Reflections and Suggestions on Strengthening Research, Publicity, and Education on Atheism
I have spent many years researching the Marxist view of religion and have found that Marxist political parties hold two fundamental points regarding the religious question: first, the state must implement a policy of freedom of religious belief; second, the Party must persist in conducting atheist propaganda and education. These two fundamental points complement each other; neither is dispensable. This has been articulated by everyone from Marx, Engels, and Lenin to Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, and Jiang Zemin. Comrade Hu Jintao also spoke in this manner, but his speeches on religious issues were not published openly, and the reports that did emerge basically did not touch upon the latter aspect. His written instructions regarding research, propaganda, and education on atheism were also not made public. This has given the impression that we only discuss freedom of religious belief and not atheist propaganda and education. Considering the comprehensiveness of our propaganda and reporting, it seems a balance should be struck. However, much material from before the 16th National Congress has been made public. For instance, in the early period of Reform and Opening-up, Comrade Deng Xiaoping said: we have always implemented freedom of religious belief, and of course, we also conduct atheist propaganda. In the early 1990s, Comrade Jiang Zemin said: we must use the Marxist view of religion as a guide to prevent the "two types of one-sidedness" in religious work. The so-called "two types of one-sidedness" [1] refers to emphasizing one aspect while neglecting the other; he consistently maintained this position.
However, looking at the actual situation over the past 30 years, I feel there is still some one-sidedness. Central Document No. 19 of 1982 [2] stated that guaranteeing freedom of religious belief not only does not hinder but should actually strengthen the popularization of science and atheist propaganda. Yet over these 30 years, while the guarantee of freedom of belief has improved and the number of believers and missionaries has increased, atheist propaganda and education have not been strengthened much, and the number of people engaged in atheist research, propaganda, and education has dwindled. Today, there are a vast number of institutions and personnel researching or even propagating religious theism, but there is not a single institution for researching atheism; the journals for propagating atheism are piteously few—only Science and Atheism (Kexue yu Wushenlun), which is run by part-timers, some of whom are retired elders. This situation truly must be changed.
A while ago, I ran into a leader who was in charge of theoretical work in the propaganda department. I sought his advice on a question: "The Religious Affairs Bureau manages religious affairs and does not propagate atheism, but the Central Propaganda Department should propagate it. Our Atheism Society is about to hold an annual meeting to discuss the issue of discourse power for atheism; what are your thoughts?" He said that in the early days after the Liberation, religious work fell under the Cultural and Educational Committee, which could conduct atheist propaganda and education; later, a specialized Religious Affairs Bureau was established, making it more difficult for them to carry out such work. He mentioned that the Central Propaganda Department attaches great importance to promoting the spirit of science and had been researching it recently. Upon leaving, he said he would report the issue I raised to higher levels.
The 1982 Central Document No. 19 regarding "setting things right" [3] in religious work emphasized: using Marxist philosophy to criticize idealism (including theism), educating the masses—especially the youth—in the scientific worldview of dialectical materialism and historical materialism (including atheism), and strengthening the propagation of scientific and cultural knowledge regarding natural phenomena, social evolution, and human life, death, illness, old age, fortune, and misfortune, is one of the important tasks of the Party on the propaganda front. Establishing research institutions and relevant majors in universities that use Marxism to study religious issues is an indispensable and important aspect of building the Party's theoretical ranks.
What does this mean? As I understand it, the implementation of the Party's two fundamental points on the religious question has been divided among different departments. Implementing the policy of freedom of religious belief is primarily the business of the Religious Affairs Bureau; propagating atheism is primarily the business of the Central Propaganda Department; and building a professional contingent for the study of Marxist materialism and atheism is primarily the business of the Ministry of Education. Today, the division of labor is even more granular. Documents on religious work all speak of implementing policy, management according to law, independent self-management [4], and active guidance; they generally no longer mention atheism. As for the Religious Affairs Bureau, it is not a propaganda department nor an education department, but a management department. Its primary task is implementing policy and legal management, which does not involve propagating atheism. Because religious work must face religious personages and the masses of believers, it emphasizes mutual respect in ideological belief; one cannot direct atheist propaganda at them. In the early post-Liberation period, religious work was within the Cultural and Educational Committee, so it could handle both aspects; but now they are separated, and the Religious Affairs Bureau only manages one side. Over the past 30 years, the religious policy has been implemented better and better; there are now many believers, and the influence of theism is growing. But who is to do the atheist propaganda and education? Who is to build the ranks for the discipline of atheism? Naturally, the Central Propaganda Department and the Ministry of Education must manage this. However, the Central Propaganda Department’s tasks are too heavy—it must promote the "Main Theme" [5], propagate Central policies and theories, and guide major intellectual trends and public opinion. The Ministry of Education must train talent for the nation and has a vast array of affairs. Thus, the research and propagation of atheism often fail to reach their proper place on the agenda, and this work has gradually fallen through the cracks.
