Sessions 8&9 - May 8

[stubing]

Register for the Saturday webinar on Zoom here: https://usc.zoom.us/webinar/register/8716149995278/WN_sB4_ZoIwTsmyr1PXlkh9uw

Please encourage friends and colleagues to register. Information about the seminar is at: https://china.usc.edu/seminars/crossing-borders-seeking-converts-religion-east-asia.

Educators interested in how religions travel and are adapted in East Asia should join us for this half-day workshop focusing on Buddhism in Japan and Christianity in China. We'll discuss the history of these belief systems in East Asia, looking at periods and places where they have been especially popular or influential. We'll talk about who was particularly drawn to these faiths and those who were particularly opposed to their adoption and spread. What role have these religions played in the lives of believers and communities?

Our speakers are Lori Meeks (USC, Buddhism) and Mary Li Ma (Calvin University, Christianity). It will be a terrific session.

Reading from Mary Li Ma: Christian Women and Modern China. It begins with a look at the relative neglect of the place and roles of women in modern Chinese history. pdf download below.

Reading from Lori Meeks: Japanese Experiences of Buddhism

Attachments:

You must be logged in to view attached files.

[Guadalupe Moreno]

This weeks reading focused on Women's history in China and Religion. Women experiences throughout Chinese history has been fragmented, neglected, and insufficently documented. Chrisitan Women and Modern China , although only the introduction, talks about the incoporation of Women, specifically Chrisitan women into Chinese history. It is important to incoporated the precense of women in Chinese hsitory since thy have actively being part of change in China but also helps trace the beginning of modren China.

What grasped my attention the most within the reading was the discovery that although religions has unfortunately been the desecration of many cultures, cultural pratices, tradtions, and beliefs, for women in China religion speciffcally Chrisitanity was a way to reform their place in society. Christianity acted as catalyst to raise women's consciousness if their social and religious exclusion. Despite traditon teachings of submissive roles, there was many demands of change for the womens life. In a sence it was a "quiet geneder revolution [taking] place in [Chinese] society. Unfortunately, women were still pushed into the backlight when considering the Chrisitan revivilism in China compare to there male counterparts. This only allowed for gendered favorism and allowed for msitreatment and abuse of women to go unacknowledge and dissmised till this day. 

I am not a sure how I would incoporate this content into my course but I believe this reading is important to bridge the social hostory gap of women in China. Further it shines the light on hostprical content that has a traditional natrrative of male-dominance. It breeds the question; What else in histroy can viewed differently if we remove the the male narrative and incoporate other perspectives? Simultaneously, it will teach students to question what they have learned and brodern thier fountain of information. Not all of the transitions of history occured soley because of men. 

[Guadalupe Moreno]

As the introduction of Buddhism in Japan occured, there was conflict and resistance by some of the court memebers. Bearers of keeping traditional rituals alive, they belived the acceptance of Buddhism would offend Indigenous kami or spirits. Believes formed by local customs and rituals due to the lack of a "formal religions". Despit the fear of distruppting the good relation of the people with the spirits, Buddhism was adopted replacing indigenous tradition and becoming the state religion within 50 years. Scholars believe the acceptance of Buddhism was due to it being the carrier of an advanced civilization but most importantly it was perceived as a means to attain security and prosperity. As timed continued Prince Shotoku was the first Emperor to practiced Buddihsm thus he supported the building of seven temples, decreed the acceptance of the Three Refuges of Buddhism, incoporated The Six Schools of Japense Buddhism and more.  

I find this reading rivitng. This is the first time I read about peaceful sharing of religion and choice of acceptance amoungst those who rule/govern the country. For the most part, when a new religion is introduce to a different culture, it is forced and demanded. I know the situation within religion was not always peacful for Japan but at least for the introduction of Buddhism, they had a choice. 

