Since the beginning of the reform era, different groups have challenged the existing limits of rights and liberties in the People's Republic of China. Until the crackdown in 1989 it was members of the “democracy movement” who used the opportunities afforded by economic liberalization to create and explore niches of public debate in which they demanded political change. After 1989, marking both the crackdown of the democracy movement and the fall of the Iron Curtain in Europe, these activities were documented and researched in the light of an “emerging civil society” in China.Footnote ¹ In the 1990s different social groups, many of them Qigong associations and most notably the falun gong 法轮功 movement, emerged and challenged the government's restrictions on rights and freedoms guaranteed in the Chinese constitution. Since the crackdown on falun gong and the China Democratic Justice Party in the late 1990s, the most important groups continuing this challenge have come from within the house church movement.Footnote ²

The term “house churches” (jiating jiaohui 家庭教会) denotes the varied and diverse unregistered churches that exist in China next to officially registered churches. Studies on Chinese Christianity have by and large accepted this dichotomy, but it is questionable how useful it is when it comes to describing Chinese Christian experience and life.Footnote ³ There are many different reasons why people join house churches rather than the official church and new studies no longer maintain a clear split between the two. They talk instead about “varied congregations” (butong xingshi de juhui 不同形式的聚会) and the “established churches” (jianzhi jiaohui 建制教会).Footnote ⁴ Each has their own characteristics, but the differences between house churches and the official churches are not necessarily any greater than the differences between the various house churches.Footnote ⁵ The main distinction between the established church and the house churches and what unites all the house churches is their legal status. Those who use the term house churches consciously tend to place emphasis on this particular difference.

Operating in the first decade of the 21st century this group continues the tradition, both of Chinese opposition movements and of Christian churches, of employing the most up-to-date technology to disseminate information and avoid government control. The samizdat magazines of 1978 have now been replaced by online journals which are produced as clandestinely as the former but with the potential to reach a far wider audience.

A variety of religious and quasi-religious groups in China today rely on extensive web-based strategies of text distribution, recruitment and information sharing, often funded at least in part by overseas Chinese groups. The technological resources at the disposal of these groups facilitate the linking up of relatively dispersed smaller groups. Collectively, members and practitioners in such groups construct virtual communities of faith.Footnote ⁶ While these organizational elements are not unique to religious and quasi-religious groups in China, the degree of reliance on the web to maintain their existence in the face of severe government repressions makes the Chinese use of web technology remarkable.Footnote ⁷

Originally the term “community” was based on birth and physical location, but with the increase of technology in transport and telecommunications in particular a different type of “community” has emerged. In recent years, the strength and nature of relationships between individuals is considered a more useful basis for the term's definition. Howard Rheingold and Roxanne Hiltz use the term “online community” to communicate the intense feeling of camaraderie, empathy and support that they observed among people in the online spaces that they studied. De Souza, Preece and Maloney focus on “people who come together for a particular ‘purpose’ and who are guided by ‘policies’ (including norms and rules) and supported by ‘software’.” Other ways of approaching online communities have included the identification of key parameters of community life and a search for their presence online.Footnote ⁸

Online communities rarely exist only online. Most of the time there are also offline components, and communication is rarely restricted to a single medium.Footnote ⁹ Non-profit groups and voluntary associations in particular use internet tools to keep their members informed and to maintain group interaction.

The most recent survey on the Chinese internet, conducted by China's Internet Network Information CentreFootnote ¹⁰ gives a figure of 163 million internet users in China, with almost as many women accessing the net as men and internet café access surpassing office access by 6 per cent.Footnote ¹¹ Almost every county in China now has broadband, and internet cafés with high-speed connections are ubiquitous and cheap even in remote towns. While fixed-line internet access is still uncommon in rural homes, in many parts of the countryside it is possible to surf the internet at landline modem speeds using a mobile handset. The pragmatic use of the latest technology therefore places the house church movement at the heart of China's modernized experience. Not only does it suggest a new media-savvy editorship but also a community that is willing and able to get online.

