“Cult,” Church, And the CCP - Introducing Eastern Lightning

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Authors Note: Sincere thanks to Professor Daniel Bays and a second reader for their helpfulreviews of this article, and to Anne McLaren and Antonia Finnane for commenting on earlierversions. I am grateful also to a Hong Kong friend for providing research materials, and to Tianfengs editorial board for permission to reproduce the illustration that appears as Figure 1.

Cult, Church, and the CCPIntroducing Eastern LightningEmily C. DunnAsia InstituteThe University of Melbourne

Eastern Lightning, also known as the Church of Almighty God, teaches thatJesus has returned to earth as a Chinese woman. It originated in Chinas ruralnorth in the early 1990s and is now the largest Christian-related new religiousmovement. This article provides an introduction to the groups beliefs, andthe ways the Chinese government and Chinese Protestants have responded toit. It finds that while posing a very contemporary challenge for the Chinesestate and Protestant communities, Eastern Lightning also reflects the influ-ence of heterodox religious traditions that stretch back far into Chinas past.

Keywords: Eastern Lightning; religion; heterodoxy; cult; Christianity

In April 2002, thirty-four leaders of a Protestant house church networkwere kidnapped by a Christian-related new religious movement popu-larly known as Eastern Lightning, and held against their will for severalweeks in an attempt by the movement to convert them. While all were even-tually released, the scale and audacity of the act shocked many in theChinese Protestant community; the China Gospel Fellowship (Zhonghuafuyin tuanqi) set up a website largely devoted to recounting it.1 Indeed, sucha dramatic event captures the imagination and invites inquiry. What doesEastern Lightning believe? How is it organized, and how does it relate toreligious and political authorities? In addressing these questions, this arti-cle finds that while posing a very contemporary challenge for the Chinesestate and Protestant communities, Eastern Lightning also reflects the influ-ence of religious traditions stretching back far into Chinas past.

Eastern Lightning (Dongfang shandian), also known as the Church ofAlmighty God (Quannengshen jiaohui) and Real God or Practical God

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Dunn / Cult, Church, and the CCP 97

(Shijishen), is said to have been founded by a man named Zhao Weishan.2 Thegroup emerged from Henan province in the early 1990s. Reports of EasternLightning began to appear in Chinese Protestant media around the same time,and it was formally identified as a cult by the Ministry of Public Security in1995. Eastern Lightning currently claims to have tens of thousands of congre-gations throughout China and millions of members (Birth and Developmentof the Church, 2006). While observersestimates are more conservative, thereseems agreement that, true to its name, Eastern Lightning has spread rapidlyacross Protestant communities in rural North China.3

Eastern Lightnings Cosmology

Eastern Lightning and other heterodox Protestant movements areincreasingly recognized in Western academic circles as significant to con-temporary Chinese religious and political life, but have yet to be studied indepth (Bays, 2003; Madsen, 2003; Chung et al., 2006). ResearchingEastern Lightning is complicated by the fact that it is suppressed in Chinaand there do not appear to be substantial numbers of adherents elsewhere.However, the groups literature can be downloaded from its websites, andcomparison of these versions with hard copies distributed by EasternLightning in the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) confirms that the con-tent on the web is the same as the material circulating on the ground.4 Thesetexts can thus be regarded as representing the groups official doctrine,even if they cannot tell us how individuals interpret them.

Eastern Lightnings cosmology is presented in its sacred writingsahefty tome entitled The Word Appeared in the Flesh (n.d.) (Hua zai roushenxianxian).5 Chinese Protestant reports of Eastern Lightning confirm thatadherents regard this volume as canonical, and believe it to have been writ-ten by Eastern Lightnings deity, the Almighty God or Female Christ (a sec-ond incarnation of Jesus; see below). The titles of the scripture havechanged over time as new pronouncements have been added; this may alsoassist the group in evading detection by public security organs. Earlier ver-sions of Eastern Lightnings scripture have included the titles Lightningfrom the East (Dongfang fachu de shandian) and The Holy Spirit Speaks tothe Churches (Shengling xiang zhong jiaohui shuohua).

Chinese Protestant literature portrays Eastern Lightning scripture as theravings of an uneducated and mentally unstable person (Jing, 2002: 13334;Zhang Dakai, n.d.: 16). The scriptures are indeed written in a colloquialstyle, and in places are long-winded and repetitive. However, it must be

remembered that the sources that address them are without exception writ-ten by opponents of the movement. Eastern Lightning has been labeled anevil cult (xiejiao) by both the Chinese state and Protestants, and commen-tators emphasize its distance from social, political, and religious norms.

The name Eastern Lightning is derived from the groups use of a versein the biblical gospel of Matthew (24:27), in which Jesus talks about hisfuture return to earth and the end of the age: For as lightning that comesfrom the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Sonof Man.6 Eastern Lightning interprets this as prophesying that a secondincarnation of God will come from China (the east), and that its teachingswill eventually spread to Western nations. Christ is proclaimed to havereturned in the form of the Female Christ (n jidu); Genesis 1:27 (SoGod created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him;male and female he created them.) is alluded to in arguing that God is bothmindful of women, and is also partly female himself:

Supposing, when God became flesh, he only came as a male, wouldntpeople decide that God was a man and that he was a mans God? They wouldnever think that he was a womans God too. Then men would think of Godas having the male gender and as being the head of men. What about women?This wouldnt be fair. Wouldnt it be biased? In this way, all those that Godsaves would be men like he is, and no women would be saved. When Godcreated mankind, he created Adam and Eve. He didnt only create Adam, butcreated Adam and Eve according to his image. God isnt only the Lord ofmen. He is also the God of women. (Vision of the Work, n.d.)

