I don't think that will happen. Before, the party opposed landlords too, and opposed scholars, and now they want everyone to own property and get educated."

China is a country experiencing huge growth in Christianity. Chinese Government figures say that 16 million Protestants and six million Catholics are registered with the two state-approved churches. However, it is believed that up tens of millions more worship in unregistered 'underground' churches.

Christianity is also growing in Yan'an, with commentators saying the influence has spread from neighbouring provinces, which inherited Christianity from European missionaries more than a century ago.