veneration or worship
DESCRIPTION
Message by Pastor DTRANSCRIPT
Christian &
Culture Series
The Christian & Chinese New Year
Tradition
Christian & Culture Series: 2010
etain
– Religious & Demonic
– Cultural & Beneficial
– Neutral
eject
edeem
• Reunion Dinner
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial
• Reunion Dinner
• New Year visitation
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial
• Reunion Dinner
• New Year visitation
• Ang Pow
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial
• All forms of idol-worship • Superstitious beliefs &
practices • Sweeping floor • Opening business • Inverted “Fú”
2. Reject – Religious & Demonic
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial 2. Reject – Religious & Demonic
• Couplets (Dui Lian)
3. Redeem – Neutral
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial
• Couplets (Dui Lian) • Yee Sang
3. Redeem – Neutral
2. Reject – Religious & Demonic
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial
• Couplets (Dui Lian) • Yee Sang • Lion Dance
3. Redeem – Neutral
2. Reject – Religious & Demonic
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial
• Couplets (Dui Lian) • Yee Sang • Lion Dance • “Shou Shui” • Family tradition
3. Redeem – Neutral
2. Reject – Religious & Demonic
Christian Response to
QingMing Festival
Christian & Culture Series: 2011
• Family gathering
• Memory of ancestors
• Cleaning of graves
• Repair of tomb-stone
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial
• Ancestral worship – at home and at grave-site.
• Food offered @ ancestral worship.
2. Reject – Religious & Demonic
1. Retain – Cultural & Beneficial
2. Reject – Religious & Demonic
3. Redeem – Neutral
• Filial piety
Food Offered to Idols
Christian & Culture Series: 2012
1 Cor 8:1-13
1 Cor 10:16-22
1 Cor 10: 23-33
Food offered to Idols
Conclusions from 1 Cor 8
1. Motivation of LOVE 2. Do not stumble others
Conclusions from 1 Cor 10
1. No participation in idol feasts.
2. Don’t question source of meat sold in market.
3. Eat whatever is served.
4. Abstain if informed.
Concluding Remarks
1. Non-essential matter Our focus in life is to honour God in
all areas. Teaching should be done. Do not judge & condemn others.
2. Do not STUMBLE others Christians Non-Christians
Chinese Funeral Practices: Our Christian Response
Veneration or
Worship?
Chinese Funeral Practices: Our Christian Response
Veneration: • Profound respect or reverence;
inspired by the dignity, wisdom, dedication or talent of a person.
Worship: • Act of religious devotion
directed towards a deity.
Chinese Funeral Practices: Our Christian Response
1. Theological Perception
2. The Practice
3. Our Christian Response
Chinese Funeral Practices: Our Christian Response
1. Theological Perception
Theological Perception
“Chinese Religion” – Blending / Amalgamation of:
• Confucianism
• Taoism
• Buddhism
• Shenism
Resurgence of “Pure” Buddhism
Theological Perception
“Chinese” view on DEATH & AFTER-LIFE:
1. Spirit world – continuation / mirror image of human world.
Need
2. Interdependence between the living and the dead.
Bless or curse
Theological Perception
3. Concept of the soul … 3 souls: Yin world
Ancestral tablet
Body of deceased
4. Shen and Kui
“Chinese” view on DEATH & AFTER-LIFE:
Theological Perception
5. Reincarnation (Buddhism) Death – transition from this life to next
Accumulated karmic forces activated
Transference of merits by the living
Rebirth @ end of 49 days
Ultimate goal Nirvana
“Chinese” view on DEATH & AFTER-LIFE:
Chinese Funeral Practices: Our Christian Response
1. Theological Perception
2. The Practice
The Practice
Encoffining one of the 3 souls: • Body is ceremonially washed. • Personal items placed in coffin. • Coin in mouth – bribe officials of Yin
world. • Grains of rice in mouth – never go hungry. • Pearl in mouth – light the way. • Mirrors, statutes of deities covered up by
paper.
The Funeral Rite
The Practice
Assisting the 2nd soul on its trip to Western Paradise.
• Lying in state, odd no of days, in proportion to respect accorded to deceased.
• Mourning period – 49 or 100 days, cloth patch, no bright coloured clothing.
