The distinction between righteousness and profit is an important issue in the Confucian tradition. Traditional Confucianism considers profit as opposed to righteousness and virtue and advocates the importance of righteousness, rather than of profit, and the doing of good without intention, i.e., doing good not for utilitarian purposes. The missionaries who came to China in the late Ming Dynasty borrowed the resources from Confucianism to disseminate Catholicism by engaging in exchanges and dialogues with Confucian scholars on the relationship between profit, righteousness and virtue, putting forward such ideas as "Profit does not harm virtue," which converted the traditional distinction between righteousness and profit into a distinction between profit and virtue, and advocated that one could still be good if one pursued profit for afterlife.Although the meaning of the so-called "profit, righteousness and virtue" in the Catholic writings has been changed, and it advocates that the most genuine and greatest benefits are for the afterlife, the idea of profit advocated by the Catholics is quite compatible with the development of commerce in the late Ming Dynasty, and it has had a profound influence on the society and thoughts of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. In this article, it firstly briefly sorts out the concept of righteousness and profit in Confucian thought, then discusses the new Catholic understanding of the relationship between righteousness and profit, then analyses the reaction of Ming and Qing societies to this new Catholic concept of righteousness and profit, and finally discuss the historical impact this new concept had. The new Catholic concept of righteousness and profit in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties was a product of the Catholic thought of the Ming and Qing dynasties interacting with the native Confucian thought, and is a typical case of civilizational mutual understanding since the late Ming.
Professor HUANG Zuo's new book, Probing the Paternal Theory of Lacan, takes the "Name-of-the-Father" as its key concept and approaches Lacan's theoretical system through the lens of philosophy and psychoanalysis. Drawing on religious, social, cultural, and other perspectives, the work proposes a set of conceptual pairings centered around the "Name-of-the-Father" and the "Name-of-God." Lacan's thought is deeply -influenced by Christian culture, and the emergence of the concepts of "the-name-of-the-father" and "the-name-of-God" can also be attributed to his integration of linguistic, psychological, and philosophical theories from earlier thinkers. This article focuses on the structural similarities of this group of concepts in terms of their formation mechanisms, representational functions, and practical implications. In essence, they are two distinct, yet analogous melodies, on the same theme a theme referring to paternity and the Other. By tracing the historical genealogy of paternity, this study explores the dialogue between theological analysis and Jewish-Christian culture in the modern context, thereby offering an innovative reinterpretation of Christian theology.
From the 1950s to the 1980s, various religious communities in Hong Kong engaged in intensive dialogues from philosophical, theological and ethical perspectives, as well as using publications such as Tao Fong and Ching Feng as academic platforms. This not only alleviated the tensions between religious ideologies and the competition for followers in postwar Hong Kong, but it also advanced the indigenization of Christianity in Hong Kong, giving rise to indigenous theological propositions such as Zhongyong Theology. However, this deep-seated religious dialogue also began to encounter severe challenges from rapid social changes, and the church was criticized for their adherence to conventions and their slow response to emerging issues. While responding to these social realities in Hong Kong, Christianity also engaged in theological reflection, which lead to the emergence and development of contextual theologies, such as Industrial Mission theology. By systematically tracing the evolution of religious dialogue and theological paradigms in Hong Kong, we can clarify the cultural landscape and social context behind the rise of Contextual theology.
a Schleiermacher's Dialectics developed "universal feeling of dependence" from "immediate self-consciousness," which is often considered the philosophical foundation leading to Dogmatics. Some scholars understand Schleiermacher's Dialectics on the basis of Fichte's Wissenschaftslehre, in which the immediate self-consciousness is sufficient to lay the foundation of knowledge without further development into a universal feeling of dependence, thus excluding religious feeling from the main clue of the Dialectics. But, this approach severed the close relationship between philosophy and religion in Schleiermacher's thought and increased the inherent tension between Dialectics and Dogmatics. In fact, immediate self-consciousness is not Fichte's Tathandlung of the ego setting itself or returning to itself, but rather the potential consciousness of the Ground of the Being as a whole in the existential relationship between the I and the World, and thus the consciousness of the world as a whole in its dependence on the Absolute. In this sense, immediate self-consciousness is a religious feeling.
