The development of new religions had close connection with the local political power. In early period of Republic of China, the prosperity of some new religions could not be separated with the support of government officials and local powerful gentries and merchants. With the promotion of these officials, these new religions could pass the accreditation of government to get legitimacy. Meanwhile, those new religions were encouraged to establish branches throughout the country. However, once the old government was replaced, such kind of development pattern would be challenged. With the advance of the Northern Expedition, the old bureaucrats and gentries were impacted in some degree under the control of Nationalist Party. In terms of ideology, the new regime was hostile to all kinds of new religions. Thus without the protection from local political power, the new religions faced great challenges, and some of them failed to keep the house where they carried out various group activities. Therefore, how to validly keep the physical space for group activities became one of the key issues of new religions to resume their activities. In this case study of the site dispute of red swastika in Xuzhou, we explored how Red Swastika kept its own ''living space'' under the rules of Nationalist Party. When Red Swastika (also ''Yuanhui'') was founded in Xuzhou, with the support from local gentries and merchants, it rapidly settled down in Zhang Xun Shrine, which had been the public property of Xuzhou government. However, with the establishment of Nanjing Government, new religions like Red Swastika were banned nationwide. Although luckily, Xuzhou Yuanhui was not be banned, its site, Zhang Xun Shrine, was reallocated, which was then taken as the schoolhouse of Affiliated Experimental Primary School of Girls High School Xuzhou (referred to GHSEPS). Xuzhou Yuanhui had to move to Diaolongbei part in the north of the Zhang Xun Shrine. Facing the adverse situation caused by the replacement of political power, Xuzhou Yuanhui and other organizations of Red Swastika were seeking new protection power actively. On the one hand, Yuanhui was constantly establishing relationship with military power of Nationalist Party and trying hard to get their supports through penetrating the battlefield relief system. On the other hand, Yuanhui actively joined the relief system of Nationalist Government as a charity organization, to tie the living conditions of each branches of Yuanhui with relief efficiency of Nationalist Government. As result, the new religion Red Swastika accomplished ''charity institutionalization'' successfully. With all above efforts, when property dispute happened between the branches of Yuanhui and the Nationalist Party or other organizations, Yuanhui could get the supports from relevant departments especially when they hold sufficient property evidence. The conflict between the Yuanhui to the Nationalist Party or certain other departments might become the benefit game among different government departments. Therefore, the risk of being impacted was reduced. When the President of GHSEPS tried to force Xuzhou Yuanhui to leave Diaolongbei, Yuanhui asked for the help of the finance department in Jiangsu province and the Ministry of Finance, and finally got their supports to ensure the right of belonging to the Diaolongbei site. Hereafter, with the successful experience of Xuzhou Yuanhui, other Yuanhui(s) not only improved the efficiency of charity activities and cooperated with the government in relief actions, but also encouraged the branches to purchase the real estate with property certifications to ensure retaining a ''living space'' under the Party-state system.
陈明华 . 权力变迁与新兴宗教的应对----以世界红卍字会徐州分会会址纠纷为中心的考察(1921—1936)[J]. 浙江大学学报(人文社会科学版), 2014, 44(5): 80-96.
Chen Minghua. Power Transformation and the Response of New Religions: A Survey Focus on Site Dispute of Xuzhou Red Swastika(1921-1936). JOURNAL OF ZHEJIANG UNIVERSITY, 2014, 44(5): 80-96.