Faith, War and “Soft Power”: Cardinal Yu Bin, Sino-American Relations and Catholic Public Diplomacy during the Second Sino-Chinese War

This study examines the diplomatic activity of Paul Cardinal Yu Pin during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937—1945), situating him at the intersection of transnational Catholic politics, anti-Japanese resistance, and the formation of Sino-American wartime alliances. Rather than approaching diplomacy exclusively through state actors, the author foregrounds Yu Pin as a non-state diplomatic agent whose ecclesiastical authority, rhetorical skill, and international networks allowed him to influence American public opinion and shape political discourse surrounding China’s war effort. Drawing on archival publications, press materials, ecclesiastical correspondence, and contemporary Chinese and American sources, he reconstructs Yu Pin’s strategies of public diplomacy, including fundraising campaigns for refugees, advocacy for Chinese immigration reform, the founding of the China Post, and the creation of the Institute of Chinese Culture in Washington. The study highlights the tension between Yu Bin’s patriotic mission, supported by Chiang Kai-shek, and the Vatican’s commitment to diplomatic neutrality. His activism exposed ideological divisions within the Catholic hierarchy, particularly regarding attitudes toward Japanese militarism and the limits of ecclesiastical engagement in wartime politics. The author argues that Yu Pin’s efforts contributed not only to humanitarian relief and anti-Japanese mobilisation, but also to the reconfiguration of relations between the Holy See and the Chinese state and the emergence of faith-based public diplomacy as a form of geopolitical agency. By analysing Yu Pin’s activity through the lens of soft power, global Catholicism, and transnational history, the article demonstrates how religious actors shaped international politics beyond formal diplomacy. The case of Cardinal Yu Pin reveals the complex entanglement of patriotism, ecclesiastical obedience, and geopolitical strategy, offering a model for reinterpreting diplomacy in terms of moral authority, cultural exchange, and grassroots mobilisation.