The Interweaving of Rituals: Funerals in the Cultural Exchange between China and Europe

Appendix

231 Appendix Schematic Representation of Communities of Effective Rituals (see Conclusion) a1. Comparison of eastern Mediterranean and premodern Chinese ritual communities (after Joël Thoraval). Joël Thoraval distinguishes between the status of the laity (lower level of rectangles) and the religious “professionals” (top, shaded level). Ritual communities originating in eastern Mediterranean religions (left) tend toward a strong and exclusive pillar structure—an exclusive belonging, which unites the laity and religious professionals and in which there is no cross-membership between pillars (not only between different religions but also between Catholics,Presbyterians,Anglicans,andotherChristiandenominations).InpremodernChina (right) a stronger distinction can be made between the lay community and the religious specialists . The lay community was, in principle, undivided in its religion, as opposed to the multiple and distinct worlds of the religious specialists, who were, together with some very active semiprofessional laypeople, exclusive in their doctrines and rites. Catholics Presbyterians Anglicans Jews Muslims Muslims 1 2 3 4 5 Undivided lay community Eastern Mediterranean communities Premodern Chinese communities 1.Daoist master 2.Buddhist monk 3.Shaman 4.Fengshui master 5.Other Professionals Laity Semiprofessional laity appendix 232 Catholic priest and laity Sacramental rites Eucharist Confession Funeral Prayer Fasting Sacramental rites Catholic priest Non-sacramental rites Catholic laity Family rituals Chanting sutras Rites of diffused religion Confucian laity Rites of institutional religion Buddhist monk,Daoist master Buddhist monk Daoist master/ Confucian laity Rites of institutional/ diffused religion a2. Substantial overlap of Catholic professional and lay rites in Europe (after Robert Scribner). The exclusive pillar structure had evolved in Europe into a situation in which the ritual practices (represented by circles) of professionals overlapped to a large extent with those of laity. Catholic priests were the main agents of sacraments, such as Eucharist and confession. Although the clergy was not necessary for non-sacramental rituals typically practiced by the laity, such as praying the rosary and fasting, in fact it was present at many of them. This was also true of funerals, which, although not considered a sacrament, had gradually become clericalized, with Mass presided over by a priest considered an essential part of the Catholic funerary ritual. a3. Limited overlap of traditional Chinese professional and lay rites. The distinction between the rites of diffused religion and of institutional religions in China, as proposed by C. K. Yang, corresponds with the distinction between the lay community and religious specialists as made by Thoraval. The laity upholding Confucian orthodoxy practiced rituals that were “diffused” in secular social institutions, such as those in the family, detailed in Family Rituals. In contrast, Buddhist monks and Daoist masters practiced rituals based on independent forms of worship, such as chanting sutras. At funerals these two circles overlapped only partially, with rituals of institutional religions grafted onto those of diffused religion. Some orthodox Confucians tried to exclude Buddhist and Daoist elements from family rituals. appendix 233 Burning mock money Chanting sutras Family rituals Rites of institutional religion Buddhist monk,Daoist master Prayer Fasting Funeral Sacramental rites Catholic priest Eucharist Non-sacramental rites Catholic laity Rites of diffused religion Confucian laity a4. Reorganization of Catholic rituals in seventeenth-century China. The most significant change in Catholic rituality in China was that rituals that could be performed by laypeople, rather than sacramental rites performed by priests, became the most central ones in the life of Chinese Christians. In this move (indicated by the arrow on the left), there was less overlapping between the two types of rites than in Europe. Funerals, for instance, which had been a primarily clericalized ritual in Europe, became primarily rituals of the family and the Christian community in China, with only a marginal role reserved for the priest. The Christian rituals performed at a funeral overlapped partially with practices that were described in Family Rituals and were common to diffused religion. Thus, the Christian community occupied a position similar to that of institutional religions in relationship to diffused religion in premodern China. This was possible only with the exclusion of certain rituals (indicated by the arrow on the right), especially those of the other institutional religions. Catholic laity Non-sacramental rites Rites of diffused religion Buddhist monk Daoist master/ Confucian laity Rites of institutional/ diffused religion Catholic priest and laity Sacramental rites a5. The in-between situation of the Catholic community. The in-between situation of the Christian community is evident in funeral practices in China. By practicing non-sacramental rituals and the rituals...