While the doctrine of the Female Christ is central to Eastern Lightningscosmology, the female nature of God is less prominent in EasternLightnings writings than outsiders commentaries on the group would leadone to believe. As evident in the above quotation, scriptures write more ofthe Almighty God than the Female Christ and usually refer to God inmale terms. In early 2006, the English translation of Eastern Lightningscripture began to use she and her to refer to God, but only sporadi-cally; the Chinese text still uses the masculine forms.7

Eastern Lightning sources do not reveal the precise identity of theFemale Christ. Biographical information is scant, though we are told thatshe is a virgin and participated in a house church (or family gathering)prior to the formation of the group. The Female Christ apparently looksjust the same as an ordinary person (Church of Almighty God, 2006: 85,415, 467); the most extensive description of her upbringing in northernChina likewise emphasizes its ordinariness:

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Christ was born into an ordinary family in the northern part of China. Eversince she was a child, she has known in her heart that there is a God. Shegradually grew up as an ordinary person does. In 1989 when the Holy Spiritwas doing great works in family gatherings, Christ dropped out of school andformally entered the family church.8 (A Brief Introduction, 2006)

Some reports claim that the Female Christ worshipped by devotees isa Chinese woman with the surname Deng who failed her universityentrance exam, was subsequently possessed by a demon and suffered amental breakdown, and now lives in secrecy in a cave in Henan (Forney,2001; Jing, 2002: 130; Zhang Dakai, n.d.: 7). This description bears strik-ing resemblance to that of earlier sectarian leaders such as Hong Xiuquan,and the likeness may be invoked by detractors to cast doubt on EasternLightnings credibility. However, Eastern Lightnings website vehementlydenies that the Female Christ is a Miss Deng of Henan (Analyzing andRefuting the Four Main Rumors, 2004), and there is no mention of awoman named Deng in Eastern Lightning scripture. While there may, then,be some divergence between the writings of Eastern Lightning and thebeliefs of adherents in China, this would be by far the most significant devi-ation to my knowledge.

In Eastern Lightnings texts, the advent of the Female Christ is repre-sented as the culmination of six thousand years of divine work. EasternLightning holds that the Almighty God has implemented a six thousandyear management plan (liuqiannian jingying jihua) and that his interactionwith humankind has been marked by stages. According to EasternLightning, in the Age of Law (lfa shidai), God revealed himself as Yahweh,guiding the Israelites (as per the Old Testament). In the Age of Grace(endian shidai), God revealed himself as Jesus and suffered crucifixion toredeem humankind (as per the New Testament), but did not rid humans oftheir sinful nature. In these end times known as the Age of the Kingdom(guodu shidai), God has revealed himself as the Almighty God and theFemale Christ, and has come to perfect humans by conquering them:

. . . as Yahweh was Gods name in the Age of the Law, in the Age of Grace,the name Jesus represented God; in the end times, his name is Almighty God.He is the Almighty, and he guides man by his power. He conquers man andpossesses man and eventually ends the ages. In each age, and in each stageof the work, all can see Gods nature. (Vision of the Work, n.d.)

The antithesis of the Almighty God is the devil Satan, whom EasternLightning says has become embodied as a great red dragon. This follows


the book of Revelation, which records an apocalyptic vision in which agreat red dragon (da honglong) represents the devil (chap. 12). EasternLightnings texts identify the red dragon with the Chinese Communist Party(CCP) and its suppression of the group; an About Us statement onEastern Lightnings website describes China as the land in which the greatred dragon is entrenched and a fortress of the demons and a prison con-trolled by the devil (A Brief Introduction, 2006; see also Expansion ofthe Work, 2006).

Eastern Lightning is not the first heterodox Protestant group to featurethe big red dragon in its cosmology; Hong Xiuquan, leader of the TaipingRebellion, also developed his idea of the devil with reference to the dragonor old serpent of Revelation (Boardman, 1952: 8082; Shih, 1961: 16).Christians in contemporary China have sometimes equated the dragon ofthe Bible with that of Chinese traditions, and interpreted national misfor-tunes and individual maladies as evidence of Gods displeasure at venera-tion of the dragon (Geng, 2004; Wang, 1985). Tales abound of piousChristians smashing housewares that bear the dragon motif, and somereportedly preach that as descendents of the dragon (long de chuanren),Chinese people are particularly sinful (Wan, 1997; Zhao, 1996: iv).

Nor are Eastern Lightning adherents the first to be charged with com-paring the CCP with the devil-dragon; some Protestant preachers wereaccused of this in the late 1950s (Liaoning sheng, 1957: 4; Zhejiangsheng, 1957: 18), and in the early 1980s, the China Christian Councilsmagazine reported that Protestants were using the dragon to engage incounterrevolutionary propaganda (Wang, 1983). Eastern Lightnings treat-ment of the dragon is thus a fine example of the ways in which its cosmol-ogy engages with both Chinese Protestant and broader cultural traditions.

