Christianity and Islam in China

March 10, 2010

There is evidence that Christian and Islamic influence goes back to the third century A.D.

Even so, China has never had an organized religion dominate the culture as religions have in Western and Middle Eastern countries. 

During the Tang Dynasty in 878 A.D., a rebel leader named Huang Chao burned and pillaged Guangzhou (better known in the West as Canton) killing tens of thousands of Muslims, Jews, and Christians.  

Taiping Rebellion

There were two Opium Wars during the middle of the nineteenth century where France and England forced opium and Christian missionaries on China.

The result was the Taiping Rebellion, which was led by a Christian convert, Hong Xiuquan, known as God’s Chinese son. Hong claimed to be Jesus Christ’s younger brother.

Estimates say twenty to thirty million Chinese may have died during this religious war, far more than all the Crusades combined.

See Ignorance is Bliss and Phone Sex is a Sin

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Lloyd Lofthouse is the award-winning author of the concubine saga, My Splendid Concubine & Our Hart. When you love a Chinese woman, you marry her family and culture too. 

If you want to subscribe to iLook China, there is a “Subscribe” button at the top of the screen in the menu bar. 

Leave a Comment » | China, Chinese Culture, Chinese history, Christianity, Islam, religion | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Lloyd Lofthouse

Morality in China

March 10, 2010

I find it interesting when the Western media talks about how Communist China prevents or represses freedom of religion as if that were unique to today’s China. The truth is, China has a history of intolerance toward God based religions that tend, by their nature, to interfere with Chinese culture and family based morality. 

Religions like Buddhism and Taoism, which are similar, are not as aggressive as Christianity or Islam. That explains why Buddhism is the dominant religion in China today. Maybe that is why China’s top political advisor Jia Qinglin recently called on the country’s Buddhists to contribute to ethnic unity, social stability and national unification.

Reclining Buddha In Shanghai

Buddhist and Taoist influence on art and poetry have been a powerful influence on Chinese culture and entered mainstream Chinese tradition more than two thousand years ago.

Estimates say that about one hundred million Chinese follow Buddhism while the second largest religion is Taoism. A few million followers of Islam live in the northwest. Christians claim to be the fastest growing religion, but there are no facts to support this.

On the other hand, a recent survey found that eight hundred million Chinese say they belong to no religion. That does not mean that these Chinese have no morality since Confucianism is not a religion but is a lifestyle.

Discover Barbarians – a Matter of Opinion

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Lloyd Lofthouse is the award-winning author of the concubine saga, My Splendid Concubine & Our Hart. When you love a Chinese woman, you marry her family and culture too. 

If you want to subscribe to iLook China, there is a “Subscribe” button at the top of the screen in the menu bar.

2 Comments | Chinese Culture, Chinese history, Chinese minorities, Christianity, family values, Islam, parenting, religion, Taoism | Tagged: , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Lloyd Lofthouse

Ignorance is Bliss and Phone Sex is a Sin

March 10, 2010

When I first wrote about the foundation of morality in China at Open Salon.com, Middle Age Woman Blogging responded with, “I can’t even begin to comment… all those old married men and young single women walking around Beijing? You’re kidding right? And how about the phone calls in the middle of the night men receive while traveling throughout China? ‘Ah, Missa Wandall, I unastan you wan company?'”

What Middle Age Woman Blogging says is true about the middle of the night phone calls in China.

While my wife and I were on our honeymoon in Beijing, a late night call came to our hotel room. “Do you want a massage,” a sexy accented voice said in English.

Warning, the next link leads to an x-rated site. Do not click on that link if you are a moral person. Then in America, there’s phone sex where a man or woman calls and pays with a credit card to listen to hot, sexy talk.

My reply to Middle Age Woman Blogging is, “Morality in America comes from Christianity and Judaism. Moral behavior is measured from this. That doesn’t mean everyone is a moral person. If so, there would be no divorce, few would go to prison, and there would be no phone sex since it would be a sin.”

Men and women in China are human too.

How serious do the Chinese consider Morality?

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Lloyd Lofthouse is the award-winning author of the concubine saga, My Splendid Concubine & Our Hart. When you love a Chinese woman, you marry her family and culture too. 

If you want to subscribe to iLook China, there is a “Subscribe” button at the top of the screen in the menu bar.

3 Comments | China, Chinese Culture, Chinese history, family values, religion, tourism | Tagged: , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Lloyd Lofthouse

Health Care Without Drugs

March 9, 2010

I had acupuncture a few times.  When I was still teaching, I saw a chiropractor once a week during the school year. Both of these techniques worked for me without the need to take dangerous drugs. Have you ever read the warnings on prescribed drugs? Those descriptions are scary and have stopped me from taking what the American doctor prescribed more than once.

acupuncture treatment

The history of acupuncture goes back over 8,000 years. One would think if it didn’t work, this medical practice would have ended long ago. Even stingy American health insurance companies pay for acupuncture treatments. Here’s a list. (http://www.msingler.com/insco.html)

The warnings on muscle relaxants scared me enough to try a chiropractor. I’m glad I did. The history of Chiropractic Care has been traced back to China (2700 BC) and Greece (1500 BC). The dates show that this practice started in China. My health insurance paid for Chiropractic and many other plans do too.

Discover Attitudes Toward Health Care in China

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Lloyd Lofthouse is the award-winning author of the concubine saga, My Splendid Concubine & Our Hart. When you love a Chinese woman, you marry her family and culture too.

If you want to subscribe toiLook China, there is a “Subscribe” button at the top of the screen in the menu bar.

2 Comments | China, Chinese Culture, Chinese history, health care | Tagged: , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Lloyd Lofthouse

Are You Your Government?

March 9, 2010

Originally Published at Speak Without Interruption on February 16, 2010 by Bob Grant — publisher/editor for Speak Without Interruption. Posted on iLook China, 3/9/10 at 08:00

On October 1, 1949 the People’s Republic of China was formally established in a speech given by Mao Zedong from the Imperial Gate at Tiananmen Square. I stood at the very spot where Mao gave his speech and took the photo at the right.  From speaking with people – in China – who lived through his reign it was beyond believable.  What he put his people through is an unforgivable act of power and brutality.  However, it is images from Mao’s era that some – outside of China – still have of the Chinese people.  Nothing could be farther from the truth!

Mao Speech

I never met a Chinese government official – did not even see one at least that I can recall.  What I did meet were the people of China – the people with whom I had my business and personal interactions.  I did not ask them questions about their government nor did they ask questions of mine.  The only political statement that I ever heard was a reference that China’s policy would probably change when the younger generation came into power, someday. (for more on this topic read Changing the Guard at http://wp.me/pN4pY-e9 )

In meetings, over two years ago, I heard about the oil pipeline being built directly from Iran to China.  None of the people in that meeting expressed an opinion one way or the other regarding this pipeline.  It was a decision the Chinese government made.  Maybe my associates did not approve of dealing with Iran—maybe they did?  The point being here is their government made this decision—not my associates.

Whether the officials in power in the US are republican or democrat, they have all made decisions of which I don’t agree.  They did not consult me or ask my opinion—am I my government in these situations?

The point I am trying to make is that I found the Chinese people I met just like me in a lot of respects.  I enjoyed doing business with them – learning their culture – and becoming their friends.  No government – or its actions – is ever going to change that for me!

Leave a Comment » | America, China, Chinese history, government, politics | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Lloyd Lofthouse

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