Religion in Taiwan

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A wide diversity of religions can be found on Taiwan, due to its multicultural history, and religious freedom written in the constitution.

Contents 1 History 2 Religions 2.1 Blended Religion: Buddhism, Taoism, and Folk Religion 2.2 Buddhism 2.3 Confucianism 2.4 Christianity 2.5 Islam 2.6 Atheism and Agnosticism 2.6.1 Summary: 3 See also 4 Links

[edit] History

The original taiwanese aborigine tribes traditionally practice nature worship. With the arrival of the Dutch in 1624, Protestant Christianity was introduced to Taiwan via missionaries. The first converts were aborigines. Two years later, with the arrival of the Spanish, Catholicism was introduced into Taiwan. The Japanese brought Shinto to Taiwan during the Japanese colonial period which began in 1895. Chinese migrants brought Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism with them to the island over a few centuries of immigration and settlement. In the last half century, Taiwan has also been a safe haven for religions banned in neighboring People's Republic of China, such as Falun Gong and Yi Guan Dao.

[edit] Religions

Statistics on religion (2002) [1]. The ROC government recognizes 25 religions in Taiwan. Statistics for the following religions are missing from the table below:

• Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (耶穌基督後期聖徒教會)
• Church of Scientology (山達基教會)
• Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (世界基督教統一神靈協會)
• Tantric Buddhism
• Xian Tian Jiu Jiao (先天救教)

Religion	Members	Temples & Churches
Buddhism (佛教)	5,486,000	4,038
Taoism (道教)	4,546,000	8,604
Yi Guan Dao (一貫道)	845,000	3,218
Protestantism (基督新教)	605,000	3,609
Catholicism (天主教)	298,000	1,135
Lord of Universe Church (天帝教)	260,000	53
Tian De Jiao (天德教)	200,000	5
Syuan Yuan Jiao (軒轅教)	150,000	21
Maitreya Great Tao (彌勒大道)	100,000	2,000
Islam (伊斯蘭教)	53,000	6
Tenrikyo (天理教)	30,000	150
Baha'i (巴哈伊教)	16,000	13
Confucianism (儒學)	14,000	170
Li-ism (理教)	169,000	131
Hai Zih Dao (亥子道)	2,300	30
Zhonghua Sheng Jiao (中華聖教)	1,400	5
Mahikarikyo (真光教團)	1,000	9
Huang Zhong (黃中)	500	1
Universe Maitreya Emperor Jiao (宇宙彌勒皇教)	300	2
Da Yi Jiao (大易教)	300	1
Total	12,777,800	23,201

[edit] Blended Religion: Buddhism, Taoism, and Folk Religion

According to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the USA, there are about 93% of people identifying themselves as Buddhists, Taoists, or practitioners of Chinese folk religion. It is common for people to practice a blend of the three. Many people practice Buddhism exclusively, but those who practice Taoism more often blend Taoist religious practices with elements from Buddhism and folk traditions. It is not uncommon to find a Buddhist temple adjacent to a Taoist temple, or even under the same roof. One example of this is Longshan Temple in Taipei City. Religious diversity has never been a significant source of conflict in Taiwan.

Besides large temples, small outdoor shrines to local deities are very common, and can be spotted on road sides, parks, and neighborhoods in Taiwanese cities and towns. These small pockets of religious atmosphere let people stop by and pray informally anytime. Many homes and businesses may also set up small shrines of candles, figurines, and offerings. Some restaurants, for example, may set up a small shrine to the Kitchen god for success in a restaurant business. Students may visit a shrine to the Learning god for good luck before a test.

Taoist temples are highly decorative. Colorfully tiled sculptures of dragons and other mythological creatues highlight the roof, and temples are often filled with statues of many gods and semi-theistic historical figures, reflecting the polytheistic and ancestor worship tradition of Taoism and folk religion.

Festivities and picnics often take place at Taoist temples.

[edit] Buddhism

Buddhism was introduced to Taiwan in the late 1500s with the Chinese immigration. Several forms of Buddhism have thrived on Taiwan ever since. During the Japanese occupation, Japanese Buddhism was introduced as part of the overall policy of cultural assimilation by the colonial government. Although many Buddhist communities affiliated themselves with Japanese sects for protection, they largely retained Chinese Buddhist practices. For instance, clerical marriage and meat-eating did not make the headway they did in occupied Korea.