Eastern Lightning presents its teachings as fulfilling the prophecies ofboth Old and New Testaments, but also argues that overzealous adherenceto the Bible and misinterpretation of it prevent Christians from acceptingGods new work (A Statement about the Bible, n.d.). Protestant sourcesengage in theological critique of Eastern Lightnings cosmology, highlight-ing its divergence from conventional Christian and biblical teaching. Whilenot attempting such an examination here, it is worth noting that EasternLightning doctrine does indeed depart from Christian canon. The represen-tation of God as having a different nature and executing different agendasin three different ages, for example, is at odds with the Christian belief inthe immutability of Gods nature and the continuity of his purposes and hisplan for the salvation of humankind throughout history. Eastern Lightningsdoctrinal reliance on new revelations would also seem inconsistent with the

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Christian upholding of Jesus life, death, and resurrection and the biblicalrecord as the basis of religious knowledge.

Furthermore, many elements of Eastern Lightnings worldview are con-gruent with those of popular religions. The doctrine of the three ages, forexample, resonates with the division of history into three cosmic eras(kalpic cycles) by millenarian sects and secret societies, most notably fromthe late Ming period. These groups referred to the world in which they livedas the Eastern Land (Dongtu; Overmyer, 1976: 135), and believed that adivine representative was dispatched to bring people back to the EternalMother (Wusheng Laomu) during each era (Naquin, 1976: 9; Overmyer,1976: 139). She had dispatched the Lamp-lighting Buddha in the past (theperiod of green [qing] yang), the Sakyamuni Buddha in the present(the period of red yang), and would send the Buddha Maitreya in the future(the period of white yang) (Li, [1948] 1990: 32). The elements of the east,a female deity, and three cosmic eras each with a divine messenger sent bya parent deity thus feature in the cosmologies of both Eastern Lightning andearlier Chinese religious traditions.

In concluding his study of folk Buddhist sects, Overmyer called forfuture scholarship to explore, among others, the question How did teach-ings about Jesus and the church look to one raised in a belief context ofmother goddesses, charismatic healers and hope for a future saviour?(1976: 2034). Studies of Christianity in contemporary China have pointedto areas of convergence between Christianity and popular religious tradi-tions in seeking to account for rural communities embracing of it. Madsen,for example, has observed similarities between Catholics conceptualizationof the Virgin Mary and White Lotus groups fascination with the EternalMother (2003: 27778; see also Bays, 2003: 49697; Hunter and Chan,1993: chap. 4; Rubinstein, 1996). Consideration of Eastern Lightnings cos-mology may likewise help us in addressing Overmyers question.

The Organization of Eastern Lightning

The growth and development of Eastern Lightning has been facilitatednot only by the syncretic nature of its beliefs, but also by its organizationalstructure and norms of participation. Information about the organization ofEastern Lightning can be extracted from the Handbook of Principles forChurch Work (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce), which is distributed tochurch leaders and was available online in early 2006. The principal officesin the church hierarchy are Inspector (Jianchayuan), Regional Leader


(Qu dailing), Coordinator (Banshiyuan), Subregional Leader (Xiaoqu dailing),Subregional Pastoral Worker (Xiaoqu jiaoguan jiaohui zhi ren), ChurchLeader (Jiaohui dailing), and Deacon for Evangelism (Chuan fuyin zhishi).The primary responsibilities of each are to report to their superiors, and tosupervise and guide those under their care into the Truth (Jiaohuigongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 1). Such a configuration enablesEastern Lightning to coordinate activities across regions and maintain ameasure of internal cohesion.

Chinese reports of Eastern Lightning and other cults often cite theirfinancial resources and overseas connections as evidence of their subver-sive threat (Announcement, [2000] 2003: 80); such discourses are con-sistent with the anti-imperialist ideology promulgated by the state andregistered religious associations since the early 1950s. The source of fund-ing for the books and compact discs that Eastern Lightning distributes tobelievers and prospective recruits is not clear; church regulations state thatbelievers are not required to contribute financially to the church becausemost are poor peasants, though their contributions are accepted if they areparticularly eager to give (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 6).Eastern Lightnings founder reportedly moved to the United States in the1990s (Aikman, 2003: 243) and its homepage gives contact details in NewYork state, so it is possible that finances for the publishing work and inter-net sites are secured by a small number of believers there. There is, how-ever, no other clear evidence of international linkages.

Eastern Lightning exhibits strong norms of participation. Proselytizingis presented as a central part of religious life and a duty common to allbelievers; certainly, the movement could not have grown without memberssharing their faith (Shixing zhenli, n.d.). As is discussed below, this oftenoccurs through kinship and friendship networks, but Eastern Lightning alsodispatches evangelists throughout China, suggesting a significant capacityfor mobilization and organization across time and space.

Other religious activities, too, involve high levels of commitment.Eastern Lightnings anonymous leadership suggests, but does not stipulate,that each congregation meet three times per week for two hours at a time(Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 24). The Plans for ChurchLife in 2006 (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 24) suggeststhat each service open with prayer and hymns. Only hymns approved by theupper levels of Eastern Lightnings hierarchy are permitted to be sung;these are circulated among the congregations in book and/or CD format(Gensuizhe gaoyang chang xinge, n.d.).9 As the service continues,members listen to a reading of Eastern Lightning scripture followed by a

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sermon. There then follows a time of fellowship (jiaotong), during whichmembers of the congregation are encouraged to speak, presumably to sharetheir reflections on the passage just heard or their own religious experience.After this, the service may conclude with more hymns and another prayer.Many of these activities are congruent with common Protestant styles ofworship, but probably provide more opportunity for participation than thoseProtestant services that are attended by large numbers of believers.

