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PaperclipPerfector  1d ago (text post)   838 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for July 10, 2026

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

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I can hardly find anything on it. Seems like an interesting neo-Confucian syncretism religious movement that may or may not be extinct.

There are currently extant Chinese salvationist religions, they're not extinct and are quite alive and well. Falun Gong is a prominent example of a currently-extant salvationist religion, and it's only one among a crop that emerged throughout the Sinosphere in the 20th century; Weixinism, Tiandiism, Shanrendao and so on. There's also those which trace their roots all the way back to the Ming and Qing dynasties, such as the Luoist religious sects, Jiugongdao, the Eight Trigram teachings and Sanyi teachings. They tend to be syncretic and have some focus on personal and social redemption. It's difficult to really "give thoughts" on these religions given the broad nature of the category, the term encapsulates quite literally hundreds of different unaffiliated religious strands.

In general Chinese religions are very heterogenous, non-exclusivist and difficult to pin down, and once you look beyond the oversimplified Buddhism-Confucianism-Taoism trifecta there are a million unique local sects with different sets of beliefs, gods and practices which aren't really amenable to broad analysis (the level of heterogeneity is to such a degree that there are literally extant practicing Manichaeans in the hills of Fujian). Throughout ancient and modern Chinese history alike the state tended to police these societies due to the risk of a Taiping situation if left unchecked, but the creation of local religious movements still goes on nevertheless.

East Asians enjoy hardcore religion when they go for it. I dated a Chinese classmate briefly in Australia and ended up getting roped into a Sunday service at their church and it was full speaking in tongues, baptisms once a month and whatnot.

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