OCR Text |
Show I STATE RELIGION 1 TO BEADOPTED J 1 I Chinese President to Worship j1! Heaven and Confucius Jit Measure Presented. II i PEOPLE NEED RELIGION 1 3 Yuan Shi Kai to Set Example J I to Nation for Moral Up-Building. Up-Building. j! M , Pekln, China, Jan. 29. A bill pre- I a scribing the worship of Heaven and r ; Confucius by the president of the fj 9 Cliinese republic, was passed today !i 9 ( by the administrative council which iSljl , took the place of tho Chinese parlla- M ment, recently dissolved by President ,a Yuan Shi Kai. The measure was Jj : . submitted to the council by Yuan Shi rm : Kai himself. jl It is understood that tho prosl- Jm 'I dent's idea la to set an example to EJ;: the Chinese nation, which he thinks it-J needs tho moral building influence a.j . of religion. The president will wor- !' ship at the Temple of Confucius, and 3 at the Temple of Heaven annually in n"J . : the same way as the Manchu emper- e.?J 1 ors did, but without wearing the dla- r.rJ dcm. The diadem was proposed but 1 M was not adopted, owing to criticism 1 jf that it would be taken as another in- Iti dlcation of Yuan Shi Kni's monarch-ial monarch-ial designs. R J I The question of the introduction of f'M ' a state religion has created cousid- 1 orablo controversy in China, the NL Christian missionaries of all section '' ' opposing such a stop, The constitu- s,'l;1 tion adopted by the Chinese parlia- ?3 ' ment mado no provision for any state 1 ; religion, but for some months a "Con- 1 ; fusclan revival" movement has been aM in evidence and a league was formed 1 by representatives In China not only l0I of Christianity but of Mahomme- el I danism, Taoism and Buddhism to op- lt!l pose the adoption of a state religion. r"I ' As was contemplated when Yuan 1 : , Shi Kai dissolved parliament, the ad- 1 1 ministrative council formed in its i place and consisting of two repre- I ; sentatlves from each province, four I'.' cabinet ministers, a representative 1': from each ministry and eight mem- 1 ' hers of the presidential secretariat, I : adopts all the measures proposed by I ' President Yuan -Shi Kai, who exer- |