Peng Ruikang and Chen Jing: An Analysis of the Relationship Between the Anti-Christian Movement and the Founding of the Socialist Youth League of China
In January 1922, the World Student Christian Federation (WSCF) announced it would hold its 11th Conference at Tsinghua University on April 4th [1], triggering resentment and anxiety among contemporaries regarding Christian expansion and imperialist aggression. This led to the outbreak of the Non-Christian Movement [2]. From the founding of the Non-Christian Student Federation in Shanghai on March 4, 1922, until June of that year—when social debate over religious issues gradually subsided and local anti-religious organizations suspended activities—we find the first phase of the movement. During this period, local branches of the Socialist Youth League organized non-Christian federations and carried out anti-Christian activities, which catalyzed the development of the Socialist Youth League of China. Subsequently, the outbreak of the Zhili-Fengtian War and the reorganization of the Beijing government caused new social hotspots to overshadow the movement. In 1924, the Non-Christian Movement [3] erupted again in the form of the movement to recover educational rights.
Current scholarship has conducted a degree of research on the early history of the Youth League. Hu Xianzhong analyzed the historical context of the League’s founding and the gradual establishment of the Party-League relationship [4]. Li Yan studied the shift in the League’s work focus from students to young workers and peasants during its initial period [5]. However, few authors address the Non-Christian Movement—the League’s first large-scale political practice during its founding period—and their perspectives vary. Gu Changsheng proposed that the League initiated and led the movement [6]. Xue Xiaojian argued that participation in the movement was merely the individual behavior of League members rather than an organized activity [7]. Relying on letters and reports from Comintern representatives, Tao Feiya proposed that the Communist Party of China (CPC) led the movement by relying on the Youth League [8]. Zhou Donghua, conversely, argued that Comintern materials contain instances contrary to historical facts and are unreliable [9]. This article intends to analyze contemporary news reports and the memoirs of participants to sort out the background of the movement’s outbreak and the participation of local League organizations. It explores the interaction between the movement and the founding of the Youth League to achieve a more comprehensive understanding of the League’s early history.
I. Background to the Outbreak of the Non-Christian Movement
In the Non-Christian Movement, the side criticizing Christianity included liberals, anarchists, and Marxists. Their theories were a diverse mix, including rationalism, pragmatism, and various forms of socialism. Looking back, traces of nearly all these theories can be found in the discussions on religion initiated by the Young China Association at the end of 1920, and the First Congress of the Communist and Revolutionary Organizations of the Far East [10] convened by the Comintern in early 1922.
(1) The Young China Association initiates discussions on religion
Discussions on religious issues originated from the movement for a state religion in the early years of the Republic. The Provisional Constitution of the Republic of China stipulated the people’s freedom of religious belief. However, on June 22, 1913, Yuan Shikai issued the "Circular Order on Revering the Confucian Sage," announcing the veneration of Confucius. On August 15, the Confucian Society petitioned the parliament to "establish Confucianism as the state religion" [11], sparking the state religion movement. These actions drew widespread resistance from various sectors and caused particular concern within religious circles regarding freedom of belief. On December 27, Christians in Beijing joined followers of Catholicism, Taoism, Buddhism, and Islam to form a federation of religions, emphasizing freedom of belief and opposing the designation of a state religion [12]. After maneuvering between various forces—including political, academic, and religious circles, as well as local warlords—the movement for a state religion failed, but the debate over religious issues did not cease.
The formal start of discussions on religion stemmed from a resolution by the Young China Association that members must not hold religious beliefs. On July 17, 1920, member Zeng Qi wrote to Zuo Shunsheng [13], the Director of the Evaluation Department, requesting that "no person with religious superstitions be introduced into the association" [14]. The Evaluation Department passed this proposal and further suggested that "those already in the association who hold religious beliefs should voluntarily withdraw" [15]. Some members strongly opposed this resolution, triggering the discussion on religion. Tian Han argued that "freedom of belief is enshrined in the Provisional Constitution" and that people’s religious lives "assist and harmonize with" their material and intellectual lives; far from harming "Young China," it was exactly what members lacked [16]. Yun Daiying responded to Tian Han’s views; while admitting the Evaluation Department’s attitude toward believers was too arbitrary and the relevant proposal should be rescinded, he simultaneously noted that "religion is, after all, somewhat superstitious" and unworthy as a spiritual anchor [17].
