(Photo: AP/Gerald Herbert)Accompanied by Pastor Jian-An, President Bush makes remarks after attending church at the Beijing Kuanjie Protestant Christian Church during his visit to the 2008 Summer Olympic games in Beijing, China Sunday, Aug. 10, 2008.
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President Bush, after worshipping at a Beijing church on Sunday as part of his Olympic visit, declared that no one should fear religious freedom.
"Laura and I just had the great joy and privilege of worshipping here in Beijing, China," Bush said outside state-sanctioned Kuanjie Protestant church, according to The Associated Press.
"You know, it just goes to show that God is universal, and God is love, and no state, man or woman should fear the influence of loving religion."
China requires churches to register and be monitored by a religious body that answers to the government. Millions of Chinese Christians that refuse to worship in state-sanctioned churches argue that Christ, and not the government, is the head of the church. These Christians worship instead in house or “underground” churches, which are illegal under Chinese law.
While criticized by religious freedom activists for attending a state-sanctioned church rather than a house church, Bush defended his decision in an interview with NBC Monday.
"It gave me a chance to say to the Chinese people, religion won't hurt you, you ought to welcome religious people," he said. "And it gave me a chance to say to the government, why don't you register the underground churches and give them a chance to flourish?"
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Bush has repeatedly pressed China to pay greater respect to religious freedom in encounters with Chinese officials. In the past, the U.S. president has invited Chinese house church leaders and activists to the White House and expressed support for their right to worship in unregistered churches.
In a major speech a day before arriving in China for the opening ceremony, Bush had bluntly stated the United States’ dissatisfaction with China’s human rights record, including religious freedom.
“America stands in firm opposition to China’s detention of political dissidents and human rights advocates and religious activists,” he said in Thailand last week.
“We press for openness and justice, not to impose our beliefs but to allow the Chinese people to express theirs.”
Then in a U.S. radio address on Saturday, he said: “This trip has reaffirmed my belief that men and women who aspire to speak their conscience and worship their God are no threat to the future of China.”
Bush’s statements angered China’s government, which responded by telling the U.S. president to not intrude in its affairs, according to AP.
However, the president ended his four-day visit on a more congenial note on Monday. He urged future U.S. presidents to continue to build a relationship and work closely with China despite differences.
"It's really important for future Presidents to understand the relationship between China and the region, and it's important to make sure that America is engaged with China - even though we may have some disagreements," he said.
Future American leaders should search for “constructive engagement” on common areas, such as North Korea and Iran, Bush said.
However the United States needs to “also be in a position where they (China) respect you enough to listen to your view on religious freedom and political liberty.”