Publications, whether traditional or online, are tools within which identity formation can take place. Considering the particular situation within which contemporary Chinese house churches operate, Manuel Castells's concept of identity formation, in particular “resistance identity,” is a helpful analytical tool. According to Castells, resistance identity leads to the formation of communes or communities and is possibly the most important type of identity-building in society. It constructs forms of collective resistance against otherwise unbearable oppression.Footnote ¹² He cites religious fundamentalism as one expression of what he calls “the exclusion of the excluders by the excluded,” that is the building of defensive identity in terms of the dominant ideologies or institutions, reversing the value judgement while reinforcing the boundary.Footnote ¹³

Electronic house church publications are an example of computer networking among and between members of the house church movement. The main purpose is to stay in touch, to inform and to educate, and in the process to forge an identity. Clearly the house church movement is not just a “virtual community” but also a real community existing in different geographical locales within China. However, the existence of an online component enables members to see and identify themselves as part of a bigger community, spanning provinces or even the globe.

In this article, one of the most professionally produced house church publications, Aiyan (爱筵, The Banquet, also translated as Love Feast Footnote ¹⁴) is presented as a case study of a resistance community using up-to-date technology to get religious and political messages across to its members in the dual context of China's modernization and government repression. The findings are based on detailed content analysis of the publicationFootnote ¹⁵ as well as interviews in Hong Kong and Beijing carried out in September 2006.Footnote ¹⁶ A close reading of a like-minded publication, Fangzhou (方舟, The Ark), complements and contextualizes the findings.

Aiyan – The Publication

It is customary for congregations – whether established or not – to produce some kind of reading material or CDs and DVDs for their members. Congregations have their own libraries shared among members which contain all kinds of different materials, including books and films on Chinese Christians or Christianity that may not be available in general bookshops; these materials are multiplied for the perusal of the congregation. Aiyan goes far beyond these small-scale operations as a well-established and professionally produced journal reaching an audience much larger than the members of just one congregation. It can be considered an “underground” publication insofar as writing, editing, printing and distribution all take place clandestinely.

Aiyan or The Banquet first came into existence in 2002 as both a printed and online publication (www.aiyan.org). It was founded by Cai Zhuohua 菜桌华, pastor of a Beijing house church. It was conceived as quarterly, but both the printed and the online edition have had difficulty maintaining this regularity. As of January 2008 there were 15 issues of Aiyan online. Cai Zhuohua was arrested in 2003 (his arrest was partly related to his association with Aiyan Footnote ¹⁷) which marked a crisis point for the publication, but from which it subsequently recovered. Recently it seems to have encountered new difficulties, and while still available online it has not been updated for several months.Footnote ¹⁸

According to one well-connected house church contact, Aiyan is a widely known, nationwide publication received with great enthusiasm; however because of its underground nature it was not possible to establish circulation figures. It is written by Christians for Christians and quite a few of its articles are fairly high-brow. It reaches into the general population of house church Christians, which is still predominantly rural but which is growing rapidly in urban sectors. Next to local traditions and the personality of the pastor, Aiyan ranks as the third major influence on local churches, according to the same source.

The editors of Aiyan's online edition avoided the rigorous registration procedure with China's Internet Network Information Centre by registering its domain name in California. Caution is also exercised by hiding the identity of contributors and editors. Most articles do not give an author's name but only refer to a “Brother” or “Sister,” sometimes stating a certain province. Where names are given they are usually Christian names thus hindering identification. Both the content and the context of the articles published make it clear that Aiyan's main target audience as well as authorship lie within the People's Republic of China; Aiyan appears to be easily accessible in China.Footnote ¹⁹

When it comes to Aiyan's finances, only very coy references are made to “God having already provided a sound basis” without stating any specific sources. It is clear that it must sustain itself through donations, from members within China as well as overseas.Footnote ²⁰ There is no advertising, but from issue four onwards there are increasing references and mentions of like-minded organizations and their products.

Both the nature of the magazine – with its relatively highbrow articles on a variety of subjects including scholarly contributions on China's legal system – and its online existence stand in contrast to the general depiction of the Chinese house church movement as predominantly rural congregations consisting mainly of old people, women, the sick and the illiterate.Footnote ²¹ The intellectual nature of Aiyan suggests a far more educated house church congregation and the online version further suggests a younger membership.