At the end of 1920, the Young China Association invited academic celebrities to deliver speeches on religion, compiling 27 speeches and articles into three "Religious Issue Special Issues" of The Young China. Among them, Wang Xinggong, Li Shizeng, Li Huang, and Bertrand Russell held critical views, arguing that religion was anti-science, anti-human nature, imprisoned thought, and obstructed evolution, and was suitable only as an object of academic study; they advocated replacing religion with science and aesthetics. Tian Han, Liang Shuming, and Zhou Zuoren affirmed religious value and opposed its destruction, emphasizing that religion played an irreplaceable role in emotion, literature, and ideals. Christianity bore the brunt of this discussion. The "crimes" and "evils" of religion listed by the discussants were mostly descriptions of Christian dogma or the actions of the Church.
On July 4, 1921, based on the concept of "opposing religion but recognizing that barring believers from membership is unreasonable," the Young China Association voted to cancel the resolution. Through the discussions on religion, an anti-religious atmosphere formed within the association; members were unwilling to introduce believers, and believers were unwilling to join [18]. It can be said that the discussions on religion laid the groundwork for criticizing religion and served as a rehearsal for the Non-Christian Movement.
(2) The introduction of Lenin’s theory of imperialism to China
Since the beginning of the modern era, the Chinese people's understanding of imperialism has deepened. At the end of the 19th century, the concept of "imperialism" was introduced to China from Japan, and contemporaries mostly held a "generalized exclusionism" [19]. During World War I, Japan forced the signing of the "Twenty-One Demands," giving the Chinese people a more direct experience of imperialist aggression. With the successive convening of the Paris Peace Conference and the Washington Conference, China became increasingly active on the international political stage, and its cognition of imperialism became more profound and specific. In contrast, Soviet Russia, through its two manifestos to China, proposed the abolition of all unequal treaties signed during the Tsarist era and the relinquishing of various privileges, showing the Chinese people the dawn of equality and solidarity for all humanity.
Anti-imperialism was the basic demand of the Non-Christian Movement, and modern China's anti-imperialist theory came from Soviet Russia. In June 1920, Lenin proposed the "Preliminary Draft Theses on the National and the Colonial Questions," bringing the national revolutionary forces of Eastern colonial and semi-colonial countries into the anti-imperialist camp. In June the following year, in the "Written Report to the Third Congress of the Communist International," Zhang Tailei used Lenin’s theory of imperialism to analyze the state of Chinese society, pointing out that China was suffering "various miseries brought by Japanese imperialism" and that the Party's task was to develop a national movement against imperialism "and make it subordinate to the communist movement of the Chinese proletariat" [20]. Around the time of the CPC’s founding, Lenin’s theory of imperialism had seen small-scale circulation in China, but it had not yet attracted universal attention [21].
From January 21 to February 2, 1922, the Congress of the Far East was held in Moscow and Petrograd. The congress had four agenda items. First, Zinoviev gave a report "On the International Situation and the Results of the Washington Conference," analyzing the international situation of imperialist aggression against Far Eastern countries after WWI, noting that the primary task for all countries was to carry out national-democratic revolutions against imperialism and feudalism. Second, representatives from Far Eastern countries introduced their domestic situations; Chinese representatives reported on British and Japanese imperialist aggression in China. Third, Safarov gave a report titled "The Position of Communists on the National and Colonial Question and Their Cooperation with National Revolutionary Parties," systematically expounding Lenin’s theories on colonial and national liberation and analyzing the nature, tasks, tactics, and prospects of national-democratic revolutions. Fourth, it passed the "Manifesto of the First Congress of Communist and Revolutionary Organizations of the Far East," calling for "proletarians and oppressed nations of the world to unite" to strive for freedom, equality, and independence [22]. During this period, the Young Communist International (YCI) convened the Far Eastern Revolutionary Youth Conference, pointing out that Christianity focused on preaching the spirit of submission and requiring the youth of all countries to struggle against the YMCA [23].
