Ritual and Deference

Robert Cummings Neville is Professor of Philosophy, Religion, and Theology at Boston University and the author and editor of many books, including Boston Confucianism: Portable Tradition in the Late-Modern World, also published by SUNY Press.

"…[Ritual and Deference] should find its way to all those who have interest in and want to understand Confucianism and Daoism from the perspective of comparative philosophy." — Monumenta Serica"…elegant … More accessible than [Neville's] other monographs, its apparent simplicity is deceptive. While it would inspire and benefit even the novice, only those who have traveled some distance on the same arduous journey would fully appreciate the depth of its understanding and the clarity achieved through struggle with the perennial identity crisis and methodological problems of comparative philosophy." — Philosophy East & West"…provides a vision and instills a passion for a constructive philosophy that goes beyond simple comparison. Ritual and Deference is an important resource for anyone who is interested, or should be interested, in the task of comparative philosophy and the renewal of their respective traditions." — Journal of Chinese Religions"Neville employs a clear, engaging style." — CHOICE"Neville addresses an important methodological issue in contemporary Asian and comparative thought by surveying, drawing on, and adding to recent scholarship. Moreover, he has taken the next step by enthusiastically implementing concrete projects relating to Chinese wisdom for the benefit of contemporary life throughout the globe. It is rare to read an academic work that can elicit joyous laughter in response to the author's sage yet delightfully presented thoughts." — Sandra A. Wawrytko, San Diego State University"The suggested use of the Confucian ideas of ritual and deference in conjunction with important themes in Western thought is certainly a contribution to comparative philosophy, and to philosophy generally." — Kathleen Higgins, author of Comic Relief: Nietzsche's Gay Science

• Preface 1. A Confucian Program MetaphysicsPhilosophical CosmologyHuman NatureSocial Theory 2. The Significance of Confucian Values Values for the Good Life: Conventional, Yet NormativeA Confucian Solution: RitualHigh Civilizations: Competing Values and Global RitualsA Homily on Humaneness 3. Ritual in Xunzi Initial Considerations of Ritual in XunziRitual and SemioticsRitual and DesireRitual, Integration, and Religion 4. Daoist Relativism, Ethical Choice, and Normative Measure A Metaphysical DaoismNormative MeasureDaoist EthicsDaoism and Confucianism Compared 5. Chinese Influences in English-Speaking Philosophy Scholarly InfluencesRoger T. Ames and David L. HallTu Weiming and Cheng ChungyingWu Kuangming 6. Methodology, Practices, and Disciplines in Chinese and Western Philosophy The ProblemMethodology as a ConcernPhilosophical PracticesPhilosophical Discipline 7. Metaphysics for Contemporary Chinese Philosophy The Need for MetaphysicsThemes of Chinese PhilosophyMetaphysical Directions 8. The Conscious and Unconscious Placing of Ritual and Humanity The Unconscious as a Problem for Confucian VirtueRitual and HumanenessDeceptions of the Heart: FreudDeceptions of the Heart: Marx 9. The Contemporary Mutual Development of Confucianism and Christianity From Reformation of the Inner Heart to Loving the WorldThe Location of Ethical Analysis and Rectifying PowerPeace, Action, and Retreat 10. The Personal and the Impersonal in Conceptions of Divinity Popular versus Sophisticated Religion HypothesisDevelopment Hypothesis: Pre-Axial Age and Axial AgeSemiotic HypothesisOntological-Anthropological Continuum Hypothesis 11. On Comparison Models of Comparative TheologyObjectivist ComparisonNormative ComparisonBeyond Comparative to Integrative Philosophy 12. Contributions of Chinese Philosophy: A Summary Discussion The Happy Portability of Chinese PhilosophyRitual, AgainEthics, AgainOrientation and the Self NotesIndex