Authors & Affiliations: Shi X., Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, China

Pages: 7 - 41

Abstract: During the late Ming and early Qing eras, with the number of the converts increasing rapidly, and the number of the missionaries remain limited, there were not enough priests to take care of the Christians. The Jesuits thus adopted the strategy of forming of confraternities of laymen, dividing believers into smaller groups so that the priests could attend to each of them in turn. Shanghai was one of the cities where the confraternities were most highly developed. There were nine kinds of confraternities established in Shanghai during the 17th Century, each having its own features and functions. By mid-century, there were more than one hundred such groups in the city. With the recent publication of the Jingyitang zhi we are provided with new and more detailed information about these confraternities. The text details the operations of Jingyi Tang church, as well as the development of Christianity in Shanghai during the late Ming and early Qing periods. In this paper, the author utilize this text, along with other Chinese and Jesuit historical records, to discuss the establishment of the confraternities, their functioning, and the role they played in sustaining Christianity in Shanghai. © 2019 Chung Yuan Christian University. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Christianity; Confraternities; Jesuits; Jingyitang zhi; Shanghai

Authors & Affiliations: Qinghe X., Department of History, Shanghai University, China

Pages: 43 - 91

Abstract: During late Ming and early Qing dynasties. Western Missionaries not only introduced new religion, science and western culture into China, but also changed the meanings of some Chinese terms. Although missionaries used Confucian terms, they brought new meanings to these terms by redefining and reinterpreting them, and they gradually became the exclusive terms of Catholicism. With the case stud}' on the Sheng (Holy) and related terms, this article tries to explore Catholic discourses on the term Sheng and its semantic changes during late Ming and early Qing. It firstly illustrates the tradition of saints' worship in western Christianity. Then it discusses the semantic changes of Sheng in Chinese since pre-Qing period. It focuses on the reinterpretation of the Sheng and related terms in Catholic texts and the response to them by anti-Catholicism. The change of meaning of the Chinese character Sheng and the formation of Catholic terms related to it, could be regarded as a typical case of new ideas which were introduced and explained by missionaries in late Ming and early Qing. © 2019 Chung Yuan Christian University. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Catholicism; Late ming and eady qing; Semantic changes; Sheng(holy)/shengjmg (holy bible)/shenging(saints)/shengrnufiaint Mary)

Authors & Affiliations: Zhixi W., College of Liberal Arts, Shantou University, China

Pages: 93 - 139

Abstract: Christian pacifism in China arose after the end of the World War I and spread in the 1920s. It was not until after the Mukden Incident of 1931, however, that the issue of how to view violence and war triggered intense debates within the circle of Christian intellectuals. This incident was considered by them as a theological crisis as well as a national one. Many Christian intellectuals engaged actively in the discussion of this public issue of how to respond to the Sino-Japancse conflict On the one hand, pacifist Christian intellectuals shaped the publicness of anti-war images of Jesus in many ways. Some claimed Jesus' pacifist teachings from the Gospels (especially the text about loving enemies in the Sermon on the Mount). Others utilized Jesus' pacifist practices: Jesus refused to become a king; he rejected disciples' request of calling fire down to destroy a Samaritan village; he commanded Peter to put up his sword into the sheath; and he himself was crucified without violent resistance. Those Christian intellectuals who were not satisfied with the version of absolute pacifism, on the other hand, re-interpreted and relativized those so-called pacifist teachings and practices of Jesus. They also excavated from the Gospels Jesus' violence-affirmative teachings and practices at least under some conditions. These examples included: Jesus taught that he came to bring a sword to the earth; he asked his disciples to sell one's cloak and buy a sword; and he cleansed the temple. In these ways, they endeavored to shape the publicness of images of Jesus who shared bitter hatred in a violent way against China's enemy. © 2019 Chung Yuan Christian University. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Christian intellectuals; Images of jesus; Mukden incident; Pacifism; The gospels

Authors & Affiliations: Kenpa C., Department of Philosophy, Fu Jen Catholic University, Taiwan

Pages: 141 - 172

Abstract: Fu Lianzhang (@ Fu Lien-chang) was the most well known Christian Communist medical doctor in the history of Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Fu appeared to be the first Christian medical personnel who joined the party. He saved Mao Zedong's life from a deadly Dysentery attack and eventually became Mao's personal doctor. Mao once commented that Fu as a Christian and became a communist was an "iconic exemplar." This paper takes a different approach in the observation and discussion on Fu from the "official stance" of the CCP history. It is the goal of this paper to observe and re-discover Fu in the light of his complex interactions with the CCP. The main discussions will be centered on Fu's Christian stance and the possible factors which have caused him to join the CCP. © 2019 Chung Yuan Christian University. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Chinese communist party; Christian communist; Fu lianzhang; Long March

Authors & Affiliations: Luping H., Department of Philosophy, School of Public Administration, Sichuan University, China

Pages: 173 - 195

Abstract: In his late works Vita Mays is (The Life of Moses) and In Ccmticum Canticorum (Homilies on the Song of Songs), Gregory of Nyssa employs allegorical exegesis to interpret the Scripture, expressing his theological thought through biblical narratives. To Gregory, it is important for the exegete to identify the inherent skopos (aim) and akolouthia (sequence) in Scripture. The true meaning of the divinely-inspired Scripture is spiritual, which depicts the journey of the soul towards God. Starting with Gregory's hermeneutic method, this article explores his apology for allegory and his use of it Furthermore, it analyzes the content and paradigms of these two books. Finally, it endeavors to present a preliminary evaluation of Gregory's understanding of spirituality and mysticism. © 2019 Chung Yuan Christian University. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Akolouthia; Allegorical exegesis; Darkness; Gregory of nyssa; Light; Skopos

Authors & Affiliations: Yuntao Z., Wuhan University, Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences, China

Pages: 197 - 219

Abstract: Lindbeck and Proudfoot claimed that Schleiermacher was an exponent of experiential-expressive paradigm and made efforts to give an internal analysis and elucidation of religious phenomenon. According to this paradigm, religious intuition or feeling is prior to and independent of concepts and beliefs, religious languages including doctrines are just their external expressions, and could not mediate and shape them, and finally, the religious community is just a product of religious communications among religious persons. This paper responds to this classical critique on the basis of careful interpretation and analysis of Schleiermacher's texts and argues that their critique is not appropriate. In fact, according to Schleiermacher, religious experience is not what the individual alone can produce naturally. On the contrary, it comes into being only in and through the community, and is shaped and regulated by the tradition and classics of the community. Accordingly, doctrine is not just the expression of the individual experience, but the logically ordered presentation of the norms and criterion which are contained by that experience shaped and regulated by the community and its tradition. © 2019 Chung Yuan Christian University. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Community; Cultural-linguistic; Doctrine; Experiential-expressive