The Relationship Between the Christian Universities and the Nationalist Government During the Sino-Japanese War

Abstract

China’s Christian universities had to encounter several critical situations in China, including the Anti-Christian movement, the Re-claim China’s Right of Education movement, as well as the demand of their national identity during the Sino-Japanese war- by being loyal to the Chinese government especially during the wartime. The author of this paper, Prof. Liu Jiafeng attempts a comprehensive study of how China’s Christian universities survived during the long years of resistance against the Japanese invasion in the 1930s and 1940s. Over the period of the Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) the relationship between the Christian universitiesChristian universities and the Nationalist government became much closer. Their loyalty to the Nationalist government, service to the country by keeping alive the lifeblood of education during the war and efforts to disseminate news about the War in the United StatesUnited States, all gained much recognition and appreciation from the government. In response, the government gave greater freedom in their management especially in religious education and therefore they had greater space to develop in comparison to the period before the war. Yet as the government strengthened its control over higher education, the Christian universities faced the danger of losing some of their special features and their freedom of management, which resulted a range of tensions in the relationship. In their pursuit of greater freedom and their wish to emphasize general education, the Christian universities made efforts to communicate and converse with government. A post-war plan was even proposed during the war, to demonstrate their strong commitment and hope for the future of education in China.