Aiyan's paper edition is produced under considerable strain: writing, printing and distribution of the printed copies all take place in different provinces. Readers' letters published in the online edition make recurring references to the printed magazine which is passed from person to person. Editors are very keen to get people online in order to access the online edition rather than the printed version. Step-by-step guides on how to get online are a regular feature in the magazine. There is clearly an intention to encourage members to read the online edition in order to increase the readership and to ease the pressure on the production of the printed version.

According to the editors, all contributions to Aiyan are written by members of the house church community themselves; they are voluntary and unpaid. Obtaining enough material to fill the pages of Aiyan is one of its greatest ongoing challenges, reflected in repeated calls by the editors to community members to do their bit and submit manuscripts. Getting people to contribute rather than just enjoy the contributions of others is known to be one of the greatest challenges of online communities.Footnote ²² Reactions to articles are published in a special section of Aiyan; therefore, while not having the immediate nature of a chat room, there clearly does exist a certain amount of exchange and interaction online between members of the community. A high proportion of articles consist of personal testimonies and highly individualistic pieces, not dissimilar in nature to the personalized style of blogs or chat rooms. In addition, there is also a discussion forum online.Footnote ²³

Aiyan's Visual Character

In terms of its visual character, Aiyan has changed quite significantly during its online existence. The first nine issues had a straightforward layout, very much in keeping with the printed edition, with few illustrations and no moving images. The general impression was of a very scholarly and earnest endeavour. There was a long break online between issues nine and ten, and when it reappeared Aiyan had a completely new layout. The general impression of issues ten to 13 was of a completely different publication, even though the organization of the content did not change. It appeared “younger” to the point of childishness in its visual make-up. Clearly great changes had taken place, from a moment of crisis associated with the arrest of its main editor to an injection of money and expertise in web design. In spring 2006 Aiyan was updated yet again. Its current visual character is one of a mature and established publication.Footnote ²⁴

The printed version of Aiyan, in contrast, is a very simple black and white publication which has not changed significantly since the first issue. The simplicity of the printed edition is probably a reflection of the difficulties under which it is produced.

Aiyan's Content

Each issue of Aiyan forms a substantial publication with between 20 and 30 articles, many of which are lengthy. There are regular categories under which articles are published. An important one is concerned with personal testimonies and reports from the mission, a crucial component of the often charismatic or Pentecostal churches the house churches belong to. Apart from these rather emotional accounts there are various categories under which relatively highbrow and scholarly articles are published. These include theology, law, biographical accounts of famous foreign Christians, science and religion, and politics and religion. While none of these articles is overtly political, they do have strong political implications insofar as they intend to inform Christians of the legal framework and how to use it. News items, both domestic and international, are linked with prayers; the selection of news reported in Aiyan offers very interesting insights into the concerns, direction and intentions of the Chinese house church movement.Footnote ²⁵ So too do the sections that directly address specific questions coming from the community.Footnote ²⁶

Aiyan's Aims

It is possible to discern a number of functions that Aiyan is trying to fulfil. Some of these are in keeping with evangelical movements worldwide; others reflect the particular position in which Chinese Christians find themselves.

Education is an important function of Aiyan which becomes more and more apparent with each issue and clearly reflects the specific situation within which the house churches operate. It reflects a critical awareness of what some of my contacts referred to as the necessary “raising of standard and quality” among the house church Christians, a task which people deeply involved in the movement consider more important at present than further evangelizing. The aim to raise the educational level is also reflected in recurring prayers for the timely return of theology students abroad,Footnote ²⁷ for more people within China to engage in Bible studies, and for the aid of foreign churches in this endeavour.

In addition to its specific educational role there is a wealth of more general information available to the readers of Aiyan. News items, which according to the editors are taken from news published in the official Chinese media, are organized into domestic and foreign news. They are concluded with short prayers for the parties, countries or individuals involved, or a more general prayer in connection with the item. Domestic news tends to focus on social problems and ills in China, like unemployment, domestic violence, drug addiction and alcoholism, gambling, smoking, corruption (of teachers, journalists, the government), hepatitis and AIDS, environmental degradation, superstition, the mafia, and the dangers of the internet. Social groups addressed in these news items cum prayers include, apart from sufferers of the above societal ills, old people, migrants, atheists, poor people, China's middle class, miners and stray children.Footnote ²⁸ While Christianity is seen as an answer to all the social ills mentioned above it is also clear, if sometimes only implicit, that the social groups listed also form the main target for house churches' evangelizing efforts.