How should we carry out the research, propaganda, and education of atheism? I believe atheist propaganda must be tackled from the foundation, which requires relying on education—specifically philosophy education in middle schools and universities. Currently, high schools have courses on philosophical knowledge, and universities have public philosophy courses. I believe those engaged in philosophy education, especially those in Marxist philosophy, should properly study religious theology, particularly the various contemporary manifestations of theism. To allow students to establish a scientific worldview, one must "destroy and establish" [6] simultaneously. What is to be established? Materialism, dialectics, and atheism. What is to be destroyed? Idealism, metaphysics, and theism. Without destroying the old, the new cannot be established. In teaching philosophy, one must not only explain materialism, dialectics, and atheism thoroughly but also explain idealism, metaphysics, and theism thoroughly. Idealism, metaphysics, and theism have many forms of expression; especially now, these things are very common among various erroneous intellectual trends—sometimes one could even say they are rampant—yet many of our people look but do not see, see but do not recognize, and recognize but do not debunk them. Ultimately, it is because our philosophy textbooks have not explained them thoroughly. If idealism, metaphysics, and theism cannot be debunked, then materialism, dialectics, and atheism cannot be established. Some people have studied Marxist philosophy for many years, yet they are left bewildered by very crude forms of idealism, metaphysics, and theism. This shows there is a problem with our philosophy education. I believe it is not enough for philosophy textbooks to only cover materialism, dialectics, epistemology, the view of nature, and the view of history; they must also cover atheism. Many people in philosophy look down on atheism, which is a grave mistake. In today's world, the majority of people still believe in theism, and theism is rampant everywhere, which proves it is by no means simple. If theism is not simple, then the atheism that refutes it is even less so. Some people consider themselves well-versed in philosophy yet believe in theism; this shows they are ignorant of atheism and that our philosophy education is flawed—or at least incomplete.
In teaching philosophy, one must establish a thesis. To establish materialism, one must destroy idealism and explain clearly where various historical and contemporary idealisms are mistaken. To establish dialectics, one must destroy metaphysics and explain clearly where various historical and contemporary metaphysics are mistaken. In teaching philosophy, one must teach atheism. Without teaching atheism, the diverse forms of historical and contemporary theism cannot be debunked, and a scientific worldview cannot be established—this has been proven by many facts. It must be recognized that the forms of theism are numerous, yet many people in philosophy seem completely unaware of this. I have communicated with some people who say that due to the setting of majors and the division of disciplines, those currently in Marxist philosophy simply lack knowledge regarding religious theism. Those in philosophy do not understand theism, do not research it, and do not critique it. Theism is left to Religious Studies, but many in Religious Studies not only do not critique theism but instead praise and propagate it; some even oppose others critiquing theism or propagating atheism. How can this be allowed? Therefore, when conducting philosophy education and compiling philosophy textbooks for middle schools and universities, contents regarding the establishment of atheism and the debunking of theism must be added. But without knowledge in this area, how can it be added? Thus, research is necessary. In the long run, those in Marxist philosophy must research religious theism and clarify the different types of religious theism; only then can they debunk them one by one in textbooks with a clear target, helping students establish a scientific worldview of Marxist materialism and atheism and increasing their discernment and resistance toward theism.
Under current circumstances, when compiling textbooks, could those in Marxist philosophy integrate with those in atheism? Perchance even integrate with those in religious theology? We should sort through various international and domestic forms of theism—especially the forms within Christianity and Buddhism that have the greatest influence—and conduct necessary scientific analysis in philosophy textbooks. This will help students "destroy within the establishment and establish within the destruction," building a firm Marxist materialist and atheist worldview.
