ARTICLES
TALKING ISLAMISM IN ABU DHABI
Ten years after A Mosque in Munich was published, the book still resonates in parts of the Arab world, which is grappling with the book’s key theme: how Islam has been instrumentalized for political gain.
CHINA’S PYRRHIC VICTORY
In this piece for the New York Review Daily, I look at how the protests are playing out and conclude that what we're seeing is the death of a great city.
RECENT US MEDIA APPEARANCES
If you've wondered why the Chinese government is cracking down on some relgions but supporting others, check out these two shows recorded during my recent US tour.
JESUS IN ASIA
In this recent piece for The New York Review of Books I review R.S. Sugirtharajah's wonderfully erudite and fascinating "Jesus in Asia" (Harvard University Press) that recounts Asian thinkers' efforts to disentangle Jesus from colonialism.
POMP AND GLORY IN BEIJING
In this op-ed for the New York Times I describe what Tuesday's scene was like on Tiananmen Square for the 70th anniversary of the PRC's founding.
WHAT HOLDS CHINA TOGETHER?
Not coincidentally, China's ongoing crises in Hong Kong and Xinjiang are at its unstable and ill-defined borderlands.
IN CHINA, THE ULTIMATE TABOO: LAND OWNERSHIP
In this piece for The New York Times, I look at something that all China-watchers know: the fact that Chinese can’t own land.
AROUND THE WORLD WITH MZ DONG
In my first review for the New York Times book section, I look at Julia Lovell's sweeping history of one of the most underrated movements of the 20th century: Global Maoism.
A NEW BISHOP AND A NEW START?
In this piece for The New York Times, I report on the consecration of Msgr. Yao Shun, the first bishop to be installed after the Vatican and Beijing reached an agreement last year on how clergy are appointed. The appointment is something of a test for the new deal, which calls for both Beijing
NO LONGER SO FORBIDDING
In this feature for the NYT, I write about how the Forbidden City is opening up, in step with the government's efforts to promote traditional culture.
BEST IN-DEPTH WRITING ON RELIGION
Thanks so much to the American Academy of Religion for honoring me with their prize for best in-depth newswriting on religion.
THE SLOW-MOTION REVOLUTION
In this daily article for the New York Times, I explain how one of China's Internet pioneers, the blogger Huang Qi, received a 12-year sentence for leaking state secrets--a dubious claim that is mainly about shutting down citizen activists in China.