Despite Eastern Lightnings organizational capacity, there is also evi-dence that churches are afforded a significant degree of discretion andautonomy in their religious practices:

There are many kinds of meeting styles: singing hymns, dancing, praying,and consuming Gods Word can all be used creatively. . . . Each church is toarrange how many times per week it will meet. You can meet more in theagricultural slack season; in the future, when the [security] environment per-mits, you can also have large meetings. The churches themselves are incharge of these matters; the upper levels do not plan them. (Jiaohui gongzuoyuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 10.3)

Such decentralization is consistent with the organization of both folkProtestantism and other religions in rural areas, and reinforced by practicalconsiderations. The small size, high frequency, and remote location of meet-ings complicate supervision; there are also security advantages in maintainingindependence. Thus, while accounts of Eastern Lightning present a picture ofa highly structured and well-oiled operation (for example, Wu, 2005: 103), itis likely that in practice, small groups of adherents go largely unmonitored bythe organizations leadership, paving the way for diversity in religious beliefand practice. Indeed, Eastern Lightning admonishes adherents against enter-ing into disputes, departing from church doctrine, and recruiting others to formfactions (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 24), suggesting that themovement is far from uniform and unified.

Cult and the CCP

The CCP, however, is not taking any chances. Tensions between ortho-dox and heterodox forces have an illustrious history in China. From theYellow Turbans of the Han dynasty to the Falun Gong vigil of 1999, reli-gious movements have demonstrated a capacity to command allegiance,generate social instability, and threaten hegemonic rulers. The Taiping


Rebellion (18511864) instructs us that heterodox Christian movements areno exception.

In a speech made in September 2000, Bi Rongsheng, the deputy direc-tor of the Religion Section of the Public Security Department in Hebeiprovince, warned colleagues:

In order to safeguard . . . state power and national security, we must heightenpolitical consciousness and take efficient measures to completely contain thespread of [Eastern Lightning]. Otherwise it will disturb peoples thought andseriously endanger the rule of the Party and socialist system as a result.(Announcement, [2000] 2003: 70)

The Chinese state views Eastern Lightningas other religious move-ments before itas challenging its authority, and hence as a target of sup-pression. As Eastern Lightning has been identified as a cult, it falls withinthe scope of legislative and administrative frameworks erected amidst themass anticult campaign against Falun Gong. In 1999, the National PeoplesCongress Legislative Resolution on Banning Heretical Cults confirmedthe illegality of heterodox organizations and called for the education andmobilization of all corners of society in preventing and fighting againstcult activities (Full Text, 1999); the State Councils Office for GuardingAgainst and Dealing With Cults (Fangfan he chuli xiejiao wenti bangong-shi) was established in February 2001 (Kupfer, 2004: 275). EasternLightning has been assessed as another evil force next to the cult FalunGong (Announcement, [2000] 2003: 66), and is subject to similar, iflower-profile, political and legal sanctions.

In his speech, Bi demonstrated the need to stamp out Eastern Lightning byalleging that it had planned an armed revolt in October 1999 (the fiftiethanniversary of the founding of the PRC), that its core members had beenlites of the 1989 Tiananmen Square incident, and that they had incited fol-lowers to pray there in anticipation of the end of the world (Announcement,[2000] 2003: 6869). Eastern Lightning does proclaim that Heaven is todestroy the Communist Party of China (Expansion of the Work, 2006).However, while other heterodox Protestant movements have staged protestsin rural areas (Chung et al., 2006), Eastern Lightnings official materialselsewhere prohibit members from participating in political activities, andcommand respect for the states rule (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce,2006: chaps. 15, 19).

These caveats are no doubt due in large part to an awareness of the costsof political rebellion. Eastern Lightning claims that government organs

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have persecuted, tortured, and/or murdered over one hundred thousand ofits members (Expansion of the Work, 2006; Birth and Development ofthe Church, 2006). While this is undoubtedly an exaggeration, the govern-ment does crack down on the group. Public security organs use secretagents to infiltrate Eastern Lightning and gather intelligence (Notice onFurther Strengthening, [1999] 2003: 63; Announcement, [2000] 2003:7071; Birth and Development of the Church, 2006); in response, EasternLightning instructs adherents to be wary of new church members and thosewho have recently been detained in case they inform authorities about thegroup. It also instructs adherents to meet only in groups of three to sevenpeople and to hide Eastern Lightning literature; leaders are told to leave theirhome areas, keep their names and addresses secret, and change telephonenumbers frequently (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chaps. 8, 15;Announcement, [2000] 2003: 68). Groups are not to stop meeting in timesof persecution, but rather to invent strategies to circumvent the authorities(Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 16.3); similar tactics havebeen adopted by unregistered house churches over the past few decades.

Eastern Lightning dismisses as slander government and Protestant accusa-tions that its own leaders commit fraud and rape and other acts of violence.Such allegations have been made of heterodox organizations since imperialtimes (Yang, 1961: 19496, 210), and have been reiterated in the flood ofanticult propaganda surrounding Falun Gong. While it is impossible to verifyor disprove them, it is worth noting that nobody outside Eastern Lightningincluding outside of the PRCactually supports or defends the group. This isin contrast to overseas sympathy for Falun Gong practitioners, and WesternChristians general concern for the religious freedom of fellow believers.

Government sources note that even when authorities make arrests andcrack down on Eastern Lightning nests, they often rise from the ashes(Bulletin, [1999] 2003: 47). Eastern Lightnings writings likewise confirmstudies of religious movements in contemporary China that have found gov-ernment suppression to be counterproductive (Ching, 2001: 17; Feuchtwang,2000: 172; Kindopp, 2002: 26465; Madsen, 2003: 280; Munro, 1989: 17),suggesting that suppression has only strengthened their beliefs:

The sufferings we underwent were rewarded. In the depths of our hearts, allof us have an even greater appreciation of the statement that Only God cando his work. God did not make it hard on us, let alone unbearable; he justgave us some small trials in the beginning and nothing more. We were deeplythankful for Gods guidance, help, care and protection. (Expansion of theWork, 2006, with some modification of translation).