The Congress of the Far East was crucial for helping the CPC understand national conditions. After its founding, the CPC's "primary task" was to "study the objective actual situation of China," thereby obtaining "the most appropriate practical program for solving this problem" [24]. In March 1922, CPC representatives who attended the congress returned home one after another, conveying revolutionary theory and situational analysis, allowing the CPC to clarify the revolutionary direction of anti-imperialism and anti-feudalism. While the intellectual world was still discussing the destiny of religion and its relationship with science and philosophy, Chinese Communists had already identified Christianity as a tool used by capitalist countries for oppression and plunder and had begun their critique. Consequently, the target of the Non-Christian Movement’s struggle extended to the imperialist countries behind Christianity.
II. The Socialist Youth League Initiates the Non-Christian Movement
From August 1920, Youth Leagues were established in Shanghai, Beijing, Changsha, Wuhan, and Guangzhou under the leadership of early Communist Party organizations. However, these League organizations were merely loose groups "with socialist tendencies" [25]. Due to the complex beliefs of members, frequent personnel changes, and difficulty in raising funds, most Youth Leagues were in a state of operational suspension or de facto dissolution by around May 1921. In August, following instructions from the YCI and the CPC Central Bureau, Zhang Tailei began reorganizing the League. By November, local League organizations gradually resumed operations; "the Shanghai organ acted on behalf of the central authority," and the League’s purpose was defined as "studying Marxism" [26]. At this time, the relationship between the Party and the League was close and the boundaries blurred; members overlapped, and work was not strictly differentiated. For reasons of secrecy, "many Party activities appeared in the name of the League" [27]. In early 1922, the news of the upcoming Christian conference ignited religious topics, and the Youth League "published many anti-Christian periodicals and pamphlets... and held anti-Christian rallies in Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou" [28].
(1) The Shanghai Socialist Youth League takes the lead
The Shanghai Socialist Youth League was the first to establish a non-Christian organization and initiate the Non-Christian Movement. Early Party and League members conducted extensive theoretical exploration and propaganda work, allowing the movement to gain widespread support and unfold nationwide. The Shanghai Socialist Youth League was founded on August 22, 1920, with Shi Cuntong, Shen Xuanlu, Chen Wangdao, Li Hanjun, Jin Jiafeng, Yuan Zhenying, Yu Xiusong, and Ye Tiandi as initiators, and Yu Xiusong as secretary. The Shanghai League assisted in establishing League organizations elsewhere, acting as a temporary central organ, and was praised by the YCI as "the best one among the Chinese Youth Leagues" [29].
In January 1922, the Far Eastern Revolutionary Youth Conference passed the "Outline on the Chinese Youth Movement," requiring the Youth League to "now engage in a universal movement for freedom" and "attack those counter-revolutionary organizations." The Shanghai League resolved to engage in practical revolutionary activities and initiated the Non-Christian Movement. On February 26, 1922, some Shanghai students met and decided to establish the Non-Christian Student Federation. On March 4, they met again to agree on the Federation’s charter, elect an executive committee, and announce the formal establishment of the Federation, marking the start of the Non-Christian Movement.
On March 15 of the same year, the League’s organ, The Pioneer [30], publicized the "Manifesto," "Circular Telegram," and "Charter" of the Non-Christian Student Federation for the first time. The "Circular Telegram" referred to Christianity as the "pioneer of colonization" and called on students nationwide to boycott the Christian conference "groundlessly assembled in the capital of our weak nation," aiming to "permanently cleanse our youth’s educational circles" [31]. That issue of The Pioneer carried Chen Duxiu’s "Christianity and the Christian Church," Xu Baihao’s "Christianity and World Transformation," and Luo Qiyuan’s "Christianity and Communism." These articles pointed out that Christianity and the Church were "demons" helping the bourgeoisie oppress and plunder the proletariat; the Christian conference was a "robbers’ meeting of world capitalism... to insult our youth, deceive our people, and plunder our economy" [32]; Christian missionaries were the "vanguard" of capitalist countries invading China, and the intellectuals serving the Church were "guides" and "running dogs" [33]; they called for "proletarians of all nations to unite" [34] to resist the "capitalist plunder-ism" [35] behind Christianity. These discourses carried obvious Leninist overtones; the judgments on Christianity were largely adopted from the Far Eastern Revolutionary Youth Conference, marking the first time early Party and League members used Lenin’s theory of imperialism to understand and analyze national conditions.
