Content of articles on tolerance and freedom

Seventeen or eighteen years ago, I saw my alma mater, George Lincoln Burr, the great historian of Cornell University, for the last time.

We talked about acton, a master of English literature. He was preparing to write a history of freedom all his life, but he died before he wrote it. Teacher Niu said a lot that day, and I didn't forget a word. He said that with the growth of my age, I feel that tolerance is more important than freedom. Mr. Bull has been dead for more than ten years, and the more I think about it, the more I think it is an indelible motto. I have my own feelings. The older I get, the more I feel that tolerance is more important than freedom. Sometimes I think tolerance is the foundation of all freedom: without tolerance, there is no freedom.

When I was 17 years old (1908), I published several articles "Conghua without Ghosts" in Ye Jing Express, one of which was a denunciation of the novel The Journey to the West and The List of Gods. I said:

"The King System" has its own (2): when ghosts and gods, ghosts and ghosts predict (3), killing people. I blame those who have ruled the country for thousands of years, those who helped the world in Ming Dow (4) are ignorant [5] and the theory of misleading the world and slandering people can prevail, so I quote the Chinese nation to vote in an extremely dark world! ……

This is a child's intolerant attitude towards morality. At that time, I was already an atheist, an atheist, so I issued that crazy theory of breaking superstition. I want to implement a classic of "Wang Zhi", and ghosts and gods are false and kill people!

At that time, of course, I never dreamed that the child who said this would enthusiastically give The Journey to the West 15 years (1923) a textual research of 20,000 words! At that time, of course, I didn't expect that this child would always pay attention to finding information that can verify the author of the list of gods after twenty years! At that time, I didn't think of the historical significance of "Wang Zhi". The full text of the paragraph "Wang Zhi" is like this:

Analysis of breaking the law, renaming, left-wing chaos, killing. Create obscenity, strange clothes and strange things to doubt the public and kill them. Be firm in fallacies, refute fallacies, learn from ignorance, be sincere in believing, and kill. At the time of ghosts and gods, the prophecy doubts the public and kills the public. Those who punish these four people don't listen to the levy.

Fifty years ago, I didn't know that this sentence was the classic basis for banning new ideas, new academics, new beliefs and new arts under China's authoritarian regime. At that time, I was keen to get rid of superstition, so I supported the fourth of the four punishments: predicting to doubt the masses and killing ghosts and gods in time. At that time, I never dreamed that the fourth punishment was a false ghost ... suspecting the two charges of the masses, insisting on the left and the first punishment of chaos can be used to undermine the freedom of religious belief. At that time, I didn't notice Zheng Xuan's example of using ⑽; I didn't even notice that in Kong Ying Da's A Theory of Justice, I quoted Confucius' example ⑾ to explain how to be false and firm, argue with false words, learn nothing, and kill suspects. Therefore, the second punishment can be used to prohibit the freedom of artistic creation, and it can also be used to kill many scientists who invented strange devices. Therefore, the third punishment can be used to undermine the freedom of thought, speech and publication.

Fifty years ago, I quoted Wang Zhi's fourth punishment for killing the author of "A Journey to the West". At that time, of course, I didn't expect that when I was teaching at Peking University ten years later, some decent men would also like to invoke the third penalty of the royal system to kill me and my friends. When I want to kill a person, later people also want to kill me for the same reason: they all lose their tolerance, just because they are angry with justice.

I narrated the story that I advocated predicting doubting and killing people fifty years ago, to show that the older I get, the more important I think tolerance is than freedom.

I am still an atheist today. I don't believe in a god with will, and I don't believe in the idea that the soul is immortal. But my atheism is essentially different from the atheism of the * * * production party. I can tolerate all religions that believe in God, and I can tolerate all people who truly believe in religion. * * * The Producers' Party itself advocates atheism, and wants to eliminate all belief in God and ban all religions that believe in God. This is my naive and arrogant intolerant attitude fifty years ago.

I always feel that most people in this country, this society and this world believe in God, but they can have this magnanimity and tolerate me as an atheist, a person who doesn't believe in God and the immortality of the soul, and I can freely express my atheistic thoughts at home and abroad. No one has ever stoned me to death, put me in prison, or tied me to a pyre and burned me. I have enjoyed tolerance and freedom in this world for more than forty years. I think the tolerance of this country, this society and this world is lovely and can be appreciated.

