Confucianism as a Religion

Based on reading this article, it shows how Confucianism was based on How to act socially with one another. Additionally, it made an emphasis on having morality and being humane. One example i uses to show how a person should act is through the analects. The major belief he had was how everything should be done in the Way. What he also believed when he put strict laws upon the people since he wanted to solve problems and thought he should be influential in order to be a good leader to his people. He thought being a good person (following the Way) should be a part of everyday life. Based on the questions given from the article: 1. What kind of quality or virtue is jen or humaneness, and what kind of person could be called a person of humaneness?

2. Do you find any similarities between the humaneness of Confucius and the guiding principles of another religious tradition with which you may be familiar — for example, love or charity in Christianity, social responsibility in Judaism, or compassion in Buddhism? Any differences?

3. Can relationships within a family be based on the concept of humaneness (humanity)? Can a government be based on the same concept?

4. How does Confucius’ concept of humaneness compare to the way in which philosophers such as Han Fei and Lord Shang think about human beings and human society?

I would answer it this way:

1. To be humane one must be respectful, trustworthy, earnest, kind, and liberal.  One who is humane is always humane, lives according the way, helps others and is helped by others, live with balance, and is an example of humanity for others.

2.  These guidelines are similar to the lessons learned in the torah/old testament.

3.  Physically a govt. could be based upon Confucianism however it probably would not be very efficient or effective since there would not be a strong sense of authority and punishment for action.  Relationships have aspects of them which are humane, such as parents teaching kids and kids teaching parents, being kind in everyday life, loving people. Once again there cannot be complete humanity within a relationship since humaneness is almost an idea of perfection but not everyone can always be perfect.

4.  Han Fei believed that aristocracy should maintain power and do what they want, which is quite different than Confucianism since Confucianism is more about equality and doing everything in a humane fashion.

 Lastly, based on the analects, it shows how Confucius believed that people can't gain money and wealth if it can't be done according to the Way. He wanted people to incorporate being humane and showed 5 daily aspects of your life, which are respect, liberality, trustworthiness, earnestness, and kindness (humanity).