Negotiating Religion in Modern China

Negotiating Religion in Modern China traces the history of the Chinese state’s

relationship with religion from 1900 to 1937. The revolutionary regime failed

condemned religious practice in the early twentieth century, suppressing

“superstitious” belief in favor of a secular, more enlightened society. Drawing

on newspapers and unpublished official documents, this book focuses on...

Negotiating Religion in Modern China traces the history of the Chinese state’s

relationship with religion from 1900 to 1937. The revolutionary regime failed

condemned religious practice in the early twentieth century, suppressing

“superstitious” belief in favor of a secular, more enlightened society. Drawing

on newspapers and unpublished official documents, this book focuses on the

case of Guangzhou, largely because of the city’s sustained involvement in the

revolutionary quest for a “new” China. The author pays particular attention to the

implementation of policy and citizens’ attempts at adaptation and resistance.

SHUK-WAH POON 潘淑華 is assistant professor of history at Lingnan University, Hong Kong.