Therefore, I have always felt that we should repay the tolerance of society with a tolerant attitude. So I don't believe in God myself, but I can sincerely understand all those who believe in God. I can sincerely tolerate and respect and sincerely believe in the religion that exists with God.

I will repay the tolerance of society with a tolerant attitude, because the older I get, the more important I feel about tolerance. Without this tolerance of society, I will never enjoy the freedom to dare to doubt and openly advocate atheism for more than 40 years.

In the history of religious freedom, ideological freedom and political freedom, we can all see that tolerance is the most rare and rare attitude. Human habits always like the same but hate the different, and they always dislike beliefs, thoughts and behaviors different from their own. This is the root of intolerance. Intolerance means that you can't tolerate new ideas and beliefs different from yourself. A religious group always thinks that its religious beliefs are right and can't be wrong, so it always thinks that those religious beliefs that are different from itself must be wrong, and must be heresies and cults. A political group always believes that its political ideas are right and can't be wrong, so it always believes that those political ideas that are different from itself must be wrong and must be enemies.

All the persecution of heresy, all the destruction of dissidents, all the prohibition of religious freedom, and all the suppression of thought and speech are all because they firmly believe that they are infallible. Because I am convinced that I can't be wrong and can't tolerate any ideas and beliefs different from myself.

Look at the history of the Reformation in Europe. Martin Luther, john calvin and others began to reform religion (⑿) at first because they were not satisfied with the intolerance and freedom of the old Roman religion. However, after the victory of Protestantism in Central and Northern Europe, the leaders of Protestantism gradually embarked on the road of intolerance and did not allow others to criticize their new dogma. Calvin mastered the power of religion in Geneva, and even classified Vitus, a scholar who dared to think independently and criticize Calvin's dogma, as a heresy, locked him on a stake, piled firewood and burned him alive slowly. This happened on 15531October 23rd.

The tragic history of the martyr Sevitt [13] deserves people's remembrance and reflection. The original goal of the Reformation was to fight for the freedom of Christians and the freedom of mercy. Why did Calvin and his followers burn an independent Protestant with slow fire? Why did Derbezer, a believer of Calvin (who later succeeded Calvin as the religious dictator in Geneva), declare that the freedom of a kind heart is the devil's dogma?

The most basic reason is that I'm sure I won't make mistakes. As a devout religious reformer like Calvin, he is convinced that his conscience really represents God's command, and his mouth and pen really represent God's will. Will his view be wrong? Could he be wrong? After Victor was burned to death, galvin was criticized by many people. 1554, galvin published an article to defend himself. He said without hesitation: there is no doubt that the authority of pagans should be severely punished, because God himself said this. ..... This job is to fight for the glory of God.

Is it wrong for God to speak for himself? Is it wrong to fight for the glory of God? I can't be wrong about this. This is the root of all intolerance. I am convinced that my own beliefs are infallible, my opinions are just, and those who oppose me are of course heretics. My opinion represents the will of God, and the opinions of those who oppose me are of course the dogma of the devil.

This is a lesson from the history of religious freedom: tolerance is the foundation of all freedom; Without tolerance of dissidents, it is impossible to admit that dissidents can enjoy freedom in their religious beliefs. But because the intolerant attitude is based on the psychological habit that I believe to be infallible, it is the most rare and difficult to cultivate the magnanimity of tolerating dissidents.

Politically and ideologically, in the discussion of social issues, we also feel that intolerance is universal, while tolerance is always rare. Let me give an example of the death of an old friend. More than forty years ago, we began to advocate the vernacular literature movement in New Youth magazine. I sent a letter to Chen Duxiu from the United States, and I said:

The right or wrong of this matter cannot be decided overnight, nor can it be decided by one or two people. I really hope that junior high school students can study this problem calmly with our efforts. The discussion is familiar and self-evident. We have raised the banner of revolution. Although we can't retreat, we never dare to take what we stand for as a necessity and don't allow others to correct it.