In March 1922, Dalin [36], a member of the Far Eastern Secretariat of the Communist International (Comintern), arrived in Shanghai to direct the construction of the Youth League. According to his recollections, the Youth League initiated the Anti-Christian Movement to "expose the pro-imperialist essence of the YMCA... the entirety of March and the first half of April were spent in a nationwide student movement against Christianity," to the extent that it "delayed the preparatory work for convening the National Congress of the Socialist Youth League." [37] Dalin’s statement is well-founded, as the League's Provisional Central Committee had originally intended to convene the National Congress on April 1, but later adjusted the date to May 5 based on the actual situation.
(2) The Immediate Response of the Beijing Socialist Youth League
The Beijing Socialist Youth League was the first to answer the Shanghai League’s call. Because Beijing was a gathering place for celebrities and a site of complex intellectual trends, the Anti-Christian Movement there broke away from the League’s leadership and manifested as a non-religious movement guided by Enlightenment thought.
In November 1920, the Beijing League was established, initiated by over 40 people including Deng Zhongxia, Gao Junyu, He Mengxiong, Liu Renjing, Zhang Guotao, Luo Zhanglong, and Jin Jiafeng, with Gao Junyu serving as secretary. The Beijing League did significant work in launching labor movements, establishing labor training schools, and assisting in the creation of League organizations in Tianjin and other northern cities. In May 1921, the Beijing League temporarily disbanded, and the organization resumed its work on November 26.
The non-religious movement in Beijing was a continuation of the discussions on religion held by the Young China Association [38] in 1920. In December 1920, under the guidance of Li Dazhao, Xiao Zisheng and Luo Zhanglong leveraged the Beijing Marxist Theory Research Society to form the Non-Religious Alliance, publishing a program, contacting teachers and students across various schools, and organizing public lectures. The Alliance opposed superstition, metaphysics, and feudal ideology, advocating for the liberation of thought and the promotion of civil rights; it became the predecessor of the Great Anti-Religious Federation.
On March 11, 1922, at the request of Chen Duxiu, Jin Jiafeng contacted over 80 members from both the Kuomintang and the Communist Party to initiate the "Beiping Great Anti-Religious Federation" in the name of the Beijing Socialist Youth League. Jin Jiafeng served as the moderator and Xiao Zisheng as the secretary. Although the Federation was initiated by the Beijing Socialist Youth League, its participants extended far beyond those ranks. At the end of the Federation's first Telegram to the Nation, with Jin Jiafeng listed as the liaison, signatories included Communists like Li Dazhao and Zhang Guotao; Kuomintang members like Cai Yuanpei and Li Shizeng; Young China Association members like Wang Xinggong and Li Huang; and academic luminaries like Wu Yu and Gao Yihan. The Young China Association also issued a responding telegram, expressing "unbounded joy" at the Federation’s call to "rise up and vow to shatter the poison of obsession."
Compared to the Anti-Christian Movement in Shanghai, the movement of the Great Anti-Religious Federation in Beijing was grander in scale, but its public propaganda used Enlightenment thought as its theoretical tool. According to the recollections of Fan Tiren, a secretary of the Federation, the "Inaugural Statement" was released during the Federation’s first general meeting on April 9. It announced: "To respect science, eradicate superstition, enhance self-confidence, maintain national character, oppose imperialist aggression, and strive for self-strengthening and autonomy, we have decided to initiate the non-religious movement," and "enumerated the various crimes committed by imperialism utilizing religion to invade our country." The flavor of Leninism in this text is quite strong, showing that the Marxists within the Federation had attempted to steer the movement toward an anti-imperialist path. However, on March 21, the Great Anti-Religious Federation published a Manifesto and a Telegram to the Nation stating that the Federation relied on "scientific truth" and "humanitarianism," criticizing religion for fettering thought, destroying truth, and causing wars. It opposed the "Eleventh Conference of the World's Christian Students" and demanded the "cleansing of the toxic harms of religion"; at the same time, it deliberately emphasized that the Federation only differentiated between "believers" and "non-believers" and was "unrelated to the functions of any political party." On April 1, the Federation issued another Telegram stating that it existed "only for science to triumph over religion," would not discuss social issues, and was certainly not "anti-foreign" or "extremist." From this, it is evident that due to the complex composition of its personnel and the fact that its scale had exceeded the control of the Communist Party and the Youth League, the movement did not follow an anti-imperialist trajectory.