In imperial times, Chinese lites perceived sectarian cosmology asthreatening because of popular belief in an intimate relationship betweenkalpic and dynastic cycles. The end of a kalpa was thought to signal the endof a dynasty, and so proclaiming its imminence was tantamount to proph-esying the demise of the ruling dynasty. The Confucian orthodoxy thusresponded to White Lotus and numerous other religious movements withfierce repression. The present Chinese regime similarly reads EasternLightning as threatening its reign. The dragon is eventually vanquished byangels in the Bible (Revelation 12:79), and so for Eastern Lightning tolink the CCP with the creature is tantamount not only to calling the partydemonic, but also to predicting its downfall.

Kindopp points out that the potency of Chinas evil cults lies not in theirpotential to topple the state, but in their ability to disturb the regimes symbolicorder (2002). While Eastern Lightning may lack the organizational and mili-tary resources to overthrow the CCP, its identification of the CCP with thedevilwho is soon to be destroyed by its Almighty Godcertainly chal-lenges the partys representation of itself as ushering in a harmonioussociety, and remains highly offensive to the regime. The persistence ofEastern Lightning in the face of state suppression is evidence that, in somecases, it is winning the battle for the hearts and minds of Christian peasants.

Cult and Church

The Chinese Protestant church has witnessed phenomenal growth overthe last quarter of a century. There were seven hundred thousandProtestants in 1949; today, the Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM =registered church) estimates sixteen million Protestants (ZhongguoJidujiao gaikuang, n.d.), while others suggest around eighty millionCatholics and Protestants (Aikman, 2003: 78). This Protestant fever(Jidujiao re) has been associated with millenarianism and belief in miracles(especially faith healing), and Eastern Lightning is but the most prolific ofmany new religious movements to have taken root within this milieu. TheShouters (Huhanpai) was the earliest, attracting attention in the early1980s; other groups have included the Established King (Beiliwang), theLord God Teachings (Zhushenjiao), the Efficacious Spirit Teachings(Linglingjiao), the Disciples (Mentuhui; also known as Narrow Gate in theWilderness, or Kuangye zhaimen), and the Three Grades of Servant(Sanban puren). Eastern Lightnings founder, Zhao Weishan, was formerlya member of the Shouters, and a (now superseded) About Us statement

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on Eastern Lightnings website acknowledged a link between the twogroups (Guanyu women, 2005).

Protestant communities have been concerned by Eastern Lightning (andsimilar new religious movements) because they consider it heretical, andbecause the vast majority of its converts are drawn from Protestant congre-gations. Eastern Lightning focuses on evangelizing Christians because theyare thought less likely than the general population to inform the authoritiesof their activities (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006), and no doubtalso because of cultural and religious similarities. Eastern Lightning tellsChristians that they are slaves to tradition who will be shut out of heaven:

If you do not seek the truth of life provided by the end-time Christ, you willnever be able to gain the commendation of Jesus, and you will never be qual-ified to enter in through the gate of the kingdom of heaven. (Only the End-time Christ, n.d.)

Eastern Lightning adherents believe that Gods displeasure withChristianity is additionally manifest as judgment here and now in the formof physical affliction. The publication Typical Cases of Leaders inCatholicism and Christianity in Mainland China Who Resist Almighty GodBeing Punished (2006) (Jidujiao gezong gepai didang quannengshen zaochengfa de dianxing shili) records the experiences of 887 Christianswhose illness or accident, often fatal, is interpreted as being Gods judg-ment on them for rejecting the Eastern Lightning message.10 The story of athirty-eight-year-old woman from Henan province reads as follows:

In 1998, people told [Sun] about Gods work in the end times on multipleoccasions, but she rejected it and went around spreading rumors and hinder-ing others from accepting the true way (zhendao). When someone preachedGods end-time work to her once more, she hurled abuse, saying: . . . Godwill surely punish you in days to come! You believe in an evil spirit, a falseChrist, Satan, the devil, a heretic, a deceiver. . . . On the night of December26, 1999, Sun X was returning home from Changge on the back of a pedicab(sanlunche) driven by her husband. When they passed by Yuzhou, she washooked by a big oncoming vehicle and dragged away. When her husbandfinally found her, all that remained was internal organs and bits of flesh scat-tered everywhere. Whoever blasphemes against God will definitely receiveretribution! (Jidujiao gezong gepai, 2005: no. 69)

Eastern Lightnings use of these testimonials in recruitment suggests thatthe prospect of avoiding illness and accident is a powerful incentive to join

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the movement for people in rural areas, where health care is frequentlyinadequate and unaffordable. Such messages resonate with Chinese reli-gious history; as early as the Han dynasty, popular sects attributed illnessand misfortune to immorality (Seiwert, 2003: 3839, 4750, 46869). Ona more positive note, membership in Eastern Lightning may afford thebeliever entry into a social network and supportive communityChristiansreport that evangelists are eager to help potential converts with householdchores, and Eastern Lightning instructs church leaders to provide food andclothing to members in need (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 1).Finally, Eastern Lightning adherents are promised an eternity in heaven.Scholars have related the growth of new religious movements in post-MaoChina to the alienation and marginalization of those left behind in thePRCs post-Deng economic boom (Munro, 1989); well before this, folkBuddhist sects provided mutual aid and offered the promise of salvation(Overmyer, 1981; also Seiwert, 2003: 46575). These factors seem also tobe at work in the growth of Eastern Lightning.

