Theological mix for young China imams

Chinese Hui Muslim students during an exercise session on the campus of the Ningxia Islamic Institute in Yinchuan, north China’s Ningxia province. (Photo: AFP)

Every morning on his way to class at one of China’s largest Islamic institutes, Wang Yue is reminded that the state comes before Allah.

Emblazoned in gold etching on a white marble slab at the main entrance — and repeated all over campus — is the slogan: “Love the nation, love religion”.

The contrast is even more striking than the hierarchy: in China patriotism is synonymous with supporting the ruling Communist Party, which is officially atheist.

But the students see little contradiction between the teachings of Marx and those of Mohammed.

“Part of being a good person, and a good Muslim, is loving your own country,” said Wang, who is in the last of his four years of studies at the institute in the northern region of Ningxia. “Marxism and religion don’t contradict each other, and understanding other religions or theories can help us better understand our own faith,” he insisted.

While China’s constitution enshrines freedom of religion, authorities keep strict limits on it, recognising only five belief systems, approving houses of worship, and seeking to control their messages.

The country has two main Muslim groups, the Hui, who are concentrated in Ningxia and aside from their religion share many similarities with the Han majority, and the Uighurs, a Turkic-speaking people who have more in common with Central Asia.

Both are Sunni, but while the Hui are largely integrated into mainstream society, officials frequently blame religious extremism, along with terrorism and separatism, for violence in the Uighur homeland of Xinjiang.

China, which shares borders with Pakistan and Afghanistan, has strict national security laws, regularly detaining people for watching jihadist videos, although little evidence of any links to groups such as Islamic State has been made public. Religious groups must follow the leadership of the Communist Party, President Xi Jinping told a government conference in April.

“We should guide and educate the religious circle and their followers with the socialist core values,” he said, according to official news agency Xinhua.