An increasing number of domestic news items and prayers (dominating the news in the last issue of Aiyan) refer to the detained house church leaders and Christians who were mistreated in custody, together with calls for the abolition of re-education through labour and the establishment of a proper and fair legal system in China. This last item appears in every single issue of Aiyan.Footnote ²⁹

Aiyan clearly attempts to assume a guiding role within the house church community, both in smaller and faith-related matters and in matters affecting the whole of society. It contains a “question and answer” feature which addresses questions ostensibly emerging from individuals within the community. These questions are interesting reflections of the dilemmas and tribulations faced by the house church community and range from the spiritual to the practical. All questions are answered in utmost sincerity and at times in great detail. As the questions are chosen by the editors they are presumably representative to a certain degree. They show that members of the community look to the church not just for spiritual and faith matters, but also to receive guidance in a rapidly changing society on how to make one's choices and how to take part in wider social activity, including political activity.Footnote ³⁰

The Politics of Aiyan

Aiyan is clearly a vehicle within which attempts to position the Chinese house churches take place, both in the context of state regulation and persecution and in the context of the enormous diversity of unregistered church groups in China. Within Aiyan, attempts are made to draw demarcation lines with other Christian groups and the official church, with the aim of establishing some form of house church identity within China.

The dominant ideology and institution against which the house churches are trying to build a distinct identity are the Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM) and the Chinese Christian Council (CCC), the two official organizations responsible for overseeing and controlling Christian religious activity in the PRC, generally referred to as lianghui (两会, two councils). The TSPM was founded in the early 1950s with the aim of bringing all Christian activity under its mantle and the control of the Chinese Communist Party. One of its main aims was to sever all ties to foreign churches and make the Chinese church truly “independent.” The CCC was founded in the early years of the reform era when religion gained in popularity, partly because the TSPM had lost credibility among the Christian population because of its involvement in the Cultural Revolution. Even though the lianghui are part of the United Front Department they are more independent than other organizations under that department, in that they are relatively free to choose their own leaders and have been providing a voice for religion within their magazines and the National People's Congress.Footnote ³¹

It is, however, clear from the house church publications that one of their main aims and in turn one of the central pillars of identity construction is to establish clear boundaries with the official Church by rejecting their theology as well as their leadership. The official Protestant publication Tianfeng (天风, Heavenly Wind) is a frequent target. The house church movement tends to view the official Church as both too liberal in its interpretation of the gospel and too enmeshed in politics. In the pages of Aiyan, readers frequently ask for guidance regarding official Church publications, the official Church's interpretation of the Bible and how to treat fellow Christians who worship in the official churches. (While the latter are meant to be made welcome in the house churches, there is little support for either the official Church's theology or its publications in the pages of Aiyan.)

Another clear boundary Aiyan is trying to draw is against so-called heretical sects. The state, the official Church and house churches all define Protestantism differently. Perhaps not surprisingly, the state and the official Church define heresy more along political than along religious lines: if a religious group rejects the official Church or holds meetings in secret they may be called heretical, which potentially puts all activity outside the official Church into the category of heresy. Among house churches, according to Dunch, the disputes are huge. Almost all reject the official Church as Christian or orthodox, but disagreements remain regarding baptism, communion, the marks of true conversion, the Holy Spirit, how to hold the Bible, how to pray and so on.Footnote ³²

Within the pages of Aiyan the most important sect against which the house churches are trying to define themselves is Eastern Lightning,Footnote ³³ often referred to as “the greatest enemy of the Chinese churches.” A number of articles refer to the allegedly evil nature of this cult and cite the testimonies of individuals who have allegedly been abducted or lured into joining the cult by devious tactics. (One account tells of how Eastern Lightning deploys attractive young men and women to lure others into their circle.Footnote ³⁴) Most interestingly, there seems to be a theory among the house churches that Eastern Lightning is a plot by state security related to the government's attempts to weaken the house churches. Aiyan's editors refute this theory and refer to a book written on the subject which seems to prove without doubt that Eastern Lightning has nothing to do with the Chinese government.Footnote ³⁵