In discussing atheism, the most fundamental aspect is the Marxist view of religion. The Marxist view of religion provides a thorough analysis of the essence, origins, forms, and evolution of theism and is an important component of Marxist philosophy. First, the essence of theism—the essence of supernatural concepts—must be explained thoroughly. Next, one must discuss the various origins of supernatural concepts and their associated beliefs and worship, including natural, social, and cognitive origins. Today, the natural origins leading to religious reflection have weakened considerably compared to ancient times, but they still exist in large measure. Social origins have changed but have not been greatly weakened. In the past, we pursued "large in size and high in the degree of public ownership" [7] and eliminated private property; we made the mistake of "surpassing the stage of social development" [8]. However, public ownership can indeed significantly eliminate the social origins of religion. Now, developing a multi-ownership economy concurrently is consistent with the reality of the primary stage of socialism, but the components of the private economy have strengthened the social origins of religion. As for foreign countries, they are almost entirely the domain of private ownership; according to the views of Marx, Engels, and Lenin, this is very suitable for the survival and development of religious theism. Some see advanced technology in Western countries alongside religious fervor and find it incomprehensible. They forget that the West implements private ownership! According to the Marxist-Leninist view, compared to the elimination of private ownership, the role of developing science and technology in destroying theism is very limited.
Among those practicing the sociology of religion in developed capitalist countries in Europe and America, "secularization theory" was once popular, holding that modernization means secularization, and secularization means the disappearance of religion. A very famous scholar predicted in the 1960s that religion would basically disappear by the beginning of this century. Later, it was discovered that historical development was nothing of the sort, leading to the questioning and denial of secularization theory; some even believe that all past materialists, including Marxists, were wrong in their understanding of religion. Actually, modernization means an increase in the human ability to understand and transform nature, which naturally impacts supernatural beliefs; however, if private ownership is not abolished and alien social forces [9] are still oppressing the majority of humanity, theism cannot disappear. Bourgeois scholars believe the capitalist system is perfect; since capitalist modernization failed to make religion disappear, they conclude that secularization theory was wrong. From a Marxist perspective, secularization theory naturally contains both truth and error; its greatest error is not knowing that capitalist private ownership is the most profound source of modern religion.
The cognitive origins of religious reflection include three aspects: the roots of awareness, epistemological roots, and psychological roots. With the continuous popularization of scientific knowledge, people's knowledge of nature, society, and psychology has increased, helping to eliminate the awareness roots of religious reflection. However, only about 2% of Chinese citizens possess "basic scientific literacy"; the work of popularizing science still has a long way to go! In this situation, atheist propaganda and education must be vigorously strengthened. Speaking of the epistemological roots of theism, philosophy education comes into play. The epistemological roots of religious reflection are idealism and metaphysics; these must be debunked through philosophy education. Textbooks must explain thoroughly the errors of various forms of idealism and metaphysics. This will not only assist in propagating atheism but also be of great benefit in debunking various non-Marxist and anti-Marxist intellectual trends, as all these things are filled with idealist and metaphysical methods of thinking. Finally, there are the psychological roots, which are also an important subjective source of religious reflection. We should popularize psychological knowledge on a large scale and vigorously carry out psychological counseling and ideological-political work to help people navigate psychological crises and resolve ideological confusion. Many missionaries know to seek out people in psychological crisis or ideological confusion to preach to, and the results are very effective. We should pay full attention to this and explain the principles clearly to students.
To effectively carry out atheism propaganda and education, there must be specialized research institutions. According to Chairman Mao Zedong’s [10] original written instructions, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) Philosophical and Social Science Department was required to establish an institute for the study of religion. This was because religion still influences a vast population, and we must use Marxism to study it and thoroughly explain the essence of various forms of theism; only then can we properly write the histories of philosophy, literature, and the world. Central Document No. 19 of 1982 [11] stated very clearly that we must use Marxism to study religious theism. However, many people currently researching religion have long since cast Marxism aside; some have even become "puffer-fish and drummers" [12] for religious theology. What is to be done? I feel there is indeed a need to establish specialized institutions for the study of Marxist materialism and atheism. Ideally, scientific research institutions would be set up independently, but what if they cannot be? A leading comrade once said that CASS should be built into a "strong fortress of Marxism," and every discipline within it should have a corresponding Marxist research institution. I think this is an excellent idea. Marxism is an overarching worldview and methodology; it is "the commander of the whole" [13]. Every discipline contains corresponding content, and every discipline should have a specialized institution to study it. Moreover, these should have a higher administrative rank and possess comprehensive coordination functions to assist relevant leadership in carrying out ideological and political work. For example, the Institute of Journalism could establish a Research Office for the Marxist View of Journalism, and the Institute of World Religions could establish a Research Office for the Marxist View of Religion. Failing that, it would also be acceptable to set up a Materialism and Atheism Research Office within the Institute of Marxism Studies. Furthermore, this could also be done within the discipline of Scientific Socialism, as atheism propaganda and education is a vital component of Scientific Socialism. Scientific Socialism must specifically research why and how a Marxist party carries out atheism propaganda and education. Otherwise, without institutions and specialized talent to do this work, it will be very difficult to manage.
