[Emmaline Lola]

Hello everyone! We are slowly working our waiting to choosing our agency and are in HUGE saving money mode! So when I got a bill for $825 for our temple last night, I thought, ok, so we will skip year of membership-to put the $$$ towards our adoption costs. Does China require any paperwork from your Rabbi, Priest, Church, Place of Worship?

Just want to make sure I don't need any paperwork from the temple, before I take them $$$ and put it toward our I-600A!

Thanks for your help!

el

[hugs_trees]

You will be asked about your religious practices in your homestudy, but China doesn't require any religion. I am non-religious and aside from finding a homestudy agency that won't frown at that and make up a reason to deny us (which I really worried alot about!), it's not a problem for either our placement agency or China.

[CoatAnnHat]

We were asked about our religious beliefs and if we attend services. This was documented in our homestudy.We were not asked to provide proof of attendance or anything like that. I think only religious based agencies ask that you provide a letter stating your standing with your Temple. I also think they are looking to make sure there is no religious conflict in your home. Although we belong to a Church, I do not attend on a regular basis and my husband has been there ONCE in the last year. This wasnt mentioned in our homestudy, just that we agree on what religion to raise our kids.

[odi]

We weren't even asked if we went to church or had a religion. Nothing. We happen to go to church but it was never mentioned in our homestudy.
Diana

[Marshie]

China has no requirements but some agencies do so you might want to check that first. We were asked during the homestudy visits about our religion but they didn't seem to care a bit that our answers were buddhist and "I don't even know anymore". I think they just bring it up for new parents who are of two different religions (say catholic and jewish) so they can ask them what religion they plan to raise their child. As long as you don't answer "goat sacrificing satan worshipper" you should be fine.

[Lissa]

I am a Christian and my hubby is an atheist. It was interesting to find an agency that we both felt comfortable with...but ultimately we did go with an open minded Christian agency. They asked us how we dealt with our religious differences in the homestudy but otherwise it did not come up.
Congratulations on getting started!

[SofiasMom]

China is a communist country. They do not require any paperwork from your church/temple.

[cungar]

I believe the Philippines is the only country that has a religion requirement. They don't expressly say you have to be a Catholic but infer it stongly and say the parents must be of strong moral character.

[stephdpenn]

Our social worker just asked if we went to church and that was it. She actually said not to mention anything about it to China, such as when you write your letter to them requesting to adopt. A word of advice though when choosing an agency or sw ask how important religion is to their establishment. Our adoption agency is in Texas and we live in Missouri so when trying to find a sw for our homestudy I ran into a situation dealing with this. I had contacted a sw who was closer to our town and it was a religious establishment that she worked for but not the religion that I am. She assured me this would not be an issue. Well when I received the application there were 2 whole pages to fill out on religion! For my religious life not to be an issue she sure did need a lot of infomation. Anyway I went with another sw and everything turned out great.

[sak9645]

China does not have any religious requirements. It accepts rabid atheists, as well as Orthodox Jews, practicing Catholics, Evangelical Christians, Unitarians, etc.

China wants to see evidence that the prospective parents have good values, and a plan -- agreed to by both spouses -- for teaching a child to have good values. The homestudy should discuss this subject in some detail. However, it does not need to state whether you pay dues to a synagogue, tithe to a church, etc.

Some people assume that, because China is a Communist country, and that Communism is generally antithetical to religion, one's religious affiliation should not be mentioned in the homestudy for a China adoption. This is NOT true.

China is very open on the religion of the parents. And the Chinese people, even under Communism, have a very strong spiritual streak. China's Buddhist temples are often full of worshippers, including young men and women; I went to one that has operated for over 1,000 years, and am pleased to report that it was still going strong. At home, many Chinese people have family altars and other trappings of religious belief.

My homestudy made it very clear that I was actively Jewish and planned to raise my child to be actively Jewish. Judaism is an important part of my life, and there was no way my homestudy could be written without mentioning it. This was not an issue for China, and I am now raising a wonderful Chinese daughter who goes to Jewish day school.

Most adoption agencies in the U.S. are non-sectarian; they accept people of any religion that does not require unsafe practices, such as snake-handling. Even some agencies that have terms like "Christian" in their name are non-sectarian. The name often reflects the motivations and orientation of the agency's founder, but does not imply that all applicants must share the founder's belief.

However, there are some agencies that require a statement of faith. I know of one in my area that requires at least one parent to sign a statement indicating a belief in Jesus as his/her lord and savior, a belief in certain specific passages from the New Testament, and a commitment to raise a child by adoption according to these beliefs. Obviously, I can't work with that agency, but many people have done so successfully.

Sharon

[prechrswife]

I have to echo what everyone else has already said. I will make this note, though. Members of the clergy who are adopting have to submit a letter with their visa application stating that they are traveling to China for the purpose of adoption and not for any professional reasons. (As an aside, this also applies to writers and media professionals.)

[foxl]

Wow -- I finally got to read this thread -- the government used to take a hard line against religion, and I actually heard religion and superstition used interchangeably, more than once.

I imagine any request for information on parental faith or affiliation would be coming from the agency.

[sak9645]

It is true that members of the clergy traveling to China must indicate in writing that their purpose in going to China is adoption, or tourism, or whatever, and that they do not plan to proselytize while there.

The reason is that some, although not all, religions proselytize, or try to get unbelievers to convert. Proselytizing is against the law in China.

There are churches, mosques, etc. in China, but they are tightly regulated. China regulates religious practice, because it wants its citizens' primary loyalty to be to the state. China is also well aware that some religions are powerful advocates for ideas that are contrary to the government's beliefs -- for example, civil liberties and civil rights.

As to journalists and other people involved with the media, they also have to sign a statement that they are going to China for reasons that are not connected with their profession, and will not practice their profession while there.

China does not have a free press, and all of its media are tightly controlled. Again, the media can be a powerful voice for social change, something that the government wants to restrict.

Sharon