Other sects are also mentioned, and it is clear that the editors are trying to find a middle ground between the liberal and worldly orientation of the official Church and the more controversial or even notorious Christian sects. Even though a clear line is drawn with the official Church, when it comes to denouncing so-called heretical sects, the language and terminology adopted by the house church publications echo the official Party line, referring to them as xiejiao (邪教 literally evil cult, a term also applied to falun gong).Footnote ³⁶

Taking a position within the diverse field of Chinese religious practice and attempting to project a collective identity, however fragile, have strong political implications, as they are a sign that at least some sectors of the Chinese house church movement are willing to speak with one voice and take a stance on wider social or political matters. Publications like Aiyan play an important role in this new stage.

Freedom of Religious Belief and Legalization of Status

Aiyan places religious rights defence at the heart of its political aims. The core issue in this context is the legal status of house churches in China and the government's requirement for any social group to register with the authorities.Footnote ³⁷ There are a number of strict requirements a social group needs to meet which in essence make it impossible for a house church to attain legal status. Resistance to this requirement to register is one of the core issues in Aiyan's approach to religious rights defence. The freedom of religious belief is considered a God-given right which is guaranteed in the Chinese Constitution and which no lower administrative body has the right to limit.

Christian lawyers have been taking on cases of Christians whose religious rights have been violated and recently these activities have been formalized with the creation of the Association of Human Rights Attorneys for Chinese Christians.Footnote ³⁸ The formation of this group was advertised in Aiyan and the names and contact numbers of its members were published.Footnote ³⁹ They are all leading scholars in the field of constitutional law with the country's foremost research tanks or universities. They are contacted by Christians across the country and asked to represent their cases, the majority of which are in rural areas. Funds to finance these lawyers' travel expenses and fees are generated from within the community, either by the rural community asking for help or by the urban community should the rural community be too impoverished.Footnote ⁴⁰ These lawyers and legal scholars are also regular contributors to Aiyan.

Contributions to Aiyan frequently express the hope that one day house churches will be officially accepted and legal. They hope for a transition similar to the one private businesses underwent from the 1980s onwards: a gradual change of status from outside the law or “underground” to within the law and “over ground.”

Rights Awareness and Rights Education

Creating people's rights awareness and engaging in rights education are an essential function of Aiyan and it is becoming increasingly organized in the way it goes about it. Initially it was done primarily through individual items in the news section, where readers are asked to pray for imprisoned fellow Christians or individual court cases. From issue three onwards there have been regular calls for the establishment of the rule of law in China which, according to Aiyan, should be the concern of every citizen and every Christian. Issue three also contains an extensive explanation of the legal framework and clauses relating to religion, which was clearly published as a result of a huge reader response to an article in issue two on the legal viewpoint of a Christian.Footnote ⁴¹ This subsequently developed into a special category on law. Under this category articles on the Chinese Constitution, a series of articles on the relations between religion and politics, the right to remain silent (justified by Jesus remaining silent when interrogated by Pilate),Footnote ⁴² and a Chinese and English version of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights have been published.

A book called Yue yu fa (约与法, The Covenant and the Law, published in 2005) is first mentioned in issue 13. The book's author (who remains unnamed) was initially detained by the police in Hainandao, but later released and encouraged to circulate his book. (The authorities allegedly realized it was not just harmless but actually useful.) According to Aiyan, the book outlines how to be a good Bible-following Christian as well as a good law-abiding Chinese citizen.Footnote ⁴³ According to the China Aid Association it is a handbook for rights attorneys on how best to use the existing legal system in Christian rights defence.Footnote ⁴⁴ This book is now available to download in its entirety on Aiyan's website with explanations and commentaries. It seems to have replaced the category on law and has become a special feature or sub-site of Aiyan.Footnote ⁴⁵

This focus on rights awareness emanates from recognition of its importance in the context of the house church movement. According to a source close to one of these scholars, there has been a culture among the churches “not to talk about politics and not to talk about theology” (bu tan zhengzhi, bu tan shenxue 不谈政治, ，不谈神学). This apparently is now slowly changing and Aiyan is one of the leading organs promoting this change. It is also one of the leading organs promoting rights awareness, for which there is huge need in the rural areas. According to one of my sources closely involved with the Association of Human Rights Attorneys for Chinese Christians, rights awareness in cities is slightly better insofar as people have a better education and have read more, but it is rarely extended to the next person, being primarily focused on the individual himself in case he gets into some trouble. In the countryside, there is less awareness of rights but more willingness to fight and stand up for oneself; according to the same source, this is a result of the decade-long struggle the rural house churches have been involved in, whereas the urban churches are only slowly joining in.

