Implementing the Spirit of the 19th National Congress of the CPC and Adhering to the Major Principle of Marxist Atheism: A Review of the 2017 Annual Academic Conference of the Chinese Atheism Society
From December 2 to 3, 2017, the Annual Academic Conference of the Chinese Atheism Society was held in Beijing. The theme of the meeting was "Studying and Implementing the Spirit of the 19th CPC National Congress and Upholding the Great Principle of Marxist Atheism." It was jointly hosted by the Chinese Atheism Society, the Center for Science and Atheism Research of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), and the School of Marxism of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS). Over 50 experts and scholars from across the country attended. Research Fellow Wang Tingda—Dean of the School of Marxism at UCAS, former head of the Discipline Inspection Group of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) stationed at the CAS, and former member of the CAS Party Leadership Group—and Research Fellow Fan Jianxin, Deputy Dean of the Institute of Marxism Studies at CASS, attended the opening ceremony and delivered speeches. The conference maintained that we Communists must not only uphold Marxist atheism but also actively propagate it, ensuring that Marxist atheism consistently maintains its dominant position among the masses.
I. Studying and Implementing the Spirit of the 19th CPC National Congress and Grasping the Correct Direction of Religious Work
Research Fellow Zhu Xiaoming, President of the Chinese Atheism Society and former Secretary of the Party Leadership Group of the China Tibetology Research Center, pointed out that we must take the spirit of the 19th CPC National Congress as our guide, uphold the principle of atheism, and grasp the correct direction of religious work. The important discourse on religious work in the report to the 19th CPC National Congress is not only a vital guide for religious work in the New Era but also clarifies the new situation, opportunities, tasks, and requirements for atheism research, publicity, and education in the New Era. Today, the situation, conditions, and problems facing religious work have undergone significant changes, making the strengthening of the Party's leadership over religious work even more urgent. We must not distort freedom of religious belief into the "freedom to believe in religion," nor should we misunderstand it as "freedom of religious activities," or further "simplify" it to "religious freedom." We must profoundly recognize that Marxist atheism is the great principle. The starting point and ultimate goal of religious work are to unite and guide religion, not to promote or develop religion. The Chinese Atheism Society must uphold communist ideals and beliefs, propagate Socialist Core Values, and curb the erosion and infiltration of various forms of theism and feudal superstition [1] into the Party’s body and the national system. It must consistently maintain a clear sky and a clean atmosphere [2] in the ideological, spiritual, and cultural spheres of the Party and the state.
Research Fellow Xi Wuyu, Director of the Center for Science and Atheism Research at CASS, emphasized that "persisting in the direction of the Sinicization of religions in our country" is the new strategy for religious work in the New Era. As the domestic and international situation undergoes profound changes, many new problems have emerged in China's religious field, some of which are on the rise. In recent years, some individuals have opposed the Sinicization of Islam, viewing cultural and ethnic integration as cultural and ethnic assimilation; some so-called "research achievements" are actually disguised proselytization. "Persisting in the direction of the Sinicization of religions in our country" is the key measure to promote the resolution of prominent problems in the religious field. It is a fundamental strategy [3], especially for resisting the use of religion by overseas forces for infiltration, curbing the spread of religious extremism, and managing "de-Sinicization" phenomena.
