DaVinci Code

So, some thoughts on the Da Vinci Code.

We loved the book, no, neither of us read it, but we did have it read to us!!! We get books on CD to listen to in the car. Eric's library is pretty extensive as he's on the road, on daytrips mainly, a lot for work so he can listen to a 20 hour book in one week. The Da Vinci Code is one we've both enjoyed.

We plan to see the movie of course... though with the way we get out it might be in the comfort of our own home! However, I ran across an interesting article that raised some thoughts about China:

The Title:

China stops showing 'Da Vinci Code'

uhmmmm, my thoughts:

I"m surprised it's showing in China at all. Guess I got to that point with all I've read about a lack of freedom of speech and a lack of honest journaling from outside of China via the heavily state controlled media system that I figured most movies never make it to China, at least in their entirety... maybe that's the key 'in their entirety'.

Secondly, the reason it was removed from theaters is not on behalf of the Government or Communisty party, but because of the Christian relgion and it's power in China...

Ok, my second double take. Power of Christian religion in China? I've read a lot and learned a lot about China in the last few months. In all I had read it shows that the Christian religion is practiced by only about 1% of the Chinese population.

So I find it very hard to believe that the Christian movement in China got the movie pulled. After all, the Chinese version of Christianity, according to the Wikepedia has the following to say:

Since loosening of restrictions on religion after the 1970s, Christianity has grown significantly within the People's Republic. It is still, however, tightly controlled by government authorities. The Three-Self Patriotic Movement and China Christian Council (Protestant) and the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, which has disavowed the Pope and is considered schismatic by other Roman Catholics, have affiliations with government and must follow the regulations imposed upon them. Many Christians choose however to meet independently of these organisations, typically in house churches. These fellowships are not officially registered and are seen as illegal entities and are often persecuted heavily. For this reason some meetings take place underground, coining the term "underground church". These Christians have been persecuted throughout the 20th century, especially during the Cultural Revolution, and there remains some official harassment in the form of arrests and interrogations of Chinese Christians. At the same time, there has been increasing tolerance of house churches since the late 1970s.

So, given the lack of support by the government to practice Christianity, the lack of unity with the Pope and "modern" Christianity, this turn of events is perplexing... unless that is you know the term "Guanxi", this likely has more to do with the movie being pulled than anything else.

Here's my feeble attempt at what it means:

"Guanxi", literally means 'relationships' and to have Guanxi mean to have the ability to have power, to move/sway parties, individuals, events, etc. It is central to the way things are accomplished, right or wrong, legal or illegal all throughout China. It is not just your 'blood' relations, but the overall relationships you have, who you know, what power you can hold, etc.

Here's an excerpt from Wikepedia again:

Guanxi (Traditional Chinese: 關係; Simplified Chinese: 关系; Pinyin: gūan xi ), describes the basic dynamic in personalised networks of influence. ThePinyin romanization of this Chinese word is becoming more widely used instead of the two common translations —- "connections" and "relationships" —- as neither of those terms sufficiently reflect the wide cultural implications that guanxi describes.

Guanxi is a central concept in Chinese society and describes, in part, a personal connection between two people in which one is able to prevail upon another to perform a favor or service, or be prevailed upon. The two people need not be of equal social status. It could also be a network of contacts, which an individual can call upon when something needs to be done, and through which he or she can exert influence on behalf of another. It can also describe a state of general understanding between two people: "he/she is aware of my wants/needs and will take that into account when deciding her/his course of future actions which concern or could concern me".

The relationships formed by guanxi are personal and not transferable.

It has been extensively studied and described in studies of Chinese economic and political behavior. When a guanxi network violates bureaucratic norms, it can lead to corruption. Guanxi often makes the press when its obligations take precedence over civic duties, leading to nepotism and cronyism, but commentators that focus exclusively on these negative aspects of guanxi are missing the bigger picture described above.

Closely related concepts include that of ganqing, a measure which reflects the depth of feeling within an interpersonal relationship, and mianzi, which roughly translates to "face" or social status.

Is China really that different from other societies? Don't we all, in some degree practice a form of Guanxi? In some circles it's blood relations that benefit, both within a family and outside it, in some countries it's your position in society... aka, who you know and what you can do for others.

So, Guanxi or just the power of Christianity in China... you decide.