Kang Youwei and Confucianism in Canada and beyond, 1899–1911

ABSTRACT

Based on the new discovery of two of Kang Youwei’s writings composed in Canada in 1899, this article expands the historical research concerning his Confucian religious thoughts and movement within the Canadian context and the period of his overseas exile in 1899–1911. The article first focuses on Kang’s continual pursuit of Confucian religious cosmopolitism from China to Canada, especially his efforts to disseminate Confucianism overseas and to develop a new utopian vision that called for the removal of religious boundaries among human beings worldwide. Its second focus is on Kang’s use of Canada as both a starting point and a turning point in his search for the Confucian State Religion. He consequently sought to develop a conservative nationalism from traditional Chinese culture and through a utilitarian adoption of Christian institutions and Western cultures. The analysis of both Kang’s pursuit of Confucian religious cosmopolitism and his search for the Confucian State Religion reveals their positive and negative impacts on his reformist movement that affected Canadian Chinatowns and on the broader Chinese diaspora from 1899–1911. Kang’s promotion of Confucianism in Canadian Chinatowns and the Chinese diaspora in addition had implications for the failure of his religious movement in the early Republican Period.     

Democracy and the Criminal Justice System

Abstract

This paper explores the difficulties faced by European secularism in dealing with a Muslim diaspora of unprecedented size in the continent's history. It shows how this presence has highlighted contradictions in European conceptions of the religious and of the public-private divide. The paper does this by comparing Europe to Latin America where a quite different process of secularization seems to have taken place.     

Science and secularization

ABSTRACT

According to a long-standing narrative of Western modernity science is one of the main drivers of secularization. Science is said to have generated challenges to core religious beliefs and to have provided an alternative, rational way of looking at the world. This narrative typically relies on progressive and teleological understandings of history, and commitment to some version of an ongoing struggle between science and religion. By way of contrast, recent theories of secularization, such as that of Charles Taylor, have suggested that the role of science in secularization has been greatly exaggerated. This article also offers a critique of the standard “science causes secularization” story. But in contrast to other critiques of this kind, it suggests that science nonetheless has a significant role in secularization – one that can be maintained without a commitment to a crude progressivist history or a narrative of science-religion conflict.     

A heavenly poise: radical religion and the making of the Enlightenment

ABSTRACT

Scholarship continues to identify the Enlightenment with secularization, despite the theological tenor of much of the movement's canonical literature. This article proposes an explanation for such a dissonance, before addressing the matter more directly through the work of Baruch Spinoza and Pierre Bayle. The claim is that scholars have been unduly dependent upon theological commentary in reaching the fixed verdict of secularization, inferring ‘atheism’ and disenchantment from the polemical utterances of a privileged orthodoxy rather than the primary sources themselves. Seen apart from such controlling anathemas, icons of the radical Enlightenment such as Spinoza and Bayle emerge as deeply spiritual thinkers, challenging the theocratic assumptions of their age with theological certainties of their own, interrogating orthodoxy with a resolutely biblical rationality. The final section suggests the continuity of the eighteenth-century Enlightenment of Voltaire, Kant and Mary Wollstonecraft with the spiritual rationalism of the seventeenth century. If so many of the Enlightenment's landmark thinkers were inspired by religious ideas, the concept of a secular modernity must be open to revision.     

Rejuvenation after encounters between different artistic forms: a synopsis of studies of indigenization of Christian art in China

Religion and art are symbiotic. The ecumenical propagation of Christianity inherently entails a mission of indigenization. Since it spread to China, Christianity has produced many renovated art forms which combined indigenization and local artistic expression on the one hand, with original religious notions and Western art on the other. This article reviews Chinese scholarship on the indigenization of Christianity in modern China and emphasizes that the renovated Chinese architecture, music, and fine art, after integrating with religious ideas and techniques, largely promoted the modern transformation and rejuvenation of traditional Chinese art.     

Localizing the Reynolds case: a comparison of two American military atrocities in the Far East in Cold War 1957

ABSTRACT

This paper’s main focus is the case of the killing of Chinese citizen Liu Ziran by the American soldier Robert G. Reynolds in Taipei on March 20, 1957. Following this unfortunate event, a United States court-martial was inappropriately held in Taiwan. Reynolds’ acquittal provoked a violent response from the Chinese people. The riot on May 24, 1957, is best interpreted within a framework of nationalism rather than Cold War discourse. That same year, in the Girard case, another American soldier killed a Japanese woman in Japan. Due to the unequal positions of Taiwan and Japan in US Cold War strategy, these two killings were handled differently and led to dissimilar reactions. Washington viewed Taipei as somewhat of a troublemaker rather than a reliable ally and expressed great suspicion of Chiang Kai-shek and his eldest son, Chiang Ching-kuo. The US government had already declined to support Chiang Kai-shek’s plan for parachute raids in China. Meanwhile, Chiang’s authoritarian regime created a hotbed for the outbreak of nationalism. The people of Taiwan experienced a “pawn complex” and, in the Reynolds case, gave vent to accumulated ideological and social pressures.     

