Religion in China; Religion and the World

Author: Weber
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-05-01
Features: In the late 1980s of the 20th century, China's reform and opening-up were still in its early stages. While achieving significant successes, it also gave rise to many social problems. The situation faced by China's intellectual circles was somewhat similar to the one Weber encountered with the German nation-state in the late 19th century. Weber described himself as an "economic nationalist" in terms of national interests and as someone who aspired to "make politics one's vocation" in national political life, acting according to the ethics of responsibility. Weber's unconventional insights, as well as his discussion of modern capitalism as a rational labor organization, may offer some inspiration for Chinese thinkers. Although titled The Religion of China, the book actually addresses issues across various dimensions of Chinese politics, society, economy, and thought, and it could be considered a work of "holistic history." However, the historical image of China depicted by Weber differs greatly from the one we are usually familiar with. The essays collected in Religion and World are prefaces written by Weber for his studies on Christianity, Confucianism and Taoism, Hinduism and Buddhism, and ancient Judaism. He analyzes the phenomenon of "rationalization" in modern Western civilization, the "mentality" of the divine-right theorists and the leaders of the world's major religions, and the stages and directions of religious renunciation. In other words, Religion and World is an indispensable basic reading for understanding Weber's sociology of religion.