Perception and Revival of Confucianism in Contemporary China

Abstract

This article focuses on the perception of Confucianism in modern China, its revival, and its prospects in the future. Confucianism has always been a major current in Chinese culture, but it lost all its prerogatives after the abolition of the system of academic examinations and the dismantling of the feudal system of imperial China. After 1949, it survived only in Taiwan and among the Chinese diaspora. New Confucianism in mainland China grew out of the debate over whether it was a religion or not. Its activity as a political doctrine reached its peak by 2015, but then it lost its prominence being considered irrelevant. Subsequently, individual scholars put forward different versions of Confucian ideology, including “civil religion”, “a new doctrine of humanity”, “an ontology of humanity”, “living Confucianism”, and so on. At the same time, the Party and the government supported Confucianism as an influential cultural force. In 2008, traditional holidays were made non-working days, and in 2012 the CPC Congress put forward a Confucian-based ideal of the “common destiny of mankind.” In this context, the continent's followers of New Confucianism have sought to renounce metaphysics and emphasize its inclusiveness, intellectual freedom, and practicality, greatly expanding the scope of the Confucian world and creating a space for Confucian-Christian dialogue. In the future, Confucianism will become even more inclusive and uninhibited, and its propaganda activities will increase.