In this context there exist clear links to the China Aid Association (CAA). Christian rights education is also one of the declared aims of CAA, an organization founded by Bob Fu, based in Texas and with excellent connections to the White House. According to its own website, CAA has invited 25 Christian legal scholars, lawyers and house church leaders to the United States for training in the law, Christian worldview and biblical stewardship.Footnote ⁴⁶ CAA is also associated with the Institute of Chinese Law and Religion which hosted a “Freedom in China” conference in May 2006 at the Hudson Institute to which all the founding members of the Association of Christian Rights Defence Lawyers were invited. Bob Fu and CAA are also behind China Monitor, another organization promoting religious freedom in China. This organization publishes the Chinese Law and Religion Monitor Journal which can be downloaded from their website.Footnote ⁴⁷

Defiance against the Regime

Chinese Christians emphasize that their faith makes them law-abiding citizens who respect authority. In the pages of Aiyan chapter 13 of the Book of Romans tends to be quoted in support of this attitude.Footnote ⁴⁸ At the same time article 36 of the Chinese Constitution is invoked in order to deny any lower authorities (like the Religious Affairs Bureau) the right to infringe the constitutional right to religious freedom.Footnote ⁴⁹ Not registering with the authorities is one act of defiance in the face of state control of religion. Some individuals do this consciously as an act of defiance; others have less overtly political reasons but when pressed will concede that they consider their belief and worship none of the government's business.

In their daily practice the congregations, like many other religious groups, have become adept at working with and around the regulations and restrictions governing social groups. As any gathering of more than 25 people is considered unlawful, congregations larger than this come together in smaller groups at different times. This avoids breaking the law, but puts enormous strain on the resources of the congregation, in particular the pastor's energy. Events that do involve the whole community are often held at karaoke halls or hotels; training sessions for new pastors are often disguised as business meetings without any visible religious paraphernalia, using professional posters and power point presentations instead. Regulations are most easily circumvented where congregations are associated with private businesses as the use of their facilities gives the congregation greater security.Footnote ⁵⁰

Christians embrace any crackdowns and arrests in the spirit of Christ. Especially in rural congregations, repression is often approached as a test from God and any suffering is seen as but a fraction of Christ's suffering for mankind. Repressive measures lose their grip where arrests are seen as an opportunity to get a free ride in a car or where stints in prison are seen as a good opportunity to evangelize fellow inmates (often successfully).Footnote ⁵¹

Within the pages of Aiyan, defiance against the regime is not encouraged, but at the same time the focus on rights awareness is clearly intended to make individuals and congregations better equipped to deal with repressive measures and to invoke the relevant Chinese laws and sections of the Constitution in the event of trouble. Information about unlawful arrests and trials of fellow Christians is a staple in Aiyan; so are letters or poems written by imprisoned Christians.

Rural–Urban Co-operation

During the initial period of revival of Christianity in the early reform era, house churches grew up primarily in China's rural areas. In some places, house churches date back to the Cultural Revolution, when people met in fields or local caves at night.Footnote ⁵²

Aiyan is a publication that, while clearly emanating from within the Beijing house churches, has very strong ties with the rural churches; forging a greater link between the two is an undeclared aim of the editors. The exchange and chances to learn from one another are clearly two-way. On the one hand it is clear that the urban churches are better educated and have a lot more valuable professional expertise and connections that can benefit the rural churches in their struggle against repression. The work of the Association of Human Rights Attorneys for Chinese Christians, which offers legal help to individuals who have suffered repression in rural areas, is a significant aspect of rural–urban co-operation. On the other hand, urban churches are learning from the rural churches when it comes to dealing with continuing oppression and building up resistance. The rural congregations look back to more than three decades of existence in a repressive environment and impart this knowledge to the urban congregations who in general are much younger. The fact that links have been established between urban and rural congregations in the context of rights defence is a significant political development and Aiyan is one of the means of communication to facilitate and promote this link.

