Struggling for Legitimacy

Spirit-Writing and Redemptive Societies in Republican China

K10plus union-catalog record

1 Online-Ressource (XI, 391 Seiten); 20; Asian Studies E-Books Online, Collection 2026; Contents -- Acknowledgements -- List of Figures -- 1 Introduction -- 1 Coming to Terms with Spirit-Writing Organizations in Republican China -- 2 Legitimation Strategies within a Changing Epistemic Context -- 3 Spirit-Writing and the Appropriation of Knowledge -- 4 Overview of the Book -- 2 From Divination to Redemption: a Brief History of Chinese Spirit-Writing -- 1 The Origins of Spirit-Writing -- 2 The Proliferation of Spirit-Writing During the Ming and the Qing -- 3 Practicing Spirit-Writing to Save the World -- 4 The Emergence of Redemptive Societies -- 5 Conclusion -- 3 Members, Institutions, and Practices: from Local Spirit-Writing Altar to National Redemptive Society -- 1 A Rocky Start, or the Early History of the Wushanshe -- 2 The Emergence of the Daoyuan -- 3 Internal Unification and National Expansion -- 4 From Philanthropy to Religion -- 5 From Religion to Philanthropy -- 6 Members and Networks -- 7 Practicing Spirit-Writing -- 8 Conclusion -- 4 Between jiao and zongjiao : Religion as a Site of Appropriation and Resistance -- 1 Early Debates on Religion -- 2 Coming to Terms with zongjiao -- 3 The Dao of Religion -- 4 Religion as a Source of Unity -- 5 Adopting New Institutional Models and Building a Universal Religion -- 6 "A Great Movement to Unite the World’s Religions" -- 7 Conclusion -- 5 Reestablishing the Dao: the Confucian Dimension of Spirit-Writing -- 1 The Changing Status of Confucianism within the Wushanshe and the Daoyuan -- 2 The Confucian Classics and the Transmission of the Dao -- 3 Spirit-Writing and the Restoration of the Dao -- 4 Making Known the "Divine Way" (shendao) -- 5 The Political Value of Confucianism and Confucian Learning -- 6 Conclusion -- 6 Reconfiguring Philanthropy ( cishan ): Religion, the Red Cross, and New Forms of Philanthropic Activism -- 1 Debating the Reform of Philanthropy in the Late Qing -- 2 The Implementation of "Fundamental Relief Aid" -- 3 Philanthropy and the Spread of the Red Cross Movement to China -- 4 Taking Up the Model of Red Cross Disaster Relief -- 5 Disaster Relief Corps within the Red Swastika Society -- 6 The Professionalization and Internationalization of Disaster Relief -- 7 The Religious Appropriation of Philanthropic Activism -- 8 Conclusion -- 7 Limits of Legitimacy: Adapting to the Changing Political Context -- 1 The Politics of Religion in Early Republican China -- 2 Philanthropy and the Early Republican State -- 3 Social Stability and the Dangers of Radicalism -- 4 The Prohibition of Spirit-Writing Under the Nationalist Government -- 5 The Philanthropic Turn -- 6 Regrouping Under the New Life Movement -- 7 Conclusion -- 8 General Conclusion -- 1 Spirit-Writing and Redemptive Societies -- 2 The Limits of Legitimation -- Bibliography -- Index; illustrations; Includes bibliographical references and index; Religion in Chinese Societies