World Christianity and Marxism

199 Pages·1998·10.36 MB·English

by  Denis R. Janz

World Christianity
and Marxism
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World Christianity
and Marxism
DENIS R. JANZ
New York Oxford
Oxford University Press
1998
Oxford University Press
Oxford New York
Athens Auckland Bangkok Bogota Bombay Buenos Aires
Calcutta Cape Town Dar es Salaam Delhi Florence Hong Kong
Istanbul Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madras Madrid Melbourne
Mexico City Nairobi Paris Singapore Taipei Tokyo Toronto Warsaw
and associated companies in
Berlin Ibadan
Copyright © 1998 by Denis R. Janz
Published by Oxford University Press, Inc.
198 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10016
Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,
without the prior permission of Oxford University Press.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
lanz, Denis.
World Christianity and Marxism / Denis R. Janz.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-19-511944-4
1. Communism and Christianity—History. I. Title.
HX536.J28 1998
261.2'1—dc21 97-22760
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 21
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
For my Dubrovnik colleagues
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Acknowledgments
In an age of increasing scholarly specialization, this book is an audacious project.
No single person could claim expertise on its global subject matter. My impru-
dence in undertaking such a study springs not from hubris but from the convic-
tion that it is ultimately the responsibility of the academy to go beyond analysis
of the minutiae to attempt to make sense of the whole, in other words, to find
meaning and direction in human history and to do so in a format accessible to
the average educated person. What I have rediscovered along the way is the
enormous generosity of academics the world over.
First among these are my colleagues at the annual Future of Religion seminar
in Dubrovnik, Croatia. For twelve years, the themes dealt with in this book were
discussed and debated by this international group of scholars, in nearly ideal
circumstances and under the spirited leadership of Rudolf Siebert. Among them,
Srdan Vrcan, Nikola Skledar, Mislav Kukoc, Jasminka Laznjak, James Reimer,
Edmund Arens, Gottfried Kuenzlen, Jan Fennema, Marko Orsolic, Nonka To-
dorova, Dimitrina Merdjanova, Tatjana Senyushkina, Andras Csanady, Aurelia
Margaretic, Marinko Cvjeticanin, Vic Hummert, Vesna Terzic, Robert van der
Gucht, and Tadeusz Chomicki deserve to be mentioned. It is to them that this
book is dedicated.
Other debts of gratitude cannot go unmentioned. For scholarly help and hos-
pitality in Poland, I thank Lidia and Jarek Kulikowski. For the same in Moscow,
Natalia Liubomirova, Lev Metrokhin, Valentin Tolstyk, and Raisa Fomina must
be mentioned. In the case of Albania, the late Gjon Sinishta's advice was inval-
viii Acknowledgments
liable, and in Albania, Agim Prodani, Adem Mezini, Gezim Hadaj, Lindita Bupci,
Gjerj Vata S.J., and Marian Paloka were of enormous help. Ewing (Bud) Carrol
Jr. introduced me to China before I ever got there, and once I arrived I received
an extraordinary welcome and indispensable insight from church leaders Xu
Ming Han, Cao Sheng-jie, Chen Zemin, Hua Yao-Zeng, Shen De-Rong, Yin
Xiang, and Shen Bao-Zhi; from Pastors Li Lancheng, Yang An-ding, Qigui Shi,
Shen Chen-en; from government officials He Quan Gang and Yuan Zi-Li; and
from scholars Lei Yutian, Ye Lu-hua, Luo Wei Hong, Yan Ke-jia, Ge Zhuang,
and Ni Hui Liang.
At my home institution, Loyola University, New Orleans, Academic Vice Pres-
ident George Lundy S.J., and his successor Provost David Danahar facilitated this
project at every stage.
To all of the above, my heartfelt appreciation!
New Orleans, Louisiana D. R. J.
October 1997
Contents
Chapter 1 Introduction 3
Chapter 2 The Marxist Assault on Religion: Intellectual
Foundations 6
Chapter 3 The Christian World's Reaction: From the Communist
Manifestoo to the Cold War 16
Chapter 4 The USSR 31
Chapter 5 The United States 52
Chapter 6 Poland 68
Chapter 7 Nicaragua 83
Chapter 8 Albania 97
Chapter 9 Cuba 110
Chapter 10 China 123
Chapter 11 Conclusion 150
Notes 155
Index 185