China's Christmas Conundrum: Festive Joy or Cultural Resistance?

 The festive season in China is a tale of two extremes as glittering malls in big cities like Shanghai and Chongqing are adorned with giant Christmas trees, while in many parts of the country, extending season's greetings is out of the question. A property management company in southwest Yunnan province issued a notice to shopping mall tenants urging them not to sell Christmas cards and presents and to even refrain from hanging decorations, stating that foreign traditions should not be blindly followed, and one should be confident in one's own culture.

This sentiment was echoed in schools across the country, with some calling on students and parents not to blindly follow foreign traditions and culture. In Gansu province in China's northwest, a local branch of the Communist Youth League urged its members to celebrate The Battle at Lake Changjin, a 2021 Chinese film depicting a fierce fight between the Chinese People's Voluntary Army and U.S. forces during the Korean War as an alternative to celebrating Christmas. While China does not ban Christianity or forbid Christian worship, it must be strictly managed and governed amid concern about foreign influences.

Meanwhile, Christmas Day is not a public holiday in mainland China, where Buddhism and Taoism are the major religions, with ancestral worship also a common practice. The ruling Communist Party is officially atheist. Wang Huning, a powerful member of the party's Politburo Standing Committee, urged Christian groups to adhere to the direction of the sinicisation of Christianity, stating that doctrines and rules should be interpreted in line with the requirements of contemporary China's development, progress, core socialist values, and excellent Chinese traditions and culture.

In 2018, Langfang, a city in Hebei province, put a blanket ban on public displays for Christmas and the sale of items related to the holiday to maintain social stability. A recent post on social media platform X showed a cluster of police officers standing by a tall Christmas tree outside a church in a small county, leading to public concern. At the same time, China is eager to export its own culture, such as traditions around the Spring Festival, or Lunar New Year, in a global projection of its soft power.

A foreign ministry spokesperson stated that the Spring Festival is about joy, harmony, and peace, and that China would like to celebrate the festival with the whole world. While China shows its resistance towards foreign traditions and culture, it seems eager to share its own with the rest of the world, creating an interesting dynamic in the global cultural landscape.