Duxiu answered me in "New Youth":

I despise the principle of accommodating objections and discussing freely, which is firmly established as academic development. Obviously, the vernacular Chinese is authentic only when it is unique in improving China literature, and opponents have no room for discussion. We must take what we advocate as absolute things and not allow others to correct it. ......

I thought it was a very arbitrary attitude when I saw it. Now, more than 40 years later, I still can't forget the sentence "outshine others". I still think that this attitude of regarding what we ordinary people advocate as absolute is very intolerant, and it is most likely to cause others' ill feelings and opposition.

I once said that I would repay the tolerance of society with tolerance. Now I often think that we should be self-disciplined [14]: We always want others to tolerate and understand our opinions, and we must first formulate a scale that can tolerate and understand others' opinions. At least we should abstain from sex and never take what we advocate as absolute. Those of us who have been trained in experimentalism don't admit that there is absoluteness, let alone take what we advocate as absoluteness. (1) The article was originally published in Taiwan Province Free China, Volume 26, No.6, March 1959. It has been selected into China New Literature Series (1949— 1976) and Essays Volume, the first edition of Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House in June 1997+0 1.

⑵ Wang Zhi: One of the Confucian classics, The Book of Rites. The Book of Rites is an anthology of various etiquette works before Qin and Han Dynasties, including 49 articles by Liu Yun, Xue Ji, Rose, University, and The Doctrine of the Mean. Legend has it that it was compiled by Dai Sheng in the Western Han Dynasty. Wang Zhi systematically describes the rules and regulations related to marquis, nobility, pilgrimage, funeral and sacrifice, hunting patrol, criminal management, schools and so on. Its content is not consistent with the actual etiquette system of Shang and Zhou Dynasties.

(3) In the name of ghosts and gods, people are often confused by the superstitious behavior of yarrow divination.

(4) People who saved the world from Ming Dow: people who expect themselves to remedy difficulties and clarify things.

5] Ignorant: confused and unreasonable.

[6] Analysis of words breaking the law: misinterpreting the words of sages and undermining the established legal system. Renaming and changing things: disturbing the concept of things and changing the code of conduct. Left way: side door evil way.

(7) Obscene music, strange clothes and strange objects: dissolute music, strange clothes, grotesque techniques and strange things.

False but firm: false but stubborn. Debate with lies: speak with lies, but be eloquent. Learning without knowledge: academic mistakes are complex and arbitrary. Shun Fei Ze: Obey mistakes but whitewash them.

Don't listen: there is no need to interrogate and listen to opinions.

⑽ Zheng Xuan's Note: Zheng Xuan's comments on the Book of Rites of the Han Dynasty. Like public defeat: During the Spring and Autumn Period, a native of Lu, Gong Sun, was famous, also known as Ban and Pan, and was commonly known as Lu Ban. This master of ancient architecture is regarded as the ancestor of carpentry by later generations. He once created all kinds of ingenious wooden tools, such as siege ladders and grinding wheels (wèi).

⑾ Confucius' Justice: Confucius' Book of Rites Justice in the Tang Dynasty. Shao Zhengmao: Confucius is a contemporary. According to Xunzi Youzuo, Confucius killed Shao Zhengmao on the seventh day of regency in Lu on the grounds that he had committed the so-called "four punishments". Scholars in Qing Dynasty were skeptical about Confucius' punishment of Shao Zhengmao.

⑿ Martin Luther and john calvin: 15 17, German Martin Luther published "Outline of the Ninth Five-Year Plan", which opened the prelude to the European religious reform movement, opposed the Pope's control over churches in various countries, and demanded the establishment of new churches and new doctrines suitable for absolute monarchy, which was supported by the upper class of citizens and some German rulers. Influenced by Martin Luther, French Calvin converted to Protestantism in 1533, established a Protestant church, abolished the episcopal system, replaced it with the Presbyterian system, established a theocratic political system in Geneva, and became a religious dictator. His thoughts and beliefs met the requirements of bourgeois radicals. Later, he executed Cesar Vitter, a Spanish dental scientist, and many others for heresy. Galvin, or translated as Owen; Vitus, or translated as Servit.

[13] (X29N) Taoism: People who sacrifice their lives in order to safeguard sacred beliefs and principles.

3. Discipline: vigilance and restraint.