Original link: Yuan Yongjia: Christians and ancestor worship, how to celebrate Qingming Festival? Basic Attitude (UPDATE1)

Note: Note that it is recommended not to burn incense in this revision. The purpose of this article is to establish a set of liturgical guidelines that Christians can use during the Qingming Festival. The suggestions in it are for reference only, not teachings, and are still being updated. Brothers and sisters are welcome to correct me and ask questions.

Tomb-sweeping Day is approaching, the author is publishing this article, on the one hand, to respond to a reader's previous questions and requests; on the other hand, to provide a perspective of the Eastern Church. This article adopts a question-and-answer format to respond to specific questions about the Qingming Festival. This article is the first draft, and readers are welcome to correct it.

Question: Should Christians worship ancestors?

Answer: No. Ancestor worship is the abbreviation of worshiping ancestors, that is, people should worship the ghosts of ancestors through sacrifices in order to obtain the blessings of ancestors. This kind of thinking goes against the teachings of Christianity. Because after death, God decides where the soul goes, and waits for the resurrection of the flesh in the last days to be judged. The soul of a person after death has no supernatural ability to affect its descendants. Therefore, ancestor worship is idolatry, and Christians should not worship ancestors.

Question: So Christians don’t celebrate Ching Ming Festival?

A: Of course you can. Although Christians are opposed to ancestor worship, they are not opposed to honoring parents. The fifth commandment of the Ten Commandments says, "Honor your parents, so that your days may be long in the land the LORD your God is giving you" (Exodus 20:12). If Christians should honor their parents, should their parents be honored? Of course, it should be, and on this basis, Christians should respect and commemorate their ancestors, so as to show that the children's kindness and gratitude to their parents and grandparents are the ties of family affection. This is worthy of recognition. It is based on this point that Christians can be clear and bright to express their nurturing grace and gratitude to their ancestors.

However, we cannot, like Fan Xuanzi, the Confucian view of immortality centered on filial piety, think that commemorating the ancestors can give them immortality or immortality. The tragedy of the Chained Girl and the world style of success and failure are based on this ignorant view of immortality. For details, please refer to the author's special articles "The Roots of Success and Failure: The Roots of Men's Superiority and Women's Inferiority - A Civilization That Holds God High, It Will inevitably trample people without bottom line " and "Buying a Wife and Having Children" Deep Reason Analysis: Ordinary People Filial Piety Fulfills the Desire of Immortality ". Only our Lord Jesus Christ is immortal, and there is no salvation.

Question: Should Christians visit graves on Qingming Festival?

A: You can sweep the grave after prayers. Tomb-sweeping is to clean the weeds around the cemetery to make the cemetery look neat and tidy. This practice can express our respect for our ancestors, of course it is possible.

Question: Should Christians serve fruit food and burn paper money?

Answer: No. The practice of offering fruit food, burning paper money, and even paper carts, paper iPhones, etc., is to think that the underworld is the same as the human world, and that ghosts after death can obtain these money and food by burning or offering fruit, so that they can live in the underworld. better.

However, these teachings have no biblical basis. According to the parable of Lazarus and the rich man told by the Lord Jesus (Luke 16:19-31), we know that after the death of the rich man, he went to Hades to suffer from flames, and Lazarus was brought to the grave by angels. Abraham's embrace. When the rich man wanted Abraham to send Lazarus over and cool his tongue with a little water on his fingertips, Abraham refused his request, saying, "Between you and me, there is an abyss so limited that one has to cross this way. It is impossible to come to your side, and it is not possible to pass from there to our side.” (Luke 16:26) If it is impossible to get some water in the spiritual world, then it is certain that you can get some fruit food in the human world and the underworld. , to send some money, outside things are also impossible.

It can be seen that, according to Christian teachings, after a person dies, where the soul goes is determined by God, and there are abyss between the underworld, the human world and the embrace of Abraham, and it is impossible for people to send anything by their own practices.

For Christians, it is more practical to offer prayers for the souls of ancestors than perishable food and fake paper money. If God is the one who places the souls of people after death, wouldn't it be more effective to convey your gratitude and longing by praying to God, asking God to have mercy on them? The Eastern Church's tradition of praying for the deceased is also based on this reason, because our thoughts and gratitude, as well as our prayers for God's mercy, can be conveyed through prayer.

Q: Can Christians kneel to their ancestors on Qingming Festival?

A: It is recommended not to bow down, but you can bow to show respect.

