To confront or to collaborate? Reviewing the state-protestant relations in post-1997 Hong Kong

Abstract

The relationship between Christian churches and the government authorities are categorized into three major forms: the contractual relationship with the situation of the church being channelized by the government, the critical opposition adopted by some progressive Christians for promoting sociopolitical reforms, and the active collaboration with the government authorities by a number of pastoral leaders. The qualitative study on post-1997 State-Protestant relations was conducted for the purposes of examining the maintenance of contractual relationship by the SAR government, the Protestants’ responses to the SAR government, and progressive Protestants’ activism for democratization in Hong Kong. An in-depth interview and a documentary content analysis from relevant newspapers, websites, and books were used. The results revealed that there are evident manipulations by the SAR government in their pursuit of centralizing its political influence. In response to the SAR government, active collaboration with government officials and even Mainland authorities has become manifest. Furthermore, the rise of pro-moral evangelical activism in post-1997 Hong Kong revealed the delicate relations with pro-Beijing politicians due to ideological coincidence. However, a number of progressive Protestants joined together and critically participated in the social and political reforms. The study implied the complicated model of post-1997 State-Protestant relations involving various parties, especially the complex camp of commonly called “religious right,” as well as the importance of the churches as a component of civil society in Hong Kong.