There was a time when Devon Chang had difficulty reconciling his two chosen faiths: Christianity, which he embraced in 2005 at the age of 19, and the Communist Party of China, which had embraced him a year earlier. Did his submission to an almighty God not mean he must renounce the godless club of Marx and Mao?
Not necessarily. A fellow convert’s university lecturer suggested that if all Communist Party members found Jesus, then Christianity could rule China. “So it’s a good thing for me to become a Christian,” Mr Chang reasoned.
The party does not quite see it that way.
Communism the world over has consistently regarded religion as “the opiate of the people (Karl Marz),” so it’s no surprise that the Communist Party of the People’s Republic of China refused her visa.