论中国人的信仰

在将"信仰"与"宗教"混同的情况下,西方一些人很难了解中华文化中的信仰状况,甚至以为中国人没有信仰。实际上,在中国传统文化的主流中,看似"无"宗教,却是"有"信仰的。从《周易》开始,中国人就确立了以"天"为最高信仰,以人为关怀对象,追求"顺天应人"的人本主义信仰方式。这种信仰方式有其合理先进之处:它借多元宗教和非宗教的外壳,保持了"以人为本"的内核,有利于避免西方特别是欧洲历史上多次发生的那种流血的宗教冲突,给社会的发展多保留了一点难得的稳定和安宁。但也有不合理的一面:它对现实中很严肃的重大问题关注得不够认真、不够执著、不够彻底,甚至对于自己的信仰对象也缺少彻底的追究和一贯的把握,而是任其含混不定,随意改变;对于"信仰"这种心理和行为本身,它更少有正面的、开诚布公的自觉、反思、追问和交代,而是将其当作心照不宣的约定,满足于"运用之妙,在乎一心",停留于自发选择和盲目运用的水平。其结果便是,使人容易满足于眼前的、似是而非的所"得",而忽略在那些更大、更深远、更宝贵的东西的所"失"。在新的时代,人们既要深入理解它的特点,这是解开中华文化之谜的一把钥匙;又要充分挖掘它的资源,依据民主法治原则处理好信仰与宗教的关系,这是中国当代先进文化建设的一项重要任务。

On the Conviction of the Chinese People

ome of the Westerners,mixed conviction with religion,are hard to understand the convictions in Chinese culture,and they even hold that the Chinese people do not have conviction.Actually,in the main stream of traditional Chinese culture,there Are convictions in stead of No religion.Ever since The Book of Change,the Chinese established the highest conviction of Heaven("天"),and showed concern for human being.They pursued a humanistic way of conviction.One of the contemporary tasks to construct an advanced culture in China is to build a proper relation between conviction and religion according to the principles of democracy and law through an understanding of the characteristics of the Chinese conviction.