In issue 14 Aiyan announced the establishment of the Federation of Chinese House Churches on 20 October 2005 in a Beijing suburb.Footnote ⁵³ Since its inauguration the Federation has issued statements in response to a number of events.Footnote ⁵⁴ One was in reaction to two raids on Fangzhou congregation in Beijing in January 2006.Footnote ⁵⁵ The statement concludes with a call to all Christians in China and the world to pray for all suppressed Christians so they can obtain the strength from God to withstand oppression and for a change of mind of those in power. According to Aiyan, the Federation of Chinese House Churches is a body that brings together both rural and urban house churches in more than 17 provinces and is quoted by CAA as having 300,000 members.Footnote ⁵⁶ Judging from this statement the voice that it intends to assume is distinctly political.

The establishment of the Federation of Chinese House Churches is yet another step in collaborative ventures following on from the already existing pastoral education, leadership training, and publication and development of Bibles, study guides and training materials. Jason Kindopp calls such organizational virtuosity unprecedented in post-Mao Chinese society, making the house church network the only autonomous nationwide civic organization in China today.Footnote ⁵⁷

Liberal Intellectuals

A number of leading intellectuals are associated with and write for Aiyan. The majority are leading figures in the field of law working for the main think tanks and universities. They are not only eminent figures within their academic fields but also devoted Christians with their own house church groups. Among the best known are Fan Yafeng 范亚峰, a legal scholar at CASS and a prolific writer associated with www.gongfa.com, a website and discussion forum publishing articles and debates on China's legal framework and Constitution; Li Boguang 李柏光, a lawyer best known for representing farmers in dispute with local authorities; Wang Yi 王怡, a legal scholar and internet essayist who was named as one of China's 50 leading intellectuals in Nanfang renwu zhoukan (南方人物周刊, Southern Personalities Weekly) in 2004Footnote ⁵⁸; and Yu Jie 余杰, a best-selling novelist.

In a paper given at a conference entitled “Christianization and Democratization” in December 2005, Wang Yi spoke of the importance of the existence of a new Christian social elite in China, who take their belief into all fields of work and who, equally importantly, make their joy and optimism visible to all in daily life. Among this social elite, intellectuals have an even more important role to fulfil. According to Wang Yi, liberalism has been a mainstream idea among Chinese intellectuals since the mid-1990s, but he argues that China's democratization and Christianization need to be linked together. Secular intellectuals tend to be atheist liberals and take the individual as the starting point of their liberalism, thereby forgetting or ignoring the religious source of this approach; Wang Yi maintains that Christian liberals should consider the political ideals of democracy and freedom under a transcendent moral ethic. Their understanding of rights and freedoms goes beyond Locke's understanding of freedoms as defined through rights. It is, Wang Yi contends, an understanding of freedom that is between man as God's creature and God, and thus forms a new development in China's wave of liberalism.Footnote ⁵⁹

For Christian intellectuals this means a particularly important task in today's society. As they work in the public realm they have more opportunities to influence public opinion and shape public discourse. This process started in the 1990s when the period of so-called Cultural Christians saw a phase when, according to Wang Yi, the gospel was turned into an academic discipline (fuyin de xueshuhua 福音的学术化). Wang considers this helpful to a certain degree; it certainly facilitated the wider discussion of Christian values. However, he now calls for the opposite, for the evangelization of scholarship (xueshude fuyinhua 学术的福音化). Instead of approaching the gospel as if it were an academic discipline, he calls for the spirit of the gospel to enter and pervade not only all academic disciplines but all areas of public opinion, knowledge and ethics so that it becomes part of mainstream culture. He considers this to be the main task Chinese Christian intellectuals must fulfil today. In this context, writing in the pages of Aiyan is not just a way of fulfilling this task but also a way of raising awareness among fellow Christians and intellectuals as to what is their duty in today's China.Footnote ⁶⁰