In God We Trust: Abraham Lincoln and America's Deathbed Repentance

Abstract

This article maps several key moments in the evolution of religious symbolism and language on US currency, focusing largely on Abraham Lincoln's overlooked role in signing the motto "In God We Trust" into law. Interpreting the motto through the lens of Lincoln's "Second Inaugural Address"—which he delivered just one day after Congress passed the first statute allowing "In God We Trust" to be stamped on US coins—offers a counter-intuitive interpretation of the motto that functions as a deep, ironic, and historically significant critique of religious nationalism.     

Citizenship policies in interwar Turkey*

Abstract. This article studies interwar Turkish nationalism from the perspective of Turkish citizenship policies. The interwar era witnessed the rise of a nationalist state in Turkey, as elsewhere in Eastern Europe. Ethnicist Turkish nationalism emerged as a political force in the 1930s. The study scrutinises the impact of this on Turkish nationalism. In doing this, it focuses on the practices of the Turkish state, especially the citizenship policies. Accordingly, the piece examines the role of ethnicity, religion and territory in Ankara's denaturalisation and naturalisation policies. It concludes that, despite the rise of ethnic nationalism, not ethnicity but the legacy of the millet system and ethno‐religious identities shaped Turkey's citizenship policies in the interwar period.     

Analysis of Japanese influence on the three major historiographical trends in early modern China

ABSTRACT

This paper examines the intrinsic relationships between Japanese historiography and the three great historiographical trends of New Historiography, Debates on Ancient History, and Marxist historiography, from the macroscopic perspective of the transformation, development, and early modern growth of modern and early modern Chinese historiography, exploring how Chinese historical researchers selected, deviated from, and assimilated Japanese historiography, while also particularly focusing on how the recipients utilized Japanese historiographical methods and concepts as well as the achievements of Japanese scholars in researching Chinese history to construct their own interpretation of Chinese historiography, in a study of the academic trend of indigenization.     

A flawed perspective: the limitations inherent within the study of Chinese nationalism1

ABSTRACT. Is nationalism in China on the rise? Is it making China more combative in the international arena? More fundamentally: Is a focus on nationalism the most effective intellectual framework for understanding how those living within the People's Republic of China (PRC) are defining their position in contemporary world politics? This article briefly answers each of these questions. It argues that, despite forwarding some compelling insights, previous work on Chinese nationalism has been undermined by a number of major flaws. It then finds that such shortcomings are in no small part a product of the narrowing gaze that a focus on nationalism alone imposes on the study of identity politics. The article then advocates that in place of the nationalism rubric, a turn to the broader question of national identity formation is merited. Utilising this perspective, it concludes by cautioning that incipient splits within contemporary Chinese national identity may portend a more tumultuous relationship between China and the rest of the world in the years to come.     

Focusing on Chinese nationalism: an inherently flawed perspective? A reply to Allen Carlson

My article replies to Allen Carlson's critique of the existing literature on Chinese nationalism (Carlson's article was published in Volume 15, issue 1 of Nations and Nationalism, 2009). I address Carlson's criticisms and proceed to evaluate his proposal to move away from an allegedly unhelpful focus on nationalism towards the allegedly more illuminating framework of national identity construction. My approach to the existing literature on Chinese nationalism acknowledges efforts made within it at grappling with issues of theory and definition and builds on this acknowledgement to operate a selective appraisal of its strengths and weaknesses. I argue that while some of the problems identified by Carlson do indeed plague the literature, his advocacy of abandoning nationalism as a focus of research is unwarranted. There is continuing validity in using nationalism as a lens for understanding how China sees its place in the world.     

The late Qing “national language” issue and monolingual systems: Focusing on political diplomacy

ABSTRACT

Established as a multiethnic and multilingual empire, the Qing dynasty used Manchu, Chinese, and other languages in its government. Influenced by nationalism, the court attempted to establish Manchu as the “national language.” Yet over time, the “national language movement” resulted in Chinese being adopted as the “national language.” Occurring in the twilight years of the Qing, this transition reflected the moribund fate of the Qing empire against the rising tide of Chinese nationalism at the turn of the twentieth century.     

The politics of disenchantment: Marcel Gauchet and the French struggle with secularization

ABSTRACT

This article looks at Marcel Gauchet’s major metahistorical statement, The Disenchantment of the World: A Political History of Religion (1985), and uses it to advance a series of claims about the place of secularization in debates within and about French politics, especially in relation to modern French history. The argument is put forward that Gauchet’s work is best understood as offering an alternative philosophy of history to Marxism that could serve to support a broadly republican realignment of French politics in the 1980s. Revisionist historiography concerning the French Revolution likewise played a role in this development, and served as a prerequisite of sorts to Gauchet’s broader historical project. The article also considers Gauchet’s work in light of postmodern skepticism of the utility of historical metanarratives.     