To deal with the rapid increase of the number of Catholics in England and reinforce the management of the Church, Pope Pius IX proclaimed the restoration of the Catholic Hierarchy in England in 1850. When the news was made public in England, it quickly caused panic among the public and became known as the "Papal Aggression." The resulting attack on Roman Catholicism swept through all forms of popular culture in English society, such as newspapers, journals and other media, which triggered petitions and protests around the country and formed this new round of anti-Catholic trend. In addition to and in spite of traditional sectarian disputes, this trend reflected the defense of national sovereignty and religious independence on the part of the English population. The response to the "Papal Aggression in England was not only the product of religious conflicts, but also the localized expression of the European anti-catholic "Culture Wars" of the mid-19(th) century in general.
This article surveys the place of the concept of "Nothingness" within Carl Schmitt's political and juridical thought, with a particular emphasis on the decisive influence exerted by the belief and theological concept of "God's creation from nothing" (creatio ex nihilo) on Schmitt's notions of "Sovereignty" and "Right." Simultaneously, it demonstrates how Schmitt critiques the nihilistic essence and political consequences of modern progressivism. This critique is manifested through the opposition between "creation from nothing" (Sch & ouml;pfung aus dem Nichts) and "creation of nothing" (Sch & ouml;pfung des Nichts) in Schmitt's later works.
On 23 October 1930, CHIANG Kai-shek was baptized "secretly" in Shanghai, but the news quickly spread. The Nanjing National Government subsequently imposed a news control, causing the Kuomintang-controlled newspapers to "collectively lose their voices." Western news agencies were the first to expose the incident, and overseas newspapers reported and commented on it at the first time. The political implications behind CHIANG Kai-shek's religious conversion became the focus of public attention. Uncontrolled newspapers across China had two diametrically opposed opinions, one of harsh criticism and the other vigorously defending him, thus showing the social impact aroused by the Christianization of the head of state. The tabloids in Shanghai took advantage of the "information gap between the open reports of English newspapers and the silence in the Chinese newspapers, and then presented this sensational news in the form of a story, with --extreme ridicule-and rony which-reflected the image of the top leaders of the Kuomintang in the minds of the people. The dissatisfaction and criticism of the incident by most people, including Kuomintang politicians, showed the situation of Christianity which was seen as a symbol of Western "cultural aggression" in modern Chinese society. The trend of public opinion at home and abroad after CHIANG Kai-shek was baptized showed that the relationship between the Nanjing government and Christianity was quite complicated. Through the amaders highly developed save disseraimation mechanism the political and religious entanglements contained therein were greatly magnified.
This article selects over 20 sentence segments from the beginning of Kierkegaard's Philosophical Fragments as samples, conducting a detailed comparative analysis of the Danish original text, WENG Shaojun's translation, and WANG Qi's translation. The study reveals that both of these existing authoritative Chinese translations suffer from problems including inconsistent terminology, mistranslation of key concepts, omission of modal particles and so on. Furthermore, there are actually better options for the Chinese title of this book -Philosophical Crumbs ((sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)) or Philosophical - Breadcrumbs((sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)(sic)) Thus, publishing a new and more accurate Chinese translation of Philosophical Fragments is both feasible and necessary, and doing so would have positive and significant implications for promoting the Hissemination and reception of Kierkegaard's Christian philosophical thought in China.
This article investigates the Catholic network established in the Far East, in the 14th-century, by the Roman Church in collaboration with the mendicant orders, with particular attention to the often-overlooked papal "Mongol documents." These documents not only attest to the institutionalization of Catholic activities in the region, but also served as vital administrative instruments of the papacy. Through philological analysis, this study examines their nature and transmission, traces textual continuities and later additions, and situates them within the broader institutional and structural dimensions of the medieval Catholic network in the Far East. The findings suggest that this Catholic network operated in a decentralized manner: local churches maintained unity with Rome while exercising considerable autonomy. Built upon the cross-regional collaborations first forged in Europe between the Roman Church and the mendicant orders, this network contributed significantly to the early globalization.