(3) The Guangdong Socialist Youth League’s Active Development of the Anti-Christian Movement
The Guangdong Socialist Youth League developed the Anti-Christian Movement based on the experiences of Shanghai and Beijing, evolving it step-by-step into a non-religious movement. The Guangdong movement was also massive in scale; it not only attracted youth and Kuomintang members from neighboring provinces but also engaged in direct confrontation with Christian forces.
In August 1920, Tan Pingshan, Chen Gongbo, Tan Zhitang, and others organized the Guangzhou Socialist Youth League. In November, the Guangzhou League merged with the Mutual Aid Group, an anarchist organization, and was subsequently controlled by the anarchists. In March 1921, the Mutual Aid Group withdrew from the Youth League, and shortly thereafter, the Guangzhou League declared its dissolution. In December, Tan Pingshan and Zhang Tailei resumed the activities of the Guangzhou League and began preparing for a Guangdong-wide League. On March 14, 1922, the Guangdong League was formally established; it and the Guangdong branch of the CPC were "essentially one set of personnel handling the work of both the Party and the League."
The Guangdong League led the Anti-Christian Movement in both propaganda and organization. On the one hand, it created a public climate opposing Christianity. On March 24, 1922, the Guangdong Qunbao (Guangdong Masses Daily), edited by Chen Gongbo, reprinted the Manifesto of the Anti-Christian Student Federation. Subsequent to this, it opened an "Anti-Christian Discourse" column, publishing the Echoes of the Anti-Religious Federation, which featured responding telegrams from various regions, becoming an important propaganda front for the movement in Guangdong. The League’s organ, Youth Weekly, also joined in, publishing articles such as Zhang Qiuren’s "What Kind of Thing is the YMCA?" and Guo Shouzhen’s "The Proletariat and Christianity," launching an assault on the faith. The movement's propaganda work also included a critique of the "Chastity Movement." On April 3, the Guangzhou YMCA held a Chastity Movement parade with the slogan "Petition to Abolish Prostitution," on a scale "unprecedented for such processions."
On the other hand, the League organized Anti-Christian Student Federations and Non-Religious Federations at all levels. Students of the Guangdong Public School of Law and Political Science were the first to respond to the "Beijing-Shanghai Federation," forming a school-level Anti-Christian Student Federation in late March 1922 and actively networking with schools like the Guangdong Higher Normal School and the Guangdong Provincial Girls' Junior Normal School. On April 4, Tan Pingshan and Ruan Xiaoxian initiated the Guangzhou Anti-Religious Alliance. By mid-April, the movement had spread to Maoming, Xiangshan, Sanshui, Kaiping, and other counties. On April 16, the Guangdong Anti-Christian Student Federation was formally established with Shen Houpei as chairman. He Juefu drafted the Bylaws, and committee members were subsequently elected. Shen Houpei, Lan Xiangkui, He Juefu, Ruan Xiaoxian, Zhou Qijian, Liu Ersong, and Liu Qinxi were all members of the Guangdong League. Shen and He were students at the School of Law and Political Science, exceptionally active and well-regarded in the movement. The Guangdong Anti-Christian Student Federation rapidly evolved into the Guangdong Great Anti-Religious Federation. On April 21, the Police and Prison School in Guangzhou’s Guangta Street held a meeting to prepare for a non-religious alliance, and the Guangdong Higher Normal School also intended to "contact various Guangzhou schools to organize a Guangdong Great Anti-Religious Federation," which resonated widely. Subsequently, teachers at Fuzhou Middle School stated that "Christianity is the claw and tooth of imperialism" and was utterly detestable; however, religions like Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism were birds of a feather with Christianity, "deluding people’s thoughts and obstructing progress," and they wished to "expand the Anti-Christian Student Federation into a Non-Religious Federation." On May 17, League members He Shouying and Guo Shouhua convened various groups to establish the Guangdong Great Anti-Religious Federation at the School of Law and Political Science. The Federation utilized opportunities like the universal suffrage movement and the anniversary of the Yellow Flower Mound Uprising [39] to distribute flyers and give public speeches, expanding the influence of the Anti-Christian Movement.
