Making Saints in Modern China

Making Saints in Modern China examines the creation and veneration of saints during China's tumultuous twentieth century. The volume brings together research from multiple scholars who analyze how Chinese communities have constructed, maintained, and transformed sacred figures across different religious traditions. The book covers multiple case studies of saint-making from Buddhist, Daoist, Catholic, and popular religious contexts. Through archival records, oral histories, and ethnographic fieldwork, the contributors trace how local communities elevated certain individuals to sacred status despite political upheaval and anti-religious campaigns. The studies span urban and rural settings across different regions of China, documenting how saint-making practices evolved from the Republican era through the Maoist period and into contemporary times. Each chapter provides focused analysis of specific sacred figures and the social dynamics that shaped their veneration. This collection reveals how Chinese religious communities maintained cultural continuity through periods of rapid modernization and secularization. The persistence and adaptation of saint-making traditions offers insights into the resilience of Chinese religious life and its ongoing significance in modern society.

Readers value this book's academic examination of Chinese saint-making practices but note it can be dense and theoretical at times. Positives: - Detailed accounts of specific saints and their communities - Strong research and historical documentation - Covers both urban and rural manifestations - Balances religious and political perspectives Negatives: - Academic writing style makes it less accessible for general readers - Some chapters are uneven in depth and engagement - High price point for a specialized text - Limited coverage of certain regions/time periods Review Data: Goodreads: 4.5/5 (6 ratings) Amazon: No reviews available Google Books: No ratings available One reader on Goodreads noted: "Excellent scholarship on an understudied topic, though assumes significant background knowledge." Another mentioned appreciation for the inclusion of both Catholic and Buddhist examples while suggesting more comparative analysis would strengthen the work.

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The Religious Question in Modern China by Vincent Goossaert, David A. Palmer Maps the evolution of China's religious landscape from 1898 to 2008, focusing on state-religion relations and institutional changes.

Red God: Wei Baqun and His Peasant Revolution in Southern China, 1894-1932 by Xiaorong Han Chronicles the life of a Buddhist leader who merged religious authority with revolutionary politics in modern China.

The Missionary's Curse and Other Tales from a Chinese Catholic Village by Henrietta Harrison Traces the history of Chinese Catholic communities through local perspectives and lived experiences from the 17th century to present.

Buddhists and Christians in Holland and Japan by Peter van der Veer Provides comparative analysis of religious modernization and secularization through parallel studies of Asian religious traditions in different national contexts.

🔹 The book explores how Chinese society created and celebrated "exemplary figures" during tumultuous periods of modernization, showing how both secular and religious heroes were crafted to inspire moral behavior. 🔹 Vincent Goossaert is a renowned scholar at the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) who specializes in the religious history of modern China, particularly Taoism and religious institutions. 🔹 The concept of "saint-making" discussed in the book spans across multiple traditions, including Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism, as well as secular political movements like the Communist Party's promotion of model workers. 🔹 The book reveals how the creation of modern Chinese saints often involved a complex blend of traditional religious practices and modern media techniques, including newspapers, photographs, and political propaganda. 🔹 Many of the "saints" featured in the book were ordinary people who became extraordinary symbols during China's transformation from empire to republic to communist state, demonstrating how heroic narratives helped Chinese society cope with radical change.