[clay dube]

Guadalupe, Thank you so much for reading these materials and responding to them. Buddhism's emergence and transmission has been one of the giant developments. It had a varied but profound impact in East Asia. Most people in mainland Southeast Asia describe themselves as Buddhists and significant minorities in South Korea, Japan, Vietnam and China do as well. It is a minority faith in the U.S., of course, with polls showing about 1% of residents identifying as Buddhist. Buddhism's role as a cultural carrier has been significant, helping to transmit language as well as ideas about governance and even city design. 

Christian beliefs are more familiar to most Americans than Buddhist ones. In Asia, Christian missions have labored for centuries to promote the faith, sometimes at great personal risk. In Asia, only the former Spanish colony of the Philippines is a majority Christian country, but significant Christian minorities have flourished in places as diverse as Vietnam, China, Korea and even Japan. In our Ming dynasty lecture for the May 12 session, we touch on the Jesuit's arrival in China. One of the striking developments in China has been the embrace of Christianity by some political dissidents. But most of China's Christians aren't political dissidents, they are individuals who have found something in the faith that gives them help and comfort.

One striking aspect of religion in East Asia today is the evident devotion of women. You see this at temples and churches. Men are there, of course, and are often religious leaders, but women are frequently the majority of those participating in public religious practice.

Thanks, again, for jumping into this discussion. I hope many more of our colleagues will also do so.

[Richard Cate]

I found the book selection on Buddhism in Japan to be very comprehensive. I have a question I sak my students to make, Is this an unbiased souce of information? Are there other obversations of the history of Buddhism in Japan I should be looking at to get a balanced picture? That said I found that there was so much information and so very many names I have not encountered before that I felt like my students must when I run through my own lecture series of cultures they have never encountered before. It is good to be able to remember that things we find very familiar are to them all new and overwhelming.

Thgere are many things I learned from the excerpt that expanded my understanding of the depth of Buddhist influence in Japan. For example, that Zen practice came to Japan as early as it did. I had always believed that it came in the Kamakura Period. So, it was surprizing to me that it had been introduced in Prince Shotoku's time. That is the thing that keeps me coming back to the USC-China Institute, I constantly have my knowledge increased not incrementally but by leaps and bounds. I look forward to a second reading where I can explore the work more carefully.

[Taylor Bub]

I found the reading fascinating as well. I think that it would be important to inlcude the "quiet gender revolution" in our courses.  We live in a world that is so male dominated, and I think that many of us look at these power distributions and focus mainly on European cultures and American cultures.  However, it is important to see that these problems exist worldwide.  I have expressed this thought before but I still wonder (and probably will never know) why women in almost every culture are viewed as lesser than men.

[Bin He]

Since we have mentioned the development of Christianity in the Ming Dynasty, Matteo Ricci is a figure that had to be mentioned. In many ways, he has achieved what the preachers have never succeeded in the past.

Firstly, Matteo Ricci believed preachers should follow the upper-class line, make friends with scholars and officials with high social and political status in China, and strive for their support. For this reason, when Matteo Ricci first came to China, he changed to wear Chinese scholars' clothes and perform scholar's rites. To gain the Chinese sense of identity, he also studied the classics of Confucianism, adopted the strategy of Confucianism-based missionary, and interpreted the Catholic God (Deus) as the God in the book of Shang and the book of songs.

 In addition, Matteo Ricci also made adaptive reforms to some Catholic religious rituals. Due to Chinese traditions restricting contact between men and women, Matteo Ricci waived the anointing in baptism; Catholicism stipulated that believers must be anointed before death. Ricci also instructed missionaries to adapt gradually; he was also committed to cultivating Chinese traditions and requests the permission of the Holy See to enable priests in China to use antique Chinese masses and perform sacraments, etc.

To adapt to the West's tradition and pay more attention to words than oral transmission, Matteo Ricci wrote and printed a large number of Chinese works, which attracted a group of literati to pay attention to Western learning and Western religion and promoted the spread of Catholicism.

All in all, Matteo Ricci might be the first successful western who did the localization of religion in China.  