Some say that atheism propaganda "has no market" and is difficult to conduct. This is because non-believers might say, "I don’t believe in gods anyway, so why should I listen to you talk about atheism?" Meanwhile, believers say, "I am a religious follower, and the gods often protect me, so why should I read your books on atheism?" I believe matters are not so simple. In our country, those who are theoretically, thoroughly clear-headed and firm atheists are a minority; I also believe those who are wholeheartedly and absolutely convinced that gods truly exist are also a minority. The majority of people are in an intermediate state between belief and non-belief. Many people only "prefer to believe it exists rather than not" [14] when a crisis arises. As the sayings go: "one does not burn incense in ordinary times but embraces the Buddha’s feet in an emergency" [15], or "one never enters the Three Treasures Hall [16] unless there is business to attend to." Most people fall into this category. They act this way precisely because they lack the necessary knowledge of Marxist materialism and atheism. Many people know nothing about atheism yet assume it is very simple. In fact, religious theism has existed for at least tens of thousands of years, and the majority of the human population still believes in theism today; this proves that theism is by no means simple. If theism is not simple, how can atheism be simple? Religious theism is a very profound field of study; you need only look at how many people are driven "distracted and infatuated" [17] by it to understand. Atheism is as deep as theism is deep—perhaps even deeper. Many forms of theism can talk to you until "the sky turns dark and the earth spins" [18]! Since theism is so powerful, atheism must surely be even more powerful; how can one say atheism is simple?
How should we propagate atheism? Engels suggested at the time that we should translate and distribute large quantities of 18th-century French Enlightenment and militant atheist works; this is very effective. Lenin mentioned many times that while Engels had long ago suggested this, we have not done nearly enough. He said that some self-proclaimed Marxists produce things that distort and ruin Marxism, whereas the French Enlightenment and atheist works—though not Marxist—surpass some Marxists in propagating atheism. They are so vivid, so pungent, so "single-sword straight-in" [19], and so fascinating! Therefore, in our current atheism propaganda, I believe the education, propaganda, organization, and publishing departments should organize the large-scale translation and publication of modern scientific atheist and Enlightenment works, but they must be "packaged." For example, the "Western Classics" series published by the Commercial Press might not appeal to ordinary people. Packaging must be flexible, vivid, and lively; it must possess modernity and "fashionability," and with the addition of certain commentaries, the masses will be willing to read it. Furthermore, since the 19th century and particularly the 20th century, there have been many Western works researching and propagating atheism. Organizing the forces to translate and publish these in large quantities is also something the propaganda and education departments should do; they must be translated and introduced systematically in their entirety. Currently, the translation and introduction of foreign theistic works is becoming increasingly systematic, while the translation of atheist works is pitifully small. The economic market requires regulation, and the "market of ideas" also requires regulation. To consolidate the dominant position of Marxist materialism and atheism in the market of ideas and beliefs, the Party and the government must allocate a portion of funds to support this work. One very important reason why so many religious theistic books are translated and published today is that foreign foundations and churches provide financial support. Furthermore, we should also organize experts to research the specific manifestations and transmission formats of theism in current society, and "comb through" them clearly. Only when there is a target can one shoot the arrow! [20] Otherwise, one "shoots without a target" and achieves no results. I believe this is a more practical and effective task that should be grasped and prioritized.
- This article is based on the author's [text ends here in original]
About the Author: Jia Runguo is the Deputy Director and Senior Researcher of the Religious Research Center of the National Religious Affairs Administration.