There are two understandings of kneeling: 1) Kneeling only shows a greater respect for people, not the same as worshiping God; 2) The body's kneeling posture can only be dedicated to God, and other kneeling is idols worship.

For the first understanding, I see it in the Orthodox Church. I remember that when the author participated in the Orthodox liturgy at the Holy Cross Seminary, I had seen believers kneeling in front of the icon many times. At first, it was difficult for me to accept it. They later explained that this was merely an expression of respect, since in ancient times believers could also bow down to kings. On this level, for the Orthodox Church, kneeling is not worshiping God, but merely expressing a greater respect, which is completely different from worshiping God. If you understand the kneeling posture of the body at this level, then in order to express respect for the ancestors, it is not impossible to kneel.

The second understanding seems to come mainly from Western traditions (I do not know Catholic liturgy, so I am not in the scope of this discussion). Because the western film and television I have come into contact with seems to show that people do not bow down to the secular people. After the introduction of Catholicism into China, the problem of worshiping ancestors and worshiping ancestors has been contested for a long time (the author has very little understanding of this history, and readers and colleagues are welcome to correct them). If kneeling is limited to worshiping God, then kneeling before an icon is also idolatry. Protestantism seems to have also upheld this spirit, mostly advocating not to bow down.

However, even if I accept the first understanding of kneeling, I still do not recommend kneeling. On the one hand, Christians do this for the faith of other believers, lest they fall because of it; on the other hand, it is also for the speculation of those unbelievers, lest they see Christians kneeling and think that Christians agree with ancestor worship - this is obviously an idol worship.

Q: Can Christians burn incense on Qingming Festival?

Answer: The issue of burning incense is very complicated. For the sake of prudence, the author recommends not to burn incense, but to pray.

The tradition of burning incense is not only found in China, but the Old Testament also has a dedicated incense altar (Exodus 30:1-10), and it is specifically pointed out that Aaron "will burn this incense every morning when he is putting out the lamp. When the lamp is lit at dusk, he will Burn this incense in front of you, as an incense burnt from generation to generation." (Exodus 30:7-8) It can be seen that this incense is burned almost twenty-four hours a day. In the Christian context, the incense represents the prayers of the people. The Psalm says, "Let my prayers be set before you like incense; let my hands be raised up for supplication like an evening sacrifice." (Psalm 141:2) The book of Revelation specifically mentions: "A golden furnace full of incense; the prayer of all the saints." (Revelation 5:8)

Therefore, the meaning of incense in Christianity is the prayers of the saints, and according to the tradition of the Eastern Church, the priest will walk through the congregation with a stove filled with incense every Sunday. There is an inexplicable feeling in my heart, I think this is the so-called silent teaching! Since Christ became flesh, why can't He let us receive grace through the five senses of the body? I think yes, and the Holy Communion is a prime example.

However, it remains to be seen whether burning incense can be transferred from the church to the liturgy of Qingming Festival. Whether burning incense is limited to church communion services, or whether burning incense can also be used for other ceremonies, such as weddings, funerals, etc., is still unclear, and relevant scholars are welcome to correct it.

The author believes that this issue needs to be further explored. To be prudent, it is recommended not to burn incense.

First, I respect the advice of the clergy. Because, one reader reported that their church's pastor was against burning incense. Moreover, I consulted an Orthodox priest in Taiwan, and he also suggested not to burn incense, thinking that this practice is idol worship, and I think their opinions are worth referring to.

Secondly, if you really want to use burning incense, then the author thinks that it can only be used when a priest or priest presides after Christianity has established a special ritual for Qingming Festival. It is not recommended for believers to use incense privately.

In addition, the Chinese church has not formed a unified opinion on the production method of incense, and most of the incense purchased are Buddhist and Taoist incense, which is also an issue that needs to be further explored.

Question: Do Christians set off firecrackers during Qingming Festival?

A: You can set off firecrackers after prayers.

Setting off firecrackers seems to be a feature of Chinese New Year and festivals. I never saw them set off firecrackers when I attended the Orthodox ceremonies. Recently, I read a New Year's story to my children. In the story, it is described that Nian, the monster, is afraid of firecrackers. However, the meaning of the story - setting off firecrackers to exorcise demons is clearly revealed.

In this sense, the author thinks it is okay to set off firecrackers. Moreover, the author recommends that it is more appropriate to add a prayer before setting off firecrackers. Take the Lord's Prayer, for example, and ask the Lord to drive away all the devil's actions through the sound of firecrackers.

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