The Fading of Political Theology and the Rise of Creative Humanism

Abstract

To understand the origin of classical Confucianism in the historical context of ancient China, we need to know first how ancient Chinese thought moved from the religious experience with High God’s or Heaven’s revealing to the humanist construction of the meaningfulness of human existence. This concerns the way early Chinese people conceived the Ultimate Reality in terms of shangdi上帝 (High God) or tian 天 (Heaven) and His/Its revelation. In particular, this was shown through the evolution of their religious experience and the rise of a creative humanism in the process of ancient Chinese history. It is evidenced by such major texts as the Shangshu 尚書 (Book of Documents) and the Yijing易經 (Classics of Changes), and the development of this legacy till the time of Confucius. In order to examine this development, we will also need to touch upon, albeit very briefly, the Lunyu論語 (Analects) and the Chunqiu春秋 (Spring and Autumn Annals). Thus this chapter will serve the purpose of introducing the basic philosophical ideas in these Confucian Classics and their historical changes.