Following retrocession, Taiwan was inundated with Mainland monks, including some of the best and brightest of the previous decades, such as Master Yinshun (Yìnshùn 印順). Tainted by the whiff of collaboration, outshone by these refugees, and underrepresented in the Chinese Buddhist Association (CBA) which served as a liaison with the government, the local lineages declined.

The CBA remained the dominant Buddhist organization until the end of martial law, when its government mandated monopoly was ended. Since the eighties, Buddhism has enjoyed a surge of popularity as the percentage of people identifying themselves as Buddhist rose from the low teens to almost fifty percent. Today there are several large Buddhist organization based in Taiwan that have expanded to become international organization. They include Dharma Drum Mountain (Făgŭshān 法鼓山) founded by Master Shèngyán (聖嚴), Buddha's Light International (Fógŭangshān 佛光山) founded by Master Xīngyún (星雲), and the Tzu Chi Foundation (Cíjì jījīnhùi 慈濟基金會) founded by Master Cheng Yen (證嚴法師).

Tzu Chi, one of the largest international non-profit Buddhist organizations, focuses on community service, outreach programs, charity work, and international humanitarian efforts. They have opened hospitals, community centers, schools, and Tzu Chi University in Hualien County.

In the last few years non-Chinese forms of Buddhism, such as Tibetan Buddhism and the Vipassana movement of S. N. Goenka, have also enjoyed growing followings.

[edit] Confucianism

Confucianism, although not a religion in the western sense but a moral philosophy and ethical code, has been a major influence on the ideology, ethics, education, and everyday values of the Taiwanese. Confucianism has been a foundation for Chinese society and government since the sixth century B.C., and was spread to Taiwan with the migration of Chinese settlers over the past four centuries. Confucian temples are not places of worship, but rather memorial halls honoring Confucius, regarded as the greatest teacher in ancient China. Confucius's birthday is celebrated as Teacher's Day every September 28.

People praying at Longshan Temple in Taipei.

Incense is commonly used in Taoist prayer.

People visit a modern Buddhist temple in Ilan County.

[edit] Christianity

Christian churches exist on the Republic of China (Taiwan) due to their tolerant democratic government. According to figures given by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Christians which include Protestants, Catholics, Mormons, and non-denominational christians make up a total of 4.5% of the population of Taiwan.

[edit] Islam

Main article: Islam in Taiwan

Islam originated in Saudi Arabia and spread eastward to China as early as the 7th century AD. Muslim merchants married local Chinese women, creating a new Chinese ethnic group called the Hui people. Islam first reached Taiwan in the 17th century when Muslim families from the southern Chinese coastal province of Fujian accompanied Koxinga on his invasion to oust the Dutch from Taiwan. Islam did not spread and their descendants became assimilated into the local Taiwanese society adopting the local customs and religions.

During the Chinese Civil War, some 20,000 Muslims, mostly soldiers and civil servants, fled mainland China with the Kuomintang to Taiwan. Since the 1980s, thousands of Muslims from Myanmar and Thailand, who are descendants of Nationalist soldiers who fled Yunnan as a result of the communist takeover, have migrated to Taiwan in search of a better life. In more recent years, there has been a rise in Indonesian workers to Taiwan. There is an estimated 80,000 Indonesian Muslims living in Taiwan, in addition to the existing 53,000 Taiwanese Muslims, there is over 140,000 Muslims in Taiwan.

Taipei Grand Mosque in Daan district, Taipei City.

[edit] Atheism and Agnosticism

Excluding the nontheistic Buddhism, there are small populations of atheists and agnostics living in Taiwan. (Text required)

[edit] Summary:

• Mixture of Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist 93%;
• Christian 4.5%
• Other 2.5%

[edit] See also

• Demographics of Taiwan
• Buddhism
• Taoism
• Confucianism
• Protestant Christianity
• Catholicism
• Islam
• Shinto
• I-Kuan Tao

[edit] Links

• Introduction to Religion in Taiwan
• Marimari.com - Religion in Taiwan
• Taiwan Yearbook 2004
• Government Information Office
• The Glyphomancy Factor "Observations on Chinese Conversion" by David K Jordan (essay on volutary religious conversion in Taiwan)