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The current policies could change swiftly, particularly if the party felt threatened by the small but dynamic Christian minority. In 1957, Mao declared, "Let a hundred flowers bloom," but the brief blossoming of free speech that followed only led to fiercer repression. Indeed, some critics of the regime saw Mao's move as a ploy to lure dissenters into revealing themselves. Few question the current regime's commitment to limited religious freedom. But disillusionment with Communism or continued economic trouble could force Deng to change the "united front's" direction and crack down on Christianity again. The church has survived such a crackdown before, however, and its adherents vow that it will do so again.
—By Richard N. Ostling. Reported by Richard Bernstein/Peking and Rosemary Byrnes/Hong Kong