The Guangdong movement caught the attention of the Comintern. On May 20, 1922, Li Jin, the Comintern representative in Guangdong, reported the recent work of "Chinese communist organizations" to the Far Eastern Department of the Comintern Executive Committee. The report noted that the Anti-Christian Movement was the largest propaganda activity of the past six months, and that the CPC and the Youth League were the fundamental forces providing "actual leadership" and had "smashed" the Christian conference. It should be noted that Li Jin’s report was not entirely accurate. What was smashed by the movement was not the conference itself, but a parade organized by Guangzhou mission schools to promote the conference; the event was cancelled "due to fear of the anti-religious forces' intensity."
Nationwide, between March and April 1922, students in Changsha, Nanjing, Wuhan, Hangzhou, Tianjin, Tangshan, Baoding, and Taiyuan also established Anti-Christian or Non-Religious Federations. Although social celebrities, teachers, and workers participated, the members were primarily young students. Given the blurred boundaries between the CPC and the Youth League in the early 1920s, and the League’s massive influence among students, it can be concluded that the local League branches initiated the movement, consolidated and grew within it, and thus prepared the ground for the official establishment of the Socialist Youth League of China.
III. The Establishment of the Socialist Youth League of China
Around May 1922, Youth League organizations had been restored or newly built in 18 cities nationwide, with over 5,000 members. Faced with this large scale of local organizations and the booming Anti-Christian Movement, the Provisional Central Bureau could no longer meet the demands of leading the national youth movement. It was necessary to convene a national congress, pass a formal constitution, and organize central organs to build a "more solid foundation."
(1) The First National Congress of the Socialist Youth League of China
In March 1922, the Young Communist International representative Dalin came to China. Together with Qu Qiubai (representing the CPC) and Zhang Tailei (representing the Youth League), he drafted the program and bylaws for the Socialist Youth League and prepared for the First National Congress. On May 5, the League’s first congress opened in Guangzhou. Zhang Tailei presided over the opening ceremony, and 16 people, including Huang Bihun, Chen Duxiu, Zhang Guotao, Deng Zhongxia, and Dalin, delivered speeches. The following day, the congress began hearing reports and discussing proposals. Discussions concluded on the evening of the 10th, and the congress adjourned after electing the Central Executive Committee.
The congress passed the Program of the Socialist Youth League of China, which analyzed China’s national condition of suffering under "international capitalist oppression," clearly defined the League's "aim of fighting for the complete liberation of the proletariat," and expounded on the League's policy directions in the political, economic, and educational spheres. It emphasized that "to achieve the goal of socialism, the world's proletariat and oppressed nations must rise in revolution together." The Cylaws of the Socialist Youth League of China were passed, providing regulations for members, organization, discipline, meetings, reports, organs, funds, and the official newspaper. Resolutions were also passed regarding the improvement of young workers' and peasants' lives, political propaganda movements, educational movements, and the League's relationship with other Chinese organizations. Finally, the congress elected Shi Cuntong, Gao Junyu, Zhang Tailei, Cai Hesen, Yu Xiushong, Zhu Wushan, Ruan Yongzhao, and He Chang to form the first Central Executive Committee as the central leadership organ, with Shi Cuntong as Secretary.
The First National Congress established a unified national organization, marking the formal founding of the Socialist Youth League of China. From this point forward, the League established Marxism as its guiding ideology, truly shaking off the ideological confusion of the past; it established a leadership core with a clear program, laying the organizational foundation for Chinese youth to play a role on the political stage.
(2) The League’s Work Arrangements for the Anti-Christian Movement
In April and May 1922, the Anti-Christian Movement reached its peak. Intellectual journals and newspapers such as Chenbao (Morning Post), Republic Daily, Ta Kung Pao, The China Times, and Shun Pao frequently published critiques of Christianity. Christian denominations fought back or reflected on the situation through journals like True Light, Life, and Youth Progress. In this context, the Youth League sought to lead and expand the Anti-Christian Movement.