The Plans for Church Life in 2006 provides insight into EasternLightnings extensive recruitment efforts among Protestant congregations.It confirms reports that Eastern Lightning is most popular in Henan andAnhui, stating that the Gospel Work has basically finished in the vast areaof the central plains, but there is still much Work to be done in the outly-ing provinces (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 24). The itin-erant nature of some evangelism is evident as instructions for hostingevangelists from other provinces are given; host families are to provide upto four dishes per meal in prosperous areas, and just two dishes in poorareas (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 8.3).

While distant provinces are in need of proselytizing, Eastern Lightningadherents are instructed to focus on winning friends and family rather thanstrangers. The church handbook confirms that networks of personal con-nections (guanxi) are crucial to its growth:

In the past, several styles of evangelism have been used with success.Methods such as following people in the know, establishing connections(guanxi), making friends, kindly persuasion, building affection, using bothhard and soft tactics, and a mix of all kinds of different styles have all beenused to good effect in evangelism. . . . At the moment there are many mate-rials for evangelism; giving copies of Gods Word and hymns on CD and alsotestimonies is very beneficial. Lots of new people are coming in; we mustmake good use of newcomers guanxi networks so as to bring even morepeople in. We must conscientiously research and attend to each newcomersguanxi network, and use our experience to achieve the highest success


ratethis is the main tactic for evangelism. In fact, most new members aresourced from guanxi networks. (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 4)

Prospective members must gain the consent of the local leader beforebeing admitted to the church, but no entrance rituals are prescribed.Churches should guard against those who may inform the authorities of thegroup or are too evil or too leftist (guozuo): Provided the person is nottoo wicked, too bad, or too evil, and in their heart they truly believe that theAlmighty God is the Word become flesh, you should admit them into thechurch (Jiaohui gongzuo yuanze shouce, 2006: chap. 4).

Chinese Protestants portray Eastern Lightnings proselytizers as decep-tive infiltrators who reveal their belief system only after establishing rela-tionships within the church community, and prey on drastically misguidedbut essentially well-intentioned victims. Like secular sources, they alsoallege that Eastern Lightning sometimes resorts to abduction and violenceto win convertsbroken limbs and slashed ears were reportedly inflictedon nine Protestants in Henan province in 1998 (Jing, 2000; Zhu, 2003:17).11 Representative of these narratives is this from Anhui:

Beginning in 1998, the church met with attack from Lightning, and lots ofcoworkers (tonggong) and believers were confused and led astray. Over the lasttwo years, their influence has been everywhere in the towns and countryside.They use all sorts of ruses to attack the church and steal coworkers, such asbegging for food, pretending to be looking for someone, and mending shoesand umbrellas. Sometimes they even use threats and intimidation. (Yi, 2004)

Aside from Eastern Lightnings proselytizing strategy, the TSPM attrib-utes transmission of its teachings (and indeed all other manner of heresy)to the low suzhi (literally, quality) of Protestants in rural areas, whereEastern Lightning thrives and 70 to 80 percent of Chinese Protestants live.The need to improve believers quality of faith (xinyang suzhi) is widelypresented as one of the most pressing tasks confronting the Chinese church.At the Seventh National Christian Conference in 2002, the president of theChina Christian Council reported:

At present these heresies are mainly active in rural areas and small towns,because rural Christians educational level is lower and they lack a correctunderstanding of Christian truth; there is also a serious lack in rural villages ofpastors with theological training. These serious facts tell us that if we do notpay attention to rural church work, and strive to raise the quality of believersthere, the future of all Christianity in China will be affected. (Cao, 2002a: 17)

The rise of Eastern Lightning and Christians poor suzhi is thus relatedto Chinas shortage of trained ministers. In 2006, just 878 students gradu-ated from various theological training courses to serve the sixteen millionProtestants recognized by the TSPM. Of these, sixty-six were from a two-year theology course in Henan, which has over one million Protestants(Bible School and Theological Seminary Graduates, 2006). That theChina Gospel Fellowship leaders kidnapped in 2002 were lured intoEastern Lightnings trap by the false promise of much-needed training froma theological institute in Singapore reflects a similar state of affairs in housechurches (China Gospel Fellowship, 2002). One Christian told how InnerMongolians desire to learn about God enabled Eastern Lightning to pene-trate communities there:

Were very poor here, and lacking in spiritual resources, but our brothers andsisters have a real thirst for the Lord. Concerning those who come here fromelsewhere to teach the Bible, brothers and sisters come swarming, and forgetthat they should discern whether what theyre being taught is correct. Heresyoften infiltrates through this. Inner Mongolians are very hospitable and solic-itous toward guests from elsewhere. Providing food and accommodation isthe least they will do. So it was easy for Eastern Lightnings people to infil-trate the clans and steal believers, and many fellow Protestants turned tothem. (Dongfang shandian rongyi shenru Neimenggu, 2004)

Protestant churches believe that their flocks are less likely to fall forEastern Lightnings tricks given proper teaching, and thus theologicaleducation programs are an important part of the churches campaign againstheterodoxy. The China Christian Council has launched training centers forvolunteers and held courses for grassroots evangelists; it has also releasedseveral books and published numerous articles in its magazine, Tian feng,which expound the basics of Christianity and the dangers and doctrinal pit-falls of heresies (yiduan) (Jing, 2002; Luo, 2004: 95; Zhao, 1996).