[Taylor Bub]

Reflecting on our meeting this morning, I found it so interesting that the growth of Christianity was embedded in the social change specifically for women in China.  I thought about how in class, we can have students compare the affects of Christianity on cultures, specifically how they affect the culture in a positive and then a negative way.  We often often think (and rightly so) about European explorers conquering other cultures and forcing changes onto those cultures to change them.  But I have not seen many evaluations of how these exporers bringing in Christianity might have affected the culture in a positive way, other than in typical documents showing how these explorers "helped 'lesser' cultures become more 'civilised'".  

[Sean Lobberecht]

Today's conversation covered many fascinating topics and it was great to hear from such knowledgable academics on the topics of Buddhism in Japan and Christianity in China. One of the most fascinating aspects of this entire seminar for me has been learning about how dominate Chinese culture was and the impact it had on Japan and Korea. Learning about this influence will benefit my practice I believe as it gives one a better understanding of the areas we are charged with instructing. In the Massachusetts state standards there is very little mention of teaching the impacts that China had on Japan and Korea and the impacts that Japan and Korea had on China in return. What is mentioned briefly in the standards is how Buddhism spread throughout Asia. After today's conversation I realize that it was not just Bddhism that spread to Japan but as professor Meeks pointed out it was a larger cultural package. This connection with China seems to be the prevailing ideology that solidifies one as "cultured" in ancient Japan. This can be seen through the very popular use of the Chineese writing system in Japan and the looking down upon of a Korean writing system. I think knowing these connections and teaching our students these connections can not only make it easier to jump from one civilization to the next but also increase student understanding of the region as a whole as we progress throughout the curriculum. I have talked a great deal about trying to find a way to teach the curriculum more concurrently and I think the possibility of doing that was greatly increased by not only today's conversation but the seminar as a whole.

[Sean Lobberecht]

Today's lectures gave us great insight into how the religions of Buddhism and Christianity were molded to be more easily adopted in foriegn lands. Professor Meeks talked a great deal about how Biddhism came to be in Japan and how it was more a part of a cultural package. What I found very interesting was the ways in which Japan adapted Buddhism and intertwined it with their beliefs in Kami. Once Buddhism had been transmitted into Japan traditional Japanese Kami figures were now seenn as "enlightened." At the same time traditionally important Buddhist figures were adopted into the Kami family. 

In China it appears that Christianity has been adopted in a way that fits in with Chinese culture as well. I found the ideology of the role of women in Chinese Christian communities very interesting. Professor Ma spoke about how the Christian community in China use theological rhetoric to reinforce their beliefs of the role of women in society. I found the comparison to some forms of christianity in the United States very intersting and how certain preachers are very popular in China because their ideology fits in well.

I think observing how religions take hold in different places is a facinating area of history and can go a long way in understanding the cultures of the societies that the dominate religion is penetrating. We see the blending of relgion to fit cultural norms all over the world. For example the was Islam took hold in Africa where it did not deminish the very important role of women in any way. We even see it in christianity with the celbrating of holidays. I think exploring the adoption of religion and how there is not just a whole sale reshuffling of culture but instead a mixing of culture and religion is not only a great exercise for students but a necessary one. Since homosap[iens have become the dominate human species the coming together of societies has been occurring. Showing students the role a dominate culture has on the cultures it is dominating is important but I think it is more important to study how the culture being influenced changes the incoming culture to make it best fit with local traditions and cultures.

