Faith and Authority: The Curse (Swearing Oaths). A Comparative Study of Oaths and Law

Author: Zhang Yonghe
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-04-01
Features: In general, faith is a value and possesses ultimate significance, representing a value expressed through inner certainty; faith is a spiritual phenomenon of humanity, manifesting as the belief and adherence of social members to a certain system of ideas; faith is the spiritual foundation of humans, aimed at alleviating obstacles in the human mind and providing conditions for the realization of personal perfection, serving as a necessary condition and means for humans to regulate their relationship with their environment. However, beyond this level of faith, there exists pure faith. Pure faith possesses rational purity and is an inner determination of the human mind. Religion, as well as curses (swearing oaths) and vows, only have rational practicality. General norms with rational practicality still retain elements of faith. Although law is an expression of practical reason, since law is supported by state political philosophy, it no longer holds any meaning of faith. "Legal faith" is a wrong proposition, and it is a mistaken understanding that people regard Socrates' death as a typical example of legal faith. Faith and authority are two completely different concepts. "Legal faith" is an unproven speculation that cannot become a reality in the West and should not exist in China either. "Legal faith" in China can only divert attention from the crisis of social values, confuse the concepts of faith and authority, and is a notion fundamentally unsuitable for China's context.