The Intergenerational Transmission Of Folk Religion In The Rural Rites Of Marriage

As a diffused religion,folk religion is an important part of the spiritual lives of rural families in China.The Chinese people complete various religious rituals associated with birth,marriage,sacrifice and funeral.When we think about the logic behind the development of rural folk religion from generation to generation,it is not difficult to find that intergenerational transmission in family has strong explanatory power.The non-institutionalized family may be the essential source of inheritance of folk religion.Paying attention to the issue of intergenerational transmission of folk religion is conducive to grasp the reconstruction path of rural folk religion space and has important practical significance for building a harmonious rural social order.Through investigating and understanding the general procedure and the concepts and meanings behind the rites of marriage in rural areas of Fujian,we find that there are four folk religion types in the rites of marriage including sacrifice,taboo,the avoidance of evil spirits and witchcraft.Then,this study examines the process behind the intergenerational transmission of folk religion in the rites of marriage which were divided into three dimensions: knowledge,belief and participation,in order to understand the micro-foundation of the continuous development of folk religion.In the course of the study,multivariate linear regression analysis is carried out using survey data from rural areas of Fujian.The results reveal that:(1)In rural families,the parents' quantity of knowledge,degree of religiosity and level of participation of folk religion in the rites of marriage all have a significant influence on the religious involvement during the children respondents.There are two paths: one is the intergenerational transmission of the same dimension,parents' quantity of knowledge,degree of religiosity and level of participation can all predict the children's corresponding dimension directly.The another one is the intergenerational transmission of two different dimensions.Parents' quantity of knowledge can predict the children's belief knowledge and ritual participation directly.Therefore,those parents who have higher degree of religiosity are more able to shape the religious involvement of their children roundly.(2)Compared with knowledge and belief,the transmission effect of participation has better stability.The transmission effect of knowledge and belief are more easily to be affected by occupation,the attitude of mate selection and the relationship between parents and children.It means that children's level of participation can be effected by the religious involvement of their parents to the maximum extent.In rural families,parents have great power to control the children's ritual participation.To some extent,taking an active part in religious rites is the duty and obligation of each member in the family.(3)Gender shapes the trajectory of transmission of folk religion in the rites of marriage.In the first,fathers have stronger influence on children in the intergenerational transmission path from knowledge to knowledge and belief to belief.It means that fathers' effect would not be weakened by the traditional gender concept that men played the key role in the society while women were confined to the family.In Chinese society,the dominant position in family and the religious responsibilities of men may still strengthen their effect in the intergenerational transmission of folk religion in the rites of marriage.Secondly,parents have stronger influence on daughters in the intergenerational transmission path from knowledge to belief and participation to participation.This is related to the unique nature of rites of marriage.In the process of rites of marriage,the brides are always considered to be a powerful and dangerous role who have to accept various kinds of limits and ritualized behaviors.In conclusion,family can be regarded as the non-institutionalized organization on which the intergenerational transmission of folk religion depends.It is the essential source of inheritance of folk religion.