A cartoon strip, Sister Martha (Mada zimei), which appeared in issuesof Tian feng for several years beginning in 1997, is reminiscent of Maoistpropaganda in its promotion of a model citizen to be emulated by themasses, and exemplifies the mobilization of the patriotic churchs educativeapparatus in its struggle against heterodoxy. Its heroine, Martha, is a coop-erative churchgoer (reminding her Christian brothers and sisters to be punc-tual and dress appropriately for services) and a Good Samaritan (hercompassion symbolized by the radiant heart she holds in the serials logo;see Figure 1), and also demonstrates unfailing devotion to the TSPM andthe CCP. This includes espousing their views on questions of orthodoxy and

110 Modern China

normal religious activities; in 1999, Martha dismissed Falun Gongsbeliefs as heretical and rejoiced at the governments legal protection of reli-gious practices (Mao, 1999). Indeed, the creator of the series has stated thatone of its aims is to help Protestants to identify heresies (yiduan xieshuo)(Mao, 2001).

In May 1998, Martha appeared in the cartoon Dont believe lightly(Qie wu qing xin), warning her peers against speculation about Jesus sec-ond coming (Mao, 1998; see Figure 1). The first and second frames of thecartoon depict Martha urging others not to believe predictions about Jesusreturn. In the third frame, Marthas peers come to her, confused by litera-ture that reads Jesus is coming soon. Jesus told me that you should giveyour money to me, stop work and await his coming. I am sent by him . . .Martha tells them it is heresy. The final frame shows Martha resolving herpeers confusion once and for all by opening a Bible to the verses Acts 1:11( . . . He will come back in the same way you have seen him go intoheaven) and Matthew 25:13 (Therefore keep watch, because you do notknow the day or the hour), which the final caption echoes.

Mao Songen, the series author and illustrator, chose the biblical char-acter of Martha as a role model for Chinas Protestants because of herrecognition of Jesus as the Messiah and her diligent Christian service (Mao,2001; see John 11:27). The irony of this choice is that in the Bible, Marthawas also rebuked by Jesus for being preoccupied with tasks of hospitalitywhen he visited her home instead of listening to his teaching like her sister(Luke 10:3842). House churches and their overseas supporters imply thatthe TSPM shares Marthas weakness: that its desire to serve society hasbeen at the cost of promoting the central Christian message of justificationthrough faith (see, for example, Fu, 2003: 8).

Indeed, while all Protestants deplore Eastern Lightning, differences inthe way this is expressed reflect broader cleavages. The TSPMs discour-agement of Eastern Lightningstyle millenarian speculation is couched inProtestant discourses, but the influence of its commitment to the unitedfront on its war on cults can be seen as it describes heterodox Christiangroups as disturbing social order, antigovernment, and unpatriotic(Resolution on Opposing Evil Cults, 2002). In addition, some of theTSPMs efforts against heresies over the past decade have occurred underthe auspices of its project of Theological Reconstruction, which TSPMpatriarch K. H. Ting (Ding Guangxun) has stated aims to respond to JiangZemins call to actively lead religion into mutual adaptation with socialistsociety:


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Some things unsuitable to socialist society that were drawn out of faith in thepast should be set aside, or at least be downplayed, while at the same time,we should as much as possible draw out things which can be beneficial to asocialist society. And that is why today we are promoting theological con-struction. (Ting, 2000: 23)12

TSPM representatives have argued that in addition to making Protestantismmore compatible with contemporary Chinese political and social life,Theological Reconstruction will help to address the problem of heresies(for example, Zhang, 2004: 3136). Indeed, discussions held under the ban-ner of Theological Reconstruction have included such topics as the secondcoming, divine revelation, miracles, and even the Chinese dragon (Cao,2002b; Zhang, 2002: 9798). However, while the TSPM insists thatTheological Reconstruction will preserve the essence of Christianity, crit-ics have characterized the program as heretical because of its attempt to

Figure 1Qie wu qing xin (Dont Believe Lightly)


dilute (danhua) the doctrine of justification through faith in the Chinesechurch (Chen, 2003; Kindopp, 2004: chap. 7). Thus, orthodoxy is contestedwithin Chinese Protestantism, as well as between Protestant groups andnew religious movements such as Eastern Lightning.

Eastern Lightning has targeted unregistered churches at least asintensely as it has the TSPM. Unregistered churches, too, have devotedresources to combat Eastern Lightning, distributing literature (for example,Zhang Dakai, n.d.) and conducting training classes to equip their memberswith the doctrinal and rhetorical tools to rebut heretical teachings. Onehandbook used in such courses is divided into twelve lessons, each ofwhich concludes with Bible verses or a jingle (shunkouliu). The jingle thatsummarizes the chapter entitled Eastern Lightnings Tricks cites exam-ples of its members moral and theological deviance and urges Protestantsto resist the Female Christ:

Eastern Lightning employs bad tricks,Misleading people and telling lies.They deceive Protestants who love the Lord,Using false names and addresses.

They feign devotion to gain trust,And change their materials frequently.They have the gall to tamper with the Ten Commandments;13If you refuse to follow them you will be harshly criticized.

They speak recklessly of the day of judgment,And buy allegiancehow outrageous!They use marriage to pull people in,And their promiscuity is frightful.

