“The Hindu Shastras have made no provisions of affection and regard for a daughter. She is viewed by them, as far as her parents are concerned, merely as an object to be ‘given away,’ and that as soon as possible. She is declared by them to be marriageable, even in her infancy, to a person of any age; and of course without her own choice or intelligent consent.... According to the letter of the law, the parents are not to sell their daughters, but they may receive valuable gifts, the equivalent of a price, on her behalf.” (Manu III, 51.)[79]
The code of Manu further teaches that by honoring his mother a son gains the terrestrial world, by honoring his father, the ethereal,—intermediate,—and by assiduous attention to his preceptor, even the celestial world of Brahma.[80]
How different are the words of the Apostle Paul regarding the relation between parents and children. “Fathers, provoke not your children that they be not discouraged. Children, obey your parents in the Lord. Honor thy father and thy mother, which is the first commandment with promise.”
Confucianism and Christianity.
The Right Reverend Logan H. Roots, Bishop of Hankow, has illustrated so forcibly the difference in the practical working out of the precepts of Confucianism and Christianity, that it is well worth while to quote him at length.
In conversation with a group of Chinese gentlemen some time ago, I made the remark that outside the Jewish and Christian religions there was no serious recognition of the inherent dignity of children, and that no sage had ever made a statement comparable to that of our Lord.—“Suffer the little children to come unto me and forbid them not, for of such is the Kingdom of Heaven.” Such a remark as this on my part would have elicited scarcely any interest a few years ago. The warm discussion it aroused this time was a sign of the new life that is now stirring among the Chinese. The keenest of these gentlemen were in sympathy with Christianity, but they were all inclined to look upon Confucianism as a real preparation for Christianity, and one after another brought forth sayings of the Confucian sages which they thought could be reasonably compared to that of Christ.
They quoted the praises of King Wen in the “Great Learning,” where it is said, “As a father he rested in kindness”; the sayings of Confucius himself in the “Analects” as to his own wish: “In regard to the young, treat them tenderly”; the advice to a ruler in “The Great Learning”: “Act as though you were watching over an infant”; and the fine saying of Mencius: “The great man is he who does not lose his child’s heart.”...
The eagerness of these gentlemen in discussing the question with me, to find a place for their worthies in the ample folds of Christian teaching is far from unwholesome or blameworthy, especially when there is such readiness as they showed to appeal to Christian teaching rather than to the sages as their standard, and to prove the greatness of their sages by their agreement with the Christ....
My purpose, however, is not to give an exposition of these classical gems, but rather to contrast them briefly with certain popular Chinese conceptions of childhood which are foolish or cruel, but which these lofty sayings of the sages have been powerless to correct.
Should a child fall ill, his relatives or friends very likely remark, “His spirit has gone seeking another incarnation.” Or some one suggests, “Some ghost has frightened the child to the point of losing its soul.”... Should the child die, the parents will grieve as surely and as sorely as parents any where; but ... they will be told, “Never mind, the child was misguided to your home, and was not intended for you.” Or, “It was only a creditor collecting a debt you owed in a former existence.” Or, “Don’t grieve, it was but one of those demon spirits that always die young.”...
I put these popular sayings beside the exalted sentiments of the Chinese Classics, not to disparage the sages, but to show how utterly dark the popular mind is, in spite of these sayings which seem so full of light. Is not the difficulty that the sages after all could not go to the root of the matter? They knew nothing of God as Father.[81]
Failure to influence lives for righteousness.
What is here illustrated of the failure of Confucianism to influence lives toward righteousness and faith is true of the other non-Christian religions. Even the young Mohammedan girl realized the power and claim of Christianity as she was a chance listener to the Gospel story while a missionary toured in central Persia. “Why, lady,” she exclaimed, “if one understands clearly that Book, there is nothing left but to obey!”
The direct results of the way children are taught to worship in non-Christian lands deserve careful, unprejudiced study, with the question constantly in mind, “Is this religion good enough for my children, or for those in whom I am interested?” If the study results in a negative answer to the question, it is fair to ask further, “Is it good enough for any children in the whole wide world?”
Result to the child of [religious] acts.