• no marriage within 1-3 years.
The Funeral Wake
The Practice
The Funeral Wake • Volume of crying – professional
mourners hired.
• Immediate family members kneel to side of altar.
• Mourning clothes – “ranking” differentiated by colours.
The Practice
The Funeral Wake
• Visitors stand before altar, bow, offer incense & turn to bow to kneeling family members.
• “White gift”.
The Practice
Taoist rites and rituals – • Assist the deceased to escape from
hell, either reincarnated into a better life or enter the Western Paradise.
The Prayer for the dead
The Practice
Taoist rites and rituals • Family members, led by the eldest
son carrying a lantern, would have to circle the coffin 10 times.
The Prayer for the dead
• Levels of punishment in hell.
• Cross from Yin World to Western Paradise.
Hawpar Villa, Singapore
The Practice
Buddhist Rites • Reincarnation in 49 days. • Chanting (contemplation of life &
transference of merit). • Offering of dana to sangha
The Prayer for the dead
(community of priest) transference of merit.
The Practice
• Do not face the coffin… leaving the house, being lowered into grave
• Location of tomb… blessing & curses. • Feng shui practice.
Burial of the Dead
The Practice
• Buddhists’ preferred mode. • Ashes: • Scattered @ sea • Placed in urn in Temple • Placed in urn in columbarium
Cremation of the Dead
The Practice
• Return from cemetery or crematorium – cross over fire or pail of water with flowers.
Post Burial of the Dead
• Burning of the cloth patches – its superstitious meaning.
The Practice
• Rite to invite one of the 3 souls to inhabit the ancestral tablet after 49 days, or 7-7.
The Ancestral Tablet
• Incense urn & candles. •Daily burning of joss-sticks. •Offering on 1st & 15th of
each lunar month & festivals.
Chinese Funeral Practices: Our Christian Response
1. Theological Perception
2. The Practice
3. Our Christian Response
Our Christian Response
1. Should Christians attend Chinese Funerals?
You are the light of the world… let your light shine before men… (Matt 5:14, 16)
It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting… (Eccl 7:2)
The One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. (1 Jn 4:4)
Our Christian Response
2. Should Christians participate in Chinese Funeral rites?
etain
– Religious & Demonic
– Cultural & Beneficial
– Neutral
eject
edeem
Our Christian Response
etain – Cultural & Beneficial
Veneration – Honour & respect. Proper & dignified “Farewell”. Memories of the deceased. Comfort to the living. Help the grieving process. White-gift.
Our Christian Response
– Religious & Demonic eject
Religious rites & practices. Superstitious practices. Worship of the deceased.
Our Christian Response
– Neutral edeem
Mourning & grieving. Family “order” – by differing colours of
mourning clothes. Ancestral “corner” – for photos of
dearly departed for ourselves & our future generations.
Our Christian Response
Family / Relatives • Be present. • Be intentionally & actively involved
in all preparations, except religious rites.
• Be financial contributor. • Be tower of strength.
Practical Consideration
Our Christian Response
Non-family, Friends • Be present, silent, bow in respect. • Do not hold joss-sticks. • View the body respectfully. • Comfort the family. • Pray with and for the family. • Be a testimony.
Practical Consideration
Our Christian Response
1 Peter 3:15 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect…
• Do not criticize • Do not ridicule • Do not condemn
Our Christian Response
1. Establish early the Christian standard of living without compromise.
2. Show filial piety in non-religious or non-idolatrous ways.
Practical Steps
Our Christian Response
3. Honouring our parents while they are alive:
• As acts of obedience to scriptural teaching.
• Out of love and gratitude towards our parents.
• To discredit any who might try to accuse us of not being filial.
Our Christian Response
4. Remembering our parents after they are gone…. Passing on legacy to the next generation.
5. Share Christ with our loved ones… and pray for their salvation!
Veneration or Worship?
Our Christian Response to Chinese Funeral Practices
Conclusion 1. Honour our parents / ancestors. 2. Glorify God in every aspect of our
lives. 3. Bible: the basis of all
matters of faith & conduct. 4. Obey God rather than men.
(Acts 4:19; 1 Peter 3:15)
Veneration or
Worship?