They fake exorcisms to hoodwink people;Their acting ability is really not bad.Hold fast to the truth and refute Her,Believers who belong to God shall defeat Her.(Fangbei bianbo yiduan, n.d.: 82)

House churches have been affected by government crackdowns onEastern Lightning, which have in some areas resulted in indiscriminatelabeling of them as cults. However, we might also wonder whether theexistence of groups such as Eastern Lightning may engender not onlygreater cooperation between registered and unregistered churches, but alsogreater freedom for house churches. After all, in 2002, representatives of

the China Gospel Fellowship reported the kidnapping to authorities inBeijing and received a sympathetic audience (China Gospel Fellowship,2002). Perhaps, if only in some instances, authorities may be persuaded byhouse churches that they are a preferable alternative to evil cults, and thatreleasing pressure on them will be mutually beneficial as both church andstate seek to curb the spread of groups such as Eastern Lightning.

The writings of Eastern Lightning and Protestant communities reflect awarlike mentality, drawing on Ephesians 6:1017, which urges the earlychurch: Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your standagainst the devils schemes. The war between Eastern Lightning and itsChristian detractors takes place primarily in rural churches and households,and is fought mostly in the intellectual and spiritual realms. Both partiesbelieve that they will ultimately prevail, that they have God on their side,and that the events unfolding will have eternal consequences. This makesfor an intense conflict.

Concluding Remarks

Buried among the hundreds of testimonies published by EasternLightning is one that deserves special attention. Xie Qiang writes fromHenan that he was formerly a group leader in the China Gospel Fellowship(Xie, 2005). He recalls that in mid-April 2002the time at which thirty-four members of the Fellowship were kidnappedhe was sent to Qingdaofor theological training. On the third day of the course, he realized that hisinstructors were Eastern Lightning evangelists and feared for his safety, butto his surprise, they patiently endured his insults and spent thirteen daystelling him about the Female Christ and the division of Gods work into dif-ferent stages. Xies testimony ends with him putting his faith in theAlmighty God and urging the reader to do likewise.

The case of Eastern Lightning suggests that for the CCP and Protestantcommunities, dealing with heterodoxy is far more difficult than is impliedby Sister Marthas decisive resolution of her peers confusion (figure 1).While the state has successfully quashed several Christian-related groups inthe past and may yet prove able to suppress Eastern Lightning, the phe-nomenon of heterodox Christianity in China seems unlikely to disappear inthe near future. Deviant groups have risen and fallen over the past twentyyears, but some form of heterodox Protestantism has persisted. This is notsurprising given the historical resilience of Chinese heterodox sects. WhileEastern Lightnings thunder may eventually fade, then, heterodox

114 Modern China

Christianity is likely to endure; though the Chinese state and Protestantcommunities are determined to defeat it, they are in for a very long battle.

Notes1. The China Gospel Fellowships website is at www.chinaforjesus.com (accessed Nov.

27, 2006).2. While Eastern Lightnings materials make no mention of Zhao Weishan, all other

sources credit him with founding the movement.3. In this article, I use the term Protestant to refer to registered and unregistered

churches that are generally accepted by other believers as Protestant. I describe EasternLightning and other new religious movements as heterodox Protestant or Protestant-related because while they clearly draw on Protestant culture, they depart significantly fromit and are condemned and suppressed by both the state and mainstream Protestants. In manycases, the boundaries between the two categories are unclear and contested. Nevertheless, it isimportant to recognize the differing relationships these groups have with Protestant traditions,as they themselves do.

4. Eastern Lightnings website is currently at www.hidden-advent.org. On EasternLightnings use of the internet, see Dunn, 2007.

5. I have obtained a hard copy of this volume and other Eastern Lightning publications,but cite web addresses rather than page numbers in this article so as to facilitate the readersaccess to the material.

6. The biblical quotations in this article are as given by the New International Version(NIV).

7. Compare, for example, Dui shen xian shi zuogong de renshi with The Knowledgeof Gods Present Work (2006). This and other excerpts of Eastern Lightning scripture weretranslated into English in early 2006 under the title The Scroll That the Lamb Opened(Church of Almighty God, 2006).

8. Family church (jiating jiaohui) is more commonly translated as house church;family gatherings (jiating juhui) may also be translated as house-church gatherings.

9. Eastern Lightnings hymns can also be downloaded in MP3 format from its website.They consist of passages of Eastern Lightnings scripture and believers spiritual reflectionsset to tunes borrowed from such sources as folk songs, popular television and movie themes,and songs used for patriotic education from the 1950s onward. I am indebted to Haiqing Yufor her help in verifying this.

10. The number 888 is generally considered auspicious in China; the fact that the numberof testimonies in the collection (887) is one short of this no doubt highlights the misfortune ofthe books subjects to its readers.

11. Madsen (2003: 27980) recounts an instance of a Catholic slashing the ear of a fellowbeliever and notes that it imitates a disciple slashing the ear of a servant of the high priests atJesus arrest. This suggests that the action has become a means of retribution for perceivedbetrayal of faith among Christian-related religious cultures, albeit seldom employed.

12. Theological Reconstruction (shenxue sixiang jianshe, sometimes translated asTheological Construction) became a major project of the TSPM at the Sixth NationalChristian Conference in November 1998.

13. Refers to Eastern Lightnings Shen xuanmin bixu zunshou de shitiao xingzheng(Ten items of administration that Gods elect must observe, n.d.).


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Emily Dunn is writing her dissertation on heterodoxy in contemporary Chinese Protestantismat the University of Melbourne. She can be contacted at [email protected].


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Documents

“Cult,” Church, And the CCP - Introducing Eastern Lightning