ITEMS OF INTEREST September 22, 2008 Issue

ITEMS OF INTEREST

with contributions from Elizabeth Weise, Lindsey Tanner

AS THE PIANO strikes a chord, the choir launches into a hymn, members' red and white robes bright against the beige walls of the room crammed with more than 100 worshipers.

This is City Revival Church, one of the larger unofficial, or "house," churches in Beijing. For three years, it has rented conference rooms in an office building to house its growing flock.

Officially, China allows freedom of worship for five religions: Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Islam, and Taoism. Unofficially, most faiths are tolerated, though some more than others.

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