The government of China has banned the sale of Bible online.
There have been reported that searches for the Bible on e-commerce sites JD.com and Amazon.cn do not produce results despite the government publishing a new document claiming that it allows freedom of worship.
Initially, China had always controlled sales of the Bible by only allowing it to be distributed and printed by state-sanctioned churches, but it had been available to buy online.
The latest restriction the country had placed on its fast-growing Christian population is the disappearance of Bibles on internet retailers.
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However, religious freedom campaigners have said that freedom for Christians in China has been the worst its ever been.
The crackdown on Christians in China has meant that crosses have been removed from churches, churches have been demolished, and Christians suspected of worshipping at home have been detained.
A new Chinese government white paper on religious freedoms published this week asserted that all faiths must “adapt themselves to the socialist society”.
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The paper listing official Communist Party policies added: “Religious believers and non-believers respect each other, and live in harmony, committing themselves to reform and opening up and the socialist modernization, and contribute to the realization of the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation.”
William Nee, China researcher at Amnesty International, asked the Vatican to address the online Bible sale ban with Beijing.
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