Why Public Security Bureaus Contain Protestant House Churches

Abstract

This chapter empirically accounts for why local public security bureaus contain Protestant house churches in Chinese cities. Public security bureaus have incentives to contain house churches rather than using an alternative, and possibly more forceful, strategy. Not only do Protestant church leaders have political and religious beliefs that are reconcilable with regime resilience, but they are also survival-seekers inclined to cooperate with local state actors to ensure their congregations’ safety. Public security bureaus also contain Protestant house churches, as they are part of incohesive networks, both domestically and internationally, and lack the capacity to organize large-scale mobilization as a result.