This article aims to explore the methodological significance of the theory of "ecart" (gap/interval) proposed by Francois Jullien for Sino-Christian Theology. Taking Fran & ccedil;ois Jullien's Moise ou la Chine: Quand ne se deploie pas l'idee de Dieu as its textual basis, this article systematically outlines the concrete unfolding of his theory. Distinct from static comparisons of diff & eacute;rence based on the premise of identity, ecart is a dynamic strategy aimed at opening up an "entre" (in-between) space by maintaining tension. However, Jullien's de-metaphysicalized view of the "entre" is in essential conflict with theology's claim to an absolute "Zhi wai" (Outside), which therefore constitutes the limitation of this theory when applied to Sino-Christian Theology. But despite these metaphysical divergences, the theory of ecart still offers significant benefits at the methodological level: it establishes the legitimacy of the existence of ecart itself within Sino-Christian Theology, facilitates self-development in apologetics by drawing upon heterogeneous cultures, and provides a caveat of self-restraint and a defense of independence within the contexts of realpolitikand ideology
Exodus 2 narrates the birth, growth, and exile of Moses, yet throughout the story, except for the conclusion, God neither appears nor is explicitly mentioned. This absence makes it a unique yet long-overlooked text in theological discussions on Exodus. This study adopts an "implicit theology" approach to explore the concealed presence of God in this chapter, as well as the narrative and theological significance of Moses as an exile. This article analyzes how the text conveys theological meaning through female characters, narrative structure, and symbolic devices. Pharaoh's genocidal policy underscores his obsession with masculinity, yet it is ironically subverted by a series of female figures. On the other hand, Moses intervenes three times in situations of oppression, thus establishing his identity as a liberator, and prefiguring the Israel's national exodus through his own "mini-Exodus" experience. Despite being the greatest prophet who would later lead the Israelites out of Egypt and receive the Law, Moses in this chapter constantly experiences spatial, identity, and self-imaginative shifts between Hebrew, Egyptian, and Midianite affiliations, highlighting the deep connection between exile and salvation in biblical theology. Through close textual analysis, this study reveals how Moses's personal experience serves as a microcosm of the Exodus narrative and offers a theological perspective on contemporary issues of exile, identity, and migration.
concludes that actually there are many similarities between MOU and Dionysius, while their differences actually manifest in two forms of the immanent transcendence-as person or as rationality concludes that actually there are many similarities between MOU and Dionysius, while their differences actually manifest in two forms of the immanent transcendence-as person or as rationality
In July 2024, ZHOU Weichi published a three-volume work titled Augustine in China, which for the first time systematically traces and studies the 440-year history of the transmission of Augustine's writings and thoughts into China. At the book symposium, LI Tiangang observed that during the Ming and Qing dynasties, missionaries translated many works of Aristotle and Aquinas to introduce Western "natural knowledge." However, in order to emphasize Christian faith, they also enthusiastically recounted Augustine's conversion story and his theological doctrines. ZHU Donghua argued that among the three models of Augustine's theory of time, late imperial China selectively embraced two of these, namely, the concepts of "four eschatological moments" and "four images of the flowing time," while missing the opportunity to engage with the concept of "the threefold present", which frames time as an extension of the soul (distensio animi). TIAN Shufeng pointed out that ZHOU's book focuses mainly on the reception process of Augustine's works and thoughts in China, but it would still require a more systematic study on the level of communication and mutual learning among civilizations. XIAO Qinghe remarked that through the "translation" of Augustine, missionaries of the Ming and Qing dynasties introduced both his image and ideas into China, but that it would be much more fruitful to further explore the connections between Augustine and the traditional Chinese thoughts. WEN Jun suggested that while tracing the history of Augustine's transmission into China, we could also investigate the Sinicized expressions of "original sin" and "grace" based on the missionaries' interpretations, and thus broaden the space for dialogue between these expressions and the traditional Chinese religious philosophy. In response to these comments and suggestions, ZHOU Weichi offered detailed replies one by one.
Swansong, which originated from ancient Greek and Roman traditions, intersected with Christian and humanist traditions in early modern England. The Christian tradition enriched this classical topos by infusing it with moral and theological significance centered around redemption and salvation, while humanism imbued it with eros. William Shakespeare, in his dramatic works, inherited and embellished upon this topos by presenting two distinctive and eccentric swansongs: King John's miserable and sinful black swansong, and Emilia's pious Protestant swansong. This case study exemplifies the inherent advantages derived from topology, which enables us to comprehend the timeless presence of various topoi within different contexts and to discern the embodied enduring humanistic truth contained within it.
This article uses anthropological data gained from Chaoxianzu (ethnic Korean Chinese) Christians in South Korea to explore the use of the concept "double diaspora" in response to recent academic discussions on ethnic return migration and diasporic return. Christianity and the church have not only provided the Chaoxianzu in South Korea with the first steps to navigating these issues, but it has also become the means by which identities have been constructed, through providing a spiritual home among compatriots sharing values and meanings. In a sense, it is Christianity itself, the article argues, that has become the diasporic religion and homeland of the Chaoxianzu. The ambiguity over the Chaoxinazu's ethnic and national identity offers an exemplary case for exploring some of the complexities inherent within double diaspora identities and their close intersection with the sphere of transnationalism. As the experience of double diaspora transcends both ethnic and nationalistic boundaries, the concept of belonging to a homeland itself becomes largely temporary and abstract. Chaoxianzu Christianity in South Korea provides us with a special case in which localized Christianity can be transmitted back to regions where Christianity is dominant, indicating that the development trend of religion and immigration is global and multi-directional.