Research Fellow Zhang Xinying, Director of the Science and Atheism journal, noted that the content concerning religious work in the report to the 19th CPC National Congress is concise but comprehensive, providing the fundamental follow-through [4] for understanding and handling religious issues in the New Era. Over the past five years, while maintaining a comprehensive grasp and overall continuity of basic policies and theories, we have begun to implement necessary transformations and adjustments to the thinking and patterns of religious work from the previous two or three decades. The Party’s religious work is striving to create a new situation of transitional significance. Maintaining "position awareness," "field awareness," "overall awareness," and "people awareness" [5] in religion-related work is of great significance to the overall cause of the Party and the country. Under the new situation, we should clearly emphasize a problem-oriented approach, using the Party's religious policies as a guarantee. With the elements of management according to law, independence and self-management, and persistence in the direction of Sinicization, we must follow the logic of incorporating religion into the national governance system and managing it well, making every effort to guide religion to adapt to the New Era of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
Research Fellow Jia Runguo, Deputy Director of the Religious Research Center of the State Administration for Religious Affairs and Vice President of the Chinese Atheism Society, pointed out that to do a good job in religious work in the New Era, we must first solve problems of ideological understanding. We must uphold Marxist positions, viewpoints, and methods, seek truth from facts, uphold dialectics, and adhere to the Party’s consistent propositions. We oppose both the one-sided exaggeration of the positive role of religion (leading to simple "loosening") and the one-sided exaggeration of the negative role of religion (leading to simple "tightening"). We must view the social role of religion dialectically and maintain the correct attitude of "guiding." Specifically, we must govern religious underground forces, unauthorized meeting points, and illegal organizations according to law, and resolutely resist the use of religion by overseas forces for ideological infiltration to ensure national political and ideological security. We must carry out de-radicalization work and the governance of the generalization of the "halal" concept [6] according to law, and resolutely stop religion from interfering in administration, justice, education, and social life, ensuring that the relationship between church and state is positive and healthy, and that the relationship between religious and non-religious citizens is harmonious.
Additionally, Associate Research Fellow Huang Yanhong of CASS analyzed domestic and overseas reports and commentaries on the new Regulations on Religious Affairs. Dr. Han Qi of CASS explored the political identity implications of "persisting in the direction of the Sinicization of religions in our country" in the report to the 19th CPC National Congress.
II. Upholding Scientific Atheism in the New Era of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics
Research Fellow Tian Xinming, former Director of the Higher Education Social Science Development Research Center of the Ministry of Education, pointed out that atheism is an inherent constituent element of Marxist philosophy and thus an inherent constituent element of the philosophical foundation of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. Some deny the status of atheism in Marxist philosophy; such rhetoric, if not a result of confused thinking, is a deliberate distortion of the Marxist view of religion and Marxist philosophy. Whether one recognizes the masses as the creators of history and whether one recognizes the objective laws of social development is the fundamental point of divergence between the historical materialist view of history and the idealist view of history, including theism. Only by being firm Marxist atheists can Communist Party members solidify their ideals and beliefs and never forget the Party’s goals and purposes.
Professor Ren Dingcheng, Deputy Dean of the School of Marxism at UCAS, pointed out that the future development of atheism will exhibit ten new trends: "disbelief in God or gods" will become more confident and gradually gain momentum; the "belief in Thing or Things" (non-theism) will enrich its connotations; atheism in the narrow sense (absence of belief in God or gods) will expand its existential space; atheism will find a new footing amidst the predicament of belief in gods and theistic behavior; secular humanism will increasingly seek links with science and atheism; the construction of public scientific literacy will enrich the content of atheism; atheism will further strip away the moral cloak of theism; and atheism will expand its influence in the struggle against cults and harmful qigong.
Professor Chen Zhi of Inner Mongolia University pointed out that Comrade Ulanhu [7], an outstanding leader of the Party and the state, formed a philosophy of religious work during the practice of religious reform based on the "Theory of Three Qualities," guided by dialectics, and centered on the principle of freedom of belief, which enriched and developed Marxist atheism. Due to the "mass character," "historical character," and "ethnic character" of Tibetan Buddhism among the Mongol people, religious reform in the Inner Mongolia region had to adopt cautious and steady methods. Ulanhu always adhered to dialectics; his approach both upheld freedom of religious belief and protected the legitimate rights and interests of the religious circles, while also emphasizing the separation of church and state and the abolition of religious privileges. This effectively resolved the long-standing adverse effects of Tibetan Buddhism on the politics, economy, culture, and population reproduction of Inner Mongolia, transforming it from a tool of the ruling class into a social force conducive to ethnic development.
