¡¡¡¡NANJING, Oct. 31 (Xinhuanet) -- A number of foreign religious leaders, attending the 50th anniversary of Nanjing Union Theological Seminary in east China's Jiangsu province, expressed their surprise at the favorable development of religion in China.

¡¡¡¡People in the United States know little about the status of religion in China and some misunderstand the religious policy here,said Richard J. Mouw, head of Fuller Theological Seminary in the United States.

¡¡¡¡"We are really surprised to see there are so many churches hereand people can go to church freely," Mouw said. "And there are cooperative and positive relations between the churches and the administration."

¡¡¡¡Chinese religious groups have done a good job in doing community work and helping poverty-stricken people to access health care services, he added.

¡¡¡¡It is "unfair" to describe China as having no religious freedom,Mouw said.

¡¡¡¡The development of Christianity in China over the last 20 yearshas been exciting, said Danny Yu, president of the U.S.-based Christian Leadership Exchange.

¡¡¡¡The number of Christians is increasing in China and the theological research here is also impressive, he added.

¡¡¡¡The Christian Leadership Exchange has made many exchanges with Chinese counterparts, he said. Enditem