现代社会与宗教发展的趋势

The Modern Society and the Trend of Religious Development

中国的现代化事业已经驰入快车道,中国实现现代化的过程就是中国社会完成转型的过程。经济、政治等社会方方面面的改革既给中国社会带来生机,也使人们面对陌生的生存环境,面临较以往更大的机遇、挑战和风险。市场经济体制的建立、竞争机制的引入,在人们生活质量大幅提高的同时,也使人们感受到较以往任何时期都更为严峻的生存压力和心理压力。现代化不仅带来了人的物质生活方式的变化,也带来了人的精神生活方式的变化,追求适合自身需要的精神生活,探索人生的价值和意义,关注终极实在和超越自我,这是人类普遍的精神指向。当前的中国社会环境与改革开放之初有天壤之别,中国的现代化事业的成就改变了人们的物质生活方式,也带来了精神需要和信仰追求的多样化。在这样的社会文化环境中,反思现代社会与宗教之关系成为理论界与思想界的当务之急。自20世纪70年代以来的全球宗教复兴是对社会急剧变革的反应,是对现代性的一种反弹,是在经济、政治、文化全球化进程加速的情况下,世界各宗教进行自身改革和调适的结果。当然,随着中国宗教的快速发展,中国宗教学研究和教育等方面显露出一些不足之处:宗教学的学科地位摇摆不定;宗教教育相对落后;党和政府的宗教政策以及学术界对宗教的新认识没有及时地传播到广大民众那里,社会上有许多人对宗教的认识仍旧停留在20世纪80年代的水准;在实际工作中,我国高校对在校大学生进行以马克思主义宗教观为核心的宗教学基础知识的教育实施存在许多困难。

The modernization in China has entered into the fast lane. Since the process of realizing modernization is the process of completing transition of society, the reform in such fields as economy, politics and society, as well as the vitality brought to the Chinese society, also makes people, under the unfamiliar environment, face greater opportunity, challenge and risk. While the establishment of market economic system and the introduction of competition mechanism greatly improve people＇s quality of life, they feel than ever before a greater pressure of survive and psychology. But what modernization brings about is not only in material life, but also in spiritual life. It is the general trend for human beings to pursue the spiritual life suitable for their own, exploring the value and meaning of life, and concerning about the ultimate existence and surpassing self. Compared with the beginning of reform and opening-up, China＇s current social environments change so greatly that China＇s modernization achievements, while changing people＇s material mode of life, produce the pursuit of spiritual life and diversified believes. Under the context of culture and society mention above, it is urgent for theoretical circles to reflect on the relation between the modern society and religion. The global religious revival since 1970s is a reaction to the rapid change of society, also a rebound to the modernity, or, to be exact, a result of the self-reform and self-regulation of the world＇s religions with the speeding of the globalization in economy, politics and culture. And, of course, the rapid development of the Chinese religion also brings about the insufficiencies in religious research and education, for example, wavering discipline position, relatively backward education, the religious policies of the Party and the government as well as the new understanding of religion by academic circles being failure to disseminate in time to the general public, many people＇s understanding of religion being still in the level of 1980s. What＇s more, for students in college and universities, there are many difficulties in implementation of the basic religious course taking as the core Marxist view of religion.