Download 4). Religion

Religion In
China
Religion before Mao
 Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Christianity,
they're the most prominent religions in China.
 (Confucianism is a collection of stories, teachings and
morals from Confucius put together to from religion.)
 Chinese philosophy for 2500 years had been dominated
by confusions.
 Religion was deeply rooted in China.
 They believed it was their duty to look after the spirits of
their ancestors and the dead.
 Religion did not change
much before Communism.
 Christianity was brought
over
from European missionaries.
 Just before Mao Christianity
had become the biggest
religion
in China.
 Chiang Kai-shek was a
Christian.
 Buddhism had been in China for 1000 years before Mao.
 Most of the Buddhists in China were in Tibet.
 The Dalai Lama was considered the head of Buddhism in
Tibet.
 Buddhism was big in
China
Mao’s public view on Religion
Mao thought Christianity was incompatible with
Marxism.
He didn’t like the idea of other religions having
a leader that wasn’t him.
“Religion is Poison”-Mao to the Dalai Lama
 "Religion is the sigh of the oppressed
creature, the heart of a heartless world, and
the soul of soulless conditions. It is the
opium of the people". –Karl Marx
Mao condemned ancestor worship as
superstition, and that it was no longer acceptable
in China.
After Mao his successors had to debate on how
far Confucianism was compatible with Marxism.
Mao’s private view on Religion
“We were standing on the spot where the
Buddhist shrine Mao had referred to so
often”
“The destruction of the shrine had
saddened him”
“ “It should have been left alone,” he said.
“The shrine could lift people’s spirits, give
them hope. People need this kind of
encouragement.”
-The Private Life of Chairman Mao
(In textbook pg 260 source 15)
Initial Religious policy
 At first a ‘careful and conciliatory’ approach was used on the
Major religions.
 Mao was worried that because they had so many followers
he could face dangerous opposition
 He tried to win over and control the leaders (had hopes they
would work with regime)
 e.g. 4 Protestants, 2 Buddhists and one Muslim were invited
to the First National Political Consultative Conference as
representatives of their faiths
Changes under Mao
 Confucianism:
Communists marked Confucian ethical code as ‘old culture’
All public ceremonies ended in 1949
At first temples and shrines were kept as museum pieces
Some philosophers even argued that it was compatible with communist
ideology e.g. freedom of education.
 Ancestor worship:
 In order to fulfil his idea of a ‘new China’ Mao
condemned Chinese New Year as a ‘superstitious
article’
 ‘we and chairman Mao are of one heart’
Allowed a cult of Mao to develop
Religious shrines in houses replaced
With pictures of Mao
 Christianity:
oMao believed the Church was dangerous as it was
one of the main representatives of Western
imperial ideas
oIn 1954 the religious affairs department began to
deport foreign missionaries
oProtestant leaders were forced to create ‘Patriotic
Churches’
oThey were told to adopt a strategy of ‘self ruling,
supporting and propagating’
oIn reality this allowed all foreign ties to be cut off
leading to complete obedience of the protestant
community to Communism
 Islam:
oMosques were seized and converted into arenas
for struggle sessions
oHowever, there was opposition. In the battle of
Gansu over 1000 people were killed and armed
rebellions were common
oThis led Mao to grant Xinjiang the status of
autonomous state in Oct 1955
oHowever, Mao realised that Muslim leaders
represented a challenge to his rule as they had
links with Muslim communities in the USSR and
Pakistan
oTherefore, they were sent for ‘thought reform’
Impacts of Changes Made
 Mao could never truly destroy all the affects of
religion on China.
 Confucianism remained strong in China,
exemplified by the fact that at Zhou’s funeral
people practised a sort of ancestral worship.
 Lin Shaoqi preached Confucius ideals.
 The temples and churches were destroyed but the
long-held belief in most people remained strong.
 Protestant church pressured into making the
“Patriotic Church Movement” which made the
church support the regime.
 The youth who were born inside the communist
years were easily able the release their religious
ties as they were not that connected to it.
Conclusion
Confucian belief, was too deeply
entrenched in China to be removed in such
a small period of time.
Mao personally like some parts of
Confucianism but all of it had to go.
Catholics put the pope above their current
leader, this went against Marxist ideals.
Mao wanted an atheist China.
The reforms Mao made seriously damaged
the impact of religion in China.
Its still illegal for 3 or more religious people
to come together for religious activities.
Mao needed to destroy old culture,
including religion, so that he could create
his own.
However he could not achieve this fully as
religion was strongly held in the people and
they were not too willing to let it go.
The youth however were willing to for the
regime as they were told to not be religious
their whole lives.