Shen Guiping: Religion Cannot Sustain Modern Social Values
In the contemporary Chinese society of rapid economic development, various negative phenomena—such as the production and sale of counterfeit goods, corruption, and social apathy—have been accompanied by various ethnic and religious disputes, intermittent separatist activities, and incidents of violent terrorism. While these issues impact healthy economic development, social harmony and stability, and even national security, they also result in psychological confusion, moral crises, and even a loss of faith [1] among the people. Consequently, more and more people are beginning to seek psychological solace in religion and are showing a keen interest in religious moral enlightenment. Some hope to utilize religious belief and religious awe to resolve social problems, save society from crisis, and maintain social harmony; some even hope to seek a value foundation from religion to promote cultural brilliance, political harmony, and the long-term peace and stability of the state.
Can religion, then, resolve the social problems encountered in the process of modernization? Or can we rely on religion to rescue society from crisis? The answer is no.
Generally speaking, religion functions in areas such as psychological adjustment, moral enlightenment, cultural inheritance, group cohesion, and social control and integration. Looking at the role religion has played throughout the long course of human history, it can serve as a positive force for promoting social stability, harmony, and social transformation, but it can also be a negative force that causes ethnic fragmentation, stupefies the people [2], and hinders innovation. Especially in a society undergoing profound transformation and rapid transition, this double-edged sword effect of religion is particularly prominent. The harsh reality of conflicts and unrest caused by religious factors worldwide, as well as various chaotic phenomena under China's conditions of opening up—such as using religion to amass wealth—all warn us to be extremely cautious in recognizing the dual nature of religion.
Undoubtedly, the Enlightenment and the advancement of modernization in modern Western society was a process of the continuous weakening of religious influence. The capitalist revolution in the modern West began with opposition to theocracy, marked by the separation of church and state and the establishment of modern constitutional political systems. With the development of social secularization, religion has long ceased to occupy the central position in Western society. Max Weber summarized the trajectory of modern Western thought as the "disenchantment of the world." Modernization is a process of "disenchantment" that gradually casts off religious influence. So-called disenchantment means that society as a whole emerges from the omnipotent control of religion, and people live in a rationalist world. The influence of religion is manifested more at the level of individual belief and belongs to the private sphere. In the public sphere, faith in the law is the social consensus and the basic criterion for national governance.
Similarly, religion does not possess a role as a value foundation, a primary guide, or a dominant force in the modernization and development of contemporary Chinese society. Historical materialism holds that it is man who created religion, not religion that created man; it is social development that determines religious development, not religious development that determines social development. Of course, religion uses its unique resources to influence the process of social development, but such influence is merely an attempt to secure space for its own survival and development within a new social environment.
In the past, we were lost for a long time in a simplistic negation of religion; today, we must not fall into a new misinterpretation characterized by the excessive exaltation of religion. The essential attribute of religion is belief in supernatural powers. As Mr. Ren Jiyu [3] stated: "The ideological foundation of religion is blind faith, not reason or speculation." "The fact that religion continues to exist can be explained scientifically, but this in no way proves that religion itself possesses a scientific nature."
The rule of law is the hallmark of a modern society. The rule of law originates from a faith in and awe of the law based on science and reason, and faith in the law is established upon a consensus of core social values. In Western countries, the core value consensus is primarily expressed through liberty, democracy, equality, and fraternity. National and social governance in contemporary China is supported by the Socialist Core Values, which take fairness, justice, equality, and inclusiveness as their primary content. Contemporary society recognizes the special value-orienting role of religious values for a portion of the citizenry, but this does not mean viewing religion as the pillar of human civilization or the core value of national and social development to be promoted and advocated. Whether constructing industrial strategies through the material forms of religious culture or constructing a social value foundation through religious ethics, the result will be tension between different religions. In the current complex environment, the ruling party must remain clear-headed, firm in will, and decisive in action in its grasp of the social role of religion.