Professor Zuo Peng of the University of Science and Technology Beijing pointed out that atheistic publicity and education in China should theoretically not be a problem. In Chinese history, no religion has ever become the dominant force in thought or culture; the humanist tradition has always occupied a significant advantage. In reality, the ruling Communist Party of China has always taken atheism as its worldview foundation and emphasized the importance of upholding atheism. However, for a considerable period, there has been a situation where "theism is spoken of by some, while atheism is spoken of by none." Even today, there is still much misunderstanding and criticism of atheism in society, and the Central Committee's requirements for atheistic publicity and education remain difficult to implement. One reason is the extreme shortage of professional talents in atheism. This necessitates the cultivation and development of atheism as a discipline and increasing the training of atheism professionals. Conditions should be created to enable young talents to take up relevant positions quickly and play an important role in the field of atheistic publicity and education.
Professor Yu Qiming of the Minzu University of China examined the challenges posed to atheistic thought by three major discoveries of modern science: dark matter, dark energy, and quantum entanglement. Associate Professor Ding Yu of the Army Engineering University of the PLA argued that promoting the Sinicization of Marxist atheism is inseparable from in-depth research and the correct handling of its relationship with traditional Chinese culture. Dr. Wei Jianwu of UCAS pointed out that the Western cultural tradition of the conflict between faith and reason differs significantly from China's predominantly humanist cultural tradition; the connotation and position of atheism differ within these two traditions.
III. Resisting the Use of Religion by Overseas Forces for Infiltration
Professor Zhang Yong of Shihezi University in Xinjiang pointed out that due to the concerns of Western countries like the United States over China's rise, combined with the reality of the coexistence of multiple ethnicities, religions, and cultures in Xinjiang, as well as unbalanced historical and regional development, the situation of overseas religious infiltration in Xinjiang is worrying. Religious extremist organizations such as "Hizb ut-Tahrir" (Islamic Liberation Party) and "Hizrat" (Migration) distribute illegal religious promotional materials to schools. Through the internet and underground preaching points, they focus on indoctrinating Xinjiang students with ethnic separatism and religious extremism. Some students have developed narrow and extreme awareness regarding religious issues, and a few have even gone abroad to join "East Turkestan" organizations. Our struggle against overseas religious infiltration in schools is not just a religious issue, but a matter of consolidating the socialist educational front, maintaining ethnic unity, and defending national unification.
Associate Professor Zhang Qiang of the National Defence University pointed out that religious factors play a special role in the global strategies of Western countries. Western powers are accustomed to taking the initiative, using religious means for strategic infiltration, and attempting to subvert regimes they dislike under the guise of "universal values." They are also adept at using religious issues to stir up regional situations; it is the interaction between sectarian conflicts and hegemonic interference that has made the geopolitics of the Middle East increasingly complex. Western powers are also skilled at manipulating religious forces to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries. Hiding behind the scenes, they use foundations, NGOs, and the internet as "invisible hands" to fund, win over, and cultivate pro-Western anti-government figures. Certain politically active religious forces and their representative figures are often "favored" by them. Consequently, Western powers vigorously promote the politicization of religion to pave the way for "color revolutions." These practices should arouse our high level of concern and vigilance.
Research Fellow Liu Zhongkang, Inspector of the Publicity Department of the Xinjiang Autonomous Region Party Committee and Vice President of the Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences, briefly introduced the achievements made in the "de-radicalization" work in Xinjiang.
In his concluding remarks, Research Fellow Jia Runguo pointed out that the 2017 Annual Academic Conference of the Chinese Atheism Society, held shortly after the conclusion of the 19th CPC National Congress, was an important meeting that connects the past and the future. It marks a new historical starting point for seizing new victories for the cause of atheism in the New Era. We are more capable and confident than ever before to overcome the infiltration and spread of various theistic thoughts, fundamentally reverse the passive situation of atheistic publicity and education, open up a new realm for the cause of atheism in the New Era, and make new contributions to the development of 21st-century Marxist atheism.