Pierre Bourdieu's sociology is a deconstruction of theodicy by reducing the fidelity of the justification of existence to a misrecognition produced by symbolic power based on symbolic capital. In his view, theology is a special symbolic action with its own special interests that obscures the dominant relations. His argument constitutes a challenge to the theological claim of universality. However, the reflexivity of his sociology also limits "sociological foundationalism" and opens up the possibility of a dialogue with theology. His purely negative sociology is a sociology of the absence of good. In this direction, theological reflection on society has the capacity to reconstruct theodicy and constitute a complement to Bourdieu's sociology through the "reconstruction of the good."
Over the course of a century, Pentecostal belief has evolved through the spread of the Pentecostal-Charismatic movement, of which its flexibility has fueled its rapid spread. Taking the core content of Pentecostal faith and practice, i.e., the baptism with the Holy Spirit and its external evidence a representative, we will explore its construction and interpretation in the process of its dissemination in modern China. The early generation of Pentecostal believers interpreted it on the basis of their own experience, while after the founding of the Assemblies of God in China, and their response to the many criticisms and denials of mainstream denominational Christianity, they are making apologetic interpretations of the content of their beliefs, as well as the way in which they practiced them. On the one hand, the content of their faith is based on the Bible, in which that a solid foundation has been laid for its construction; and, on the other hand, in the way of practice, it is gradually moving closer to the mainstream denominations, so as to avoid disorder and confusion in behavior. Thus, on the basis of this new historical material and this new perspective, we can make up for the previous omissions in the study of Pentecostal faith as practiced in modern China.
Current scholarship predominantly interprets rural Christianity in China either as a continuation of folk religion or a variant of universal Christianity. However, these perspectives often overlook the agency of believers themselves. Within Christian communities influenced by Pietism, the concepts of "presence or absence of spiritual life (sheng ming / ling ming)" and "being spiritual (shu ling) or unspiritual" are central. An analysis of these notions reveals how believers understand and enact the framework of belief in practice. Based on fieldwork and theological traditions, this study demonstrates that "being spiritual" serves as a confirmation of divine grace. The pursuit of this mode of ethical life, for rural believers, entails cultivating "a body permeable to God," which requires disciplined prayer and self-denial. Therefore, the spiritual way of life is grounded in its own unique world view and cannot be simplistically reduced to a variant of any existing belief model.
In the 7th century Jingjiao document Yishenlun (sic)(sic)(sic) ("On One God"), we come across a surprising occurrence: Shizun lift (sic), the Chinese translation of Bhagavat, was attributed to Jesus. This unique title, borrowed from Buddhism, carries multifaceted meanings, encompassing references to the Lord and Son of God, as evidenced by comparisons with quoted scriptures. The author delves into Adam Christology to underscore the significance of Christ's resurrection, reflecting a pivotal perspective revered in Syriac Christianity. This endeavour stands as a notable effort to convey Christian concepts to Chinese readers with limited exposure to the Christian faith, thus utilizing available resources effectively. Consequently, it seems improbable that this document is a later fabrication by Christians of subsequent generations. Rather, it potentially represents one of the earliest ventures into Sino-Christian theology, as it predates the works of Catholic missionaries in the Ming dynasty by a millennium.
In his discussion of sensation, Thomas Aquinas proposes the concept of spiritual immutation (immutatio spiritualis), and emphasizes that the completion of proper sense is spiritual immutation rather than natural immutation. In contemporary Anglo-American philosophy, one debate is concerning the understanding of this concept. David W. Hamlyn argues that spiritual change is mental change; Sheldon M. Cohen argues that spiritual change is physical change; Miles F. Burnyeat argues that spiritual change is both mental change and physical change; Robert Pasnau argues that spiritual change is both mental change and intentional change. This article analyzes the essential text of this concept and gives a response to this debate from a position of realism. This article argues that (1.) spiritual change is a physical act rather than a physical change, and that (2.) spiritual change is a mental change rather than an intentional change.