[Sean Lobberecht]

I enjoyed the conversation about Queen Komyo a great deal. One of the hardest parts about teaching Ancient Civilizations for me is finding pathways for students to make connections. I struggle a lotto find female examples to highlight and I try to insert the stories of females whenever possible. Giving yourg women and men examples of women throughout history not ony gives young girls an avenue to connect with the curriculum but I also think it is beneficial to young boys to see women in positions of power and importance. Queen Komyo gives us another great opportunity to bring an important woman from history into the classroom. Queen Komyo was not only seen as a Kami but also she was played a big role in solidifying Buddhism in Japan. Queen Komyo;s story is an excellent source to bring into the classroom. We can learn from this source about the role of Buddhism in Japan, the impact Buddhism had on Japan, and the impact a woman had on shaping Japanese culture. The story of Empress Komyo is also an excellent example to bring into the classroom because it can be studied through the lense of the Fujiwara period. Connecting her to Todai-ji Temple would also be an excelent conversation to bring into the classroom offering an opportunity for students to dig deeper into learning about Japan and the Buddhist Faith. I am happy I learned about empress Komyo as I think she will be an excellent addition to my curriculum in the future.

[Jennifer Macchiarella]

I found the readings and lecture about the introduction of Buddhism to Japan extrememly interesting, especially the discussion of how many people can follow both Buddhism and Shinto.  When we teach European history, the differences between Islam, Christianity, and Judaism seem very stark, as do the divisions with Islam and Christianity.  The idea that separation between religious belief doesn't have to be so defined will be interesting to my students.  My class doesn't "start" until the Industrial Revolution, so I will rexamine the readings and look for ideas about modern Japanese religious practice that I can use with my students. 

[Bin He]

Today I heard about the development of Christianity in China by the guests, and I wondered whether the primitive Chinese beliefs, especially the worship of heaven, promoted the spread of Christianity to some extent.

The Chinese people's understanding of heaven can be divided into two types, one is god, the other is heaven, a fictional sacred space. In traditional Chinese folk culture, the sky represents God. Many primitive religions worship and personify the sky, and believe that many natural phenomena are the will of God.

For Confucianism, in order to prove the legitimacy of the emperor, they would claim that the new emperor would replace the old emperor with the permission of the gods. Therefore, the emperor will also be called "son of god"

 

Secondly, in Taoist concepts, there are stories of heaven. This is a system similar to Greek mythology, where gods are in charge of everything in nature.

 

[Bin He]

Taoism and Buddhism are the religious beliefs with the most significant number of believers in China.

Although Buddhism was introduced to China, it absorbed a lot of traditional Chinese culture and Taoist thoughts and rituals, and it had apparent characteristics of integration. Therefore, for the vast majority of believers in China, there is no difference between the two. Taoist gods and Buddhist Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Arhats are all gods that need to be worshiped in the eyes of these believers. These gods also have vast and unique abilities or supernatural powers, which can control life and death, misfortune and good luck, and can judge reincarnation and destiny.

 

For people of these general beliefs, what they call belief is "worship." , which includes: burn incense, burn paper, kowtow, make sacrifices, and then pray piously, praying to relieve one's sins and pray for blessings for oneself, family members, and children and grandchildren. These people have a common logic: all idols need to be worshipped, and all models can protect themselves, as long as they are pious enough, as long as their worship is more diligent, as long as their sacrifices are more generous.

 

[Miguel Diaz]

In her lecture, Professor Mary Li Ma mentioned a cyclical pattern where China has traditionally accepted and rejected outside influences.

This reminded me of a time when China sent out students to learn from the Western powers (similar to what the Japanese did in the late 1800’s)

In his book, “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Dragon”, Yong Zhao wrote about the Chinese Education Mission (CEM) which sent 120 boys to study Western technology at American universities, but which ended without achieving its goals. The participants of this program, according to Yong Zhao, actually ended up being persecuted upon their return to China. Evidently, those governing China at the time thought they didn’t need western science and technology.

Decades later June Chang, in her book on Mao titled “Mao: The Unknown Story” (if I recall correctly), wrote about a graveyard of thousands half-built factories which were built under the guidance of the USSR. 

Does this indicate that China was actually interested in modernizing during the Mao era, but did not succeed in part because China aligned itself to a USSR that was not fully modernized and not tied to the world’s financial and trade systems? Of course, internal political upheavals didn’t help.

[Author]

Posts