The Youth League actively sought leadership over various non-religious organizations. In the "Resolution on Relations with Various Chinese Organizations," the Youth League established specific regulations regarding the attitude it should maintain during interactions with other social groups. Leading the list were the "Young Men's Christian Association" (YMCA) and "Anti-Christian and Non-Religious Organizations." Regarding the former, the Youth League adopted a dual strategy of both struggle and utilization. On one hand, it adopted the perspective of the Congress of the Representatives of Revolutionary Youth of the Far East [40], arguing that the YMCA combined with Chinese bureaucratic forces to entrap youth, causing them to be "enticed and infected by the poison of capitalism," and therefore it must "publicize and expose its crimes... and unmask its objectives and motives." At the same time, having experienced the intellectual collision of the Anti-Christian Movement, the Youth League acknowledged the Church's role in promoting compulsory education and conducting charitable work, stating that the League "should make use of them." Regarding the latter, the Youth League pointed out that Christianity was the "most powerful tool of imperialism," and thus "what the anti-Christian organizations are doing is exactly what we desire to do." It held that religion was something that "always combines with old forces" to shackle the mind, whereas non-religious organizations denied the value and significance of all religious existence, which could help youth gain intellectual freedom and identify with the revolution. Therefore, it was necessary to do one's utmost to assist anti-Christian and non-religious groups and build League organizations within them, striving to "achieve a guiding position" [41]. However, the Youth League did not seize the opportunity to establish a national-level anti-Christian or non-religious federation; anti-Christian movements in various regions continued to operate in a scattered and relatively independent manner.
The Youth League attempted to expand the influence of the Anti-Christian Movement into other fields. First was national education. The "Resolution on the Educational Movement" pointed out that "the Chinese educational world is now everywhere filled with the influence of Christianity, used to confine and obscure the thoughts of the youth." Therefore, it was necessary to expose the "mask of threats and inducements" of mission schools and exclude them from the educational sector [42]. This proposal was not immediately implemented at the time. By 1924, the Anti-Christian Movement erupted again in the form of the "Movement to Recover Educational Rights," exhibiting a more distinct and direct anti-imperialist character. Lasting for nearly a year, it achieved major results in "excluding mission schools." Second was the labor movement. On April 17 and May 20, 1922, the Japanese-owned Rihua Cotton Mill in Pudong, Shanghai, saw two consecutive strikes. The Youth League organized Shanghai students to establish a strike economic support committee to offer condolences and encouragement to the workers. On May 24, the Central Executive Committee of the League published the "Appeal Requesting All Sectors and Organizations Nationwide to Aid the Textile Workers of Pudong, Shanghai," pointing out that among the more than 4,000 workers striking against capitalist oppression, over 2,000 were Catholics. They reminded those in the non-religious alliances that they must not only liberate themselves from religion but also liberate these "men and women deluded by religion," allowing them also to "become anti-religious believers" [43]. However, by this time, the tide of the labor movement had already fully attracted the attention of young students. Opposing capitalist oppression became the primary task; the religious veil had been lifted, and merely criticizing religion could no longer reflect the social demands of the time.
IV. Conclusion
From April 4 to 9, 1922, the World Student Christian Federation conference was held as scheduled; the immediate objective of the Anti-Christian Movement had failed. Between May and June, the Zhili-Fengtian War [44] broke out, the Beijing government was reorganized, and new issues such as Li Yuanhong's [45] vigorous advocacy for "abolishing the military governorship and reducing the army" became the focus of public attention. Discussions regarding religious issues gradually faded. By June, various schools began summer vacation early, many students left school to return home, and the main force of the Anti-Christian Movement dispersed. Thus, the Anti-Christian Movement came to a temporary close.
The formation and development of the Anti-Christian Movement were closely related to the Youth League. Local League branches organized and initiated anti-Christian activities, attracting various social classes to join and forming a social movement with wide-ranging national influence. Although the movement blossomed everywhere, it did not move in lockstep, and the Youth League failed to achieve unified leadership over it. Differences in the political environment and cultural customs of various regions gave the Anti-Christian Movement distinct local characteristics in terms of organizational form and propaganda methods. After its First National Congress, the Youth League tried to expand and lead this movement, but changes in the situation caused this plan to temporarily fall through.
The Anti-Christian Movement served as the practical background for the founding of the Socialist Youth League of China and carries significant historical meaning. It continued the direction of the New Culture Movement [46], spread Marxism-Leninism, and expanded the League’s influence among student groups. Through the movement, the Youth League tempered its early members, enhanced its organizational cohesion, and announced its founding amidst the heat of the struggle. Furthermore, the organizational forms, methods of struggle, and even the title of the movement did not disappear with the subsidence of this first stage. Two years later, with the realization of the first United Front [47] and the rise of nationalism, the Anti-Christian Movement rose again. The Communist Party of China stepped from behind the scenes to the front of the stage, achieving leadership over the movement through the form of a national united front.