Protestant and online: the case of Aiyan

Abstract

This article presents Aiyan, an electronic house church publication, as a case study of a resistance community using up-to-date technology in the dual context of China’s modernization and government repression. Based on detailed content analysis supported by results from fieldwork, the article introduces Aiyan’s background as an underground publication, its online existence, its visual character, its content and its aims. It then proceeds to analyse Aiyan’s attempts at identity formation within the complex realities of religious activity in China and finally identifies five main areas of political engagement within Aiyan: freedom of religious belief and legalization of status; rights awareness and rights education; defiance of the regime; rural-urban co-operation; and engagement of liberal intellectuals. The article concludes with an evaluation of the possible influence this sector of the house church community may have on China’s political transformation.