Religion,secularisation and nationalism in Quebec and the Basque Country: a comparative approach

This article analyses the relationship between religion, secularisation and nationalism in Quebec and the Basque Country using a comparative approach. I will first outline the ethnic‐religious origin of these nationalist movements. Second, I will examine the extent to which the ‘new’ secular and violent nationalism (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna and Front de Libération du Québec) that emerged in the 1960s was fuelled in its origin by a transfer of sacrality. Third, I will address an aspect that has led some theorists to view religion and nationalism as analogous phenomena, in which nationalism is construed as a religion of blood sacrifice. Fourth, I will examine another aspect that leads to this view of religion and nationalism as analogous phenomena, as the latter also provides a framework of transcendent meaning through an imaginary of continuity between the different generations. The article concludes with a series of general considerations on the relations between nationalism, secularisation and religion.     

Secularization,Legal Pluralism,and the Question of Relationship-Recognition Regimes

Abstract

In this article I contend that the re-emergence of religion in Western liberal states is a feature of a much broader phenomenon, namely, the re-establishment of legal pluralism whereby various social actors claim to be the legitimate producers of their own law. To prove this, I first offer an account of secularization as the successful attempt of modern states to dismantle a legal-pluralist system. Based on this, I argue that the reviviscence of religions is the reviviscence of their practical side: religious practices tend to be perceived by religious group members as providing guidance for conduct, one that challenges the rules of the state legal order and its monistic structure. Finally, by exploring the issue of same-sex union recognition, I defend the claim that, in a truly post-secular society, the state should allow a multiplicity of relationship-recognition models that reflect and meet different interests and needs.     

"Oh Mary,Don't You Weep": Progressive Religion in the Living Wage Movement

Abstract

Despite religion's absence in much of secular labor and social movement theories' analyses, progressive religious coalitions are a fundamental partner in the rise of new labor activism in the United States. At a time when media and academia focus on the strength of the "religious right" at the federal level, the success of the municipal living wage movement demonstrates the under-recognized power of the "religious left" in cities around the nation. Through examples from case studies, I document the importance of progressive religion's material and cultural contributions to the movement. In the end, I also contend that paying attention to the successful dynamics of religion-labor alliances at the municipal level can provide important lessons for revitalizing progressive religion's role at the federal level.     

There's Life in Establishment—But Not as We Know It

Abstract

Secularization theory, central to the dominant discourse of modernity, sought to describe a tendency—regarded as ‘inevitable’ by some leading scholars— whereby transcendence was squeezed out of the system by processes of bureaucratization and rationalism, and relegated to the margins of private faith and practice, dying altogether, perhaps. The new Inner Cities Religious Council, set up by the government in 1992 to administer the areas where religious migrants and others live, afforded an opportunity to test the political validity of this theory using discourse analysis of government documents. Startling, if inconclusive, evidence is revealed of a ‘religious’ response by government to minority issues, which reveals secularization to be driven by choices—not inevitable but a power struggle: one to which the Church of England appeared to capitulate, even while it facilitated other faiths in their own pursuit of status claims.     

Muslim Theologies of Solidarity and Disavowal and the Challenge of Religious Pluralism

ABSTRACT

Rawls' conception of political liberalism does not reckon exclusivist salvation religions to be, for that reason alone, unreasonable. He posits, however, that exclusivist doctrines of salvation are likely to become more generous in their views of the religious other with the experience of toleration. While the religious welcome toleration by the majority, relaxation of doctrines of salvation dilutes the urgency of religious truth, and so reduces a religion's ability to justify its existence. Paradoxically, political toleration creates a countervailing demand within a religious community to articulate more precisely what is intolerable in the religious other. This paper explores the dialectic between toleration and nontoleration in the history of Muslim sects and suggests that this history offers lessons on the kinds of strategies that can be successful in promoting religious tolerance in a Muslim society, as well as the limits that might reasonably be expected in those societies.     

Religion and nationalism: four approaches*

ABSTRACT. Building on recent literature, this article discusses four ways of studying the relationship between religion and nationalism. The first is to treat religion and nationalism, along with ethnicity and race, as analogous phenomena. The second is to specify ways in which religion helps explain things about nationalism – its origin, its power or its distinctive character in particular cases. The third is to treat religion as part of nationalism, and to specify modes of interpenetration and intertwining. The fourth is to posit a distinctively religious form of nationalism. The article concludes by reconsidering the much‐criticised understanding of nationalism as a distinctively secular phenomenon.     

Ancient and Non-Western International Thought

Summary

In early and prehistoric times, human groups cooperated among themselves and competed viciously with other groups. Concepts of international relations, notably universal hegemony and exclusive nationalism, go back to the earliest recorded history. Only the ancient Greeks experienced inter-state relations somewhat analogous to those of modern Europe; and the first reflections on these may be found in Thucydides. The Greeks, and later the Romans, above all Cicero, developed a notion of cosmopolitanism. During the Latin Middle Ages, the papacy perpetuated the idea of universal hegemony. The principle of state sovereignty was also formulated. The pre-modern Chinese empire was held to rule ‘all-under-Heaven’; Confucian ethics contributes the notion of humanity (ren) as the fundamental category. Muslims deepened the us–them distinction by claiming sole legitimacy for their religious community under the Caliph (Deputy of Muhammad). Today, Muslims veer between this and a more Western approach to international relations.