Reclaiming the Wilderness : Contemporary Dynamics of the Yiguandao

A syncretistic and millenarian religious movement, the Yiguandao (Way of Pervading Unity) was one of the major redemptive societies of Republican China. It developed extremely rapidly in the 1930s and the 1940s, attracting millions of members. Severely repressed after the establishment of the People's Republic of China, it managed to endure and redeploy elsewhere, especially in Taiwan. Today, it has become one of the largest and most influential religious movements in Asia and at the same time one of the least known and understood. From its powerful base in Taiwan, it has expanded worldwide, including in mainland China where it remains officially forbidden. Based on ethnographic work carried out over nearly a decade, Reclaiming the Wilderness offers an in-depth study of a Yiguandao community in Hong Kong that serves as a node of circulation between Taiwan, Macao, China and elsewhere. Sébastien Billioud explores the factors contributing to the expansionary dynamics of the group: the way adepts live and confirm their faith; the importance of charismatic leadership; the role of Confucianism, which makes it possible to defuse tensions with Chinese authorities and sometimes even to cooperate with them; and, finally, the well-structured expansionary strategies of the Yiguandao and its quasi-diplomatic efforts to navigate the troubled waters of cross-straits politics. "The Yiguandao (Way of Pervading Unity) was one of the major redemptive societies of Republican China. It is nowadays one of the largest and most influential religious movements of the Chinese world and at the same time one of the least known and understood. From its powerful base in Taiwan, it develops worldwide, including in Mainland China where it nevertheless remains officially forbidden. Based on extensive ethnographic work carried out over nearly a decade, Reclaiming the Wilderness explores the expansionary dynamics of this group and its regional circulations such as they can be primarily observed from a Hong Kong perspective. It analyses the proselytizing impetus of the adepts, the transmission of charisma and forms of leadership, the specific role of Confucianism that makes it possible for the group to defuse tension with Chinese authorities and, even sometimes, to cooperate with them. It also delves into Yiguandao's well-structured expansionary strategies and in its quasi-diplomatic efforts to navigate the troubled waters of cross-straits politics. To readers primarily interested in Chinese studies, this work offers new perspectives on state-religion relationships in China, the "Taiwan issue" seen through the lenses of religion, or one of the modern and contemporary fates of Confucianism, that is, its appropriation by redemptive societies and religious organizations. But it also addresses theoretical questions that are also relevant to completely different contexts and thus contribute to the fields of sociology, anthropology and psychology of religion"-- Provided by publisher Cover Reclaiming the Wilderness Copyright Dedication Contents Acknowledgments Introduction I. THE RELATIONSHIP OF MISSIONARY- ADEPTS TO THEIR FAITH AND THE ISSUE OF FAITH CONFIRMATION 1. The Production of Missionary-​Adepts 2. Confirming One’s Faith II. CHARISMA AND ROUTINIZATION 3. Production of Charisma Within the Yiguandao 4. Charisma and Routinization of the Extraordinary: Structuring Leadership to Open the Wilderness III. DEFUSING TENSION 5. The Role of Confucianism in Defusing Tension with the Social and Political Environment 6. Yiguandao’s Promotion of Confucianism-​Related Activities in Hong Kong and Mainland China IV. ORGANIZATION AND STRATEGY 7. Structuring and Organizing the Missionary Effort 8. A Well-​Orchestrated Strategy Taking Politics and Cross-​Strait Relations Into Account Epilogue Bibliography Index A syncretistic & millenarian religious movement, the Yiguandao (Way of Pervading Unity) was one of the major redemptive societies of Republican China. It developed rapidly in the 1930s & the 1940s, attracting millions of members. Sébastien Billioud offers an in-depth anthropological & sociological study of the Yiguandao. Repressed and forbidden after 1949, the group is one of the most influential religious movements of the Chinese world & at the same time one of the least known & understood. This work delves into a Yiguandao community in Hong Kong that serves as a node of circulations between Taiwan, Macau, China & elsewhere. It explores the expansionary dynamics of a group that now now reestablishinges itself in China & elsewhere in Asia