After China “removes Xi, abandons Mao, and discards Communism,” there will be a great vacuum. China’s present condition is this: Maoist and Xi-era Communism uphold the banner of the “communist ideal” as their orthodoxy, but it has long since gone bankrupt and lost popular support. Over the past decade, Xi Jinping has talked about “global governance,” which in reality is his own “Chinese Dream” of global dominance; neither at home nor abroad does anyone respond. Selected Works of Mao (Volumes 1–5) have long been shelved in the Party’s official archives, ignored by all. Buddhism has been Party-ized and commercialized—temples must set up Party branches, and great monasteries are even listed on the stock market. Christianity has been forced underground. Confucian morality, upon which the people rely spiritually, also exists in a subterranean state. The Party loudspeakers propagandize Xi every day; even primary school children are indoctrinated with “Xi Jinping Thought.” With the Communist Party in power, China’s traditional civilization can only survive underground.

China’s only path forward is the restoration of its millennia-old civilizational tradition. At its core stands the Way of Confucius. The Confucian tradition is vast and deeply rooted, with a long and continuous lineage. After Confucius we see Zisi—Zeng Shen—Mencius—Xunzi—Dong Zhongshu—Sima Qian—Yang Xiong—Zheng Xuan—Wenzhongzi—Han Yu—Zhu Xi—Matteo Ricci—Wang Yangming—Huang Zongxi—Zeng Guofan—Liang Qichao—Hu Shi—Ma Yifu—Xiong Shili—Liang Shuming—Mou Zongsan—Yu Ying-shih—He Jiandong—Wang Kang—Cheng Chung-ying—Tu Weiming—Jiang Qing: a great vine stretching over two thousand years. Hanging from this vine are more than twenty great “gourds,” representative figures of Confucian learning in different eras. In addition, there are hundreds of renowned Confucians too numerous to list one by one.

In fact, this 2,500-year-old Confucian lineage can be traced back another 1,500 years, to the figures Confucius often cited: Yao, Shun, Yu, Tang, King Wen of Zhou, King Wu of Zhou, and the Duke of Zhou. Only after them do we come to Confucius. In other words, the Huaxia people possess a 4,000-year-old lineage of the Way, which Confucius synthesized and carried forward. It flowed from antiquity into the twentieth century, was damaged for a hundred years in the twentieth century by the invasion of Marxist heresy, yet always remained the people’s spiritual reliance. Only in the twenty-first century has it begun to rise from underground and once again illuminate the Chinese nation.

Mao Zedong constantly mobilized the Party’s propaganda machine to smear Confucius as an advocate of “despotism.” In 1953, when criticizing Liang Shuming, he invoked Confucius, even maligning him as a “tyrant” and a “fascist.” For a long time, many mainland intellectuals were anesthetized by Communist propaganda and likewise placed the label of “despotism” on Confucius.

In the 2000s, when Li Shenzhi discussed China’s future with Tu Weiming, Li remarked, “In the twenty-first century, you still talk about Confucius?” Li Shenzhi prized freedom above all and championed liberalism; he believed that invoking Confucius meant a return to despotism, and thus could not understand Tu Weiming’s advocacy of Confucius. But was Confucius truly “despotic”? If one reads the Analects in its entirety, where does Confucius ever speak of despotism, or anything resembling it? In truth, the real Confucius is “free and enlightened.” He said, “Among any three people, there is always one who can be my teacher,” and “Is it not a joy to have friends come from afar?” Where is the slightest hint of despotism? Among the Hundred Schools of Thought of his time—especially the Mohists, whose influence rivaled Confucius’s—Confucius never attacked others; he simply spoke his own views. In the entire Analects, can one find a single sentence in which Confucius criticizes another school? After Confucius, Confucian scholars of successive dynasties largely accepted Buddhism and Christianity; Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism could be integrated, and Confucius and Jesus could mutually accept one another—clear evidence that Confucius was not despotic but open and free. Mencius went further, saying, “The people are the most important; the ruler comes next,” already revealing the germ of democratic thought. Mao Zedong’s thirty years in power, by contrast, constituted the most brutal despotism in history.

As for the claim that Confucius advocated the “Three Bonds and Five Constants” and ritual order, which some misconstrue as “despotism,” these principles became long-standing traditions across Chinese dynasties. Even the Christian missionary Young John Allen (1836–1907) said that the “Three Bonds and Five Constants” accord with Christian doctrine in essence, with no real difference: Confucianism emphasizes the five relationships, and Christianity does as well. He regarded Confucius and Jesus as akin to one person. The five virtues—benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness—are fundamentally the same, differing only in expression. Take “the ruler as the guide of the minister”: is the U.S. president today not the “guide” of the ministers under him?

As for “the father as the guide of the son,” many “father–son companies” in the United States today pass enterprises from father to son; this remains quite common. As for “the husband as the guide of the wife,” American families commonly have wives take their husbands’ surnames, and households are often led by the husband. All this shows that the “Three Bonds and Five Constants” established by Confucius for Chinese governance possess universal significance and are widely practiced in democratic countries; they are by no means “despotic.” As for the specific forms of political systems in different eras, they evolve with circumstances. Confucius was not conservative. Mencius said, “The sage is one who accords with the times.” To act in accordance with the times is the mark of a sage. Were Confucius alive today, he would likely endorse an American-style system of separation of powers. Empress Dowager Cixi, a devout follower of Confucius, advocated constitutional democracy at the end of the Qing, limiting imperial power and showing the germ of separation of powers. Unfortunately, after the Marxist-Communist invasion, constitutional democracy vanished from the mainland and remains absent under Communist despotism. Maoist Communism smeared all civilizational traditions as “feudal,” turning right and wrong upside down.

Over more than two millennia, Confucianism broadly passed through five stages:

Founding and groundwork, Spring and Autumn–Warring States period, 300 years
Exclusive prominence, beginning in the Han dynasty, 300 years
Buddhism ascendant, Confucianism in decline, Northern and Southern Dynasties and Sui–Tang, 500 years
Revival and elevation, Song–Ming–Qing, 700 years
Ravaged and awaiting restoration, Communist invasion, 100 years

The 500-year ebb during which Buddhism rose and Confucianism declined stemmed from Confucius’s ambiguity regarding “Heaven,” effectively a loss of “Heaven.” He Jiandong’s study of the ancient lineage found that “Confucius brought Heaven down to the human realm,” which was his greatest error. Confucius repeatedly said, “Respect the spirits but keep them at a distance,” and “If one cannot serve people, how can one serve spirits?” He was eager to resolve human affairs—establishing ethics and political order—while neglecting “Heaven.” Yet to truly resolve human affairs, one cannot do without “Heaven,” which encompasses all and is the precondition for addressing earthly realities. Confucius repeatedly praised Yao, Shun, Yu, and King Wen of Zhou, commending Emperor Yao for revering Heaven and offering sacrifices—following the Heavenly Way first instituted four thousand years ago. Regrettably, Confucius kept “Heaven” (God) at a respectful distance, weakening the religious dimension of Confucianism and reducing it to a philosophy focused solely on worldly affairs. Both common people and rulers need religious faith; faith comes first, all else second. When Buddhism entered during the Han and flourished in the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Confucianism could not fully meet spiritual needs. Confucian scholars thus sought to “mysticize” Confucianism and draw closer to Buddhist notions of mind and nature, producing a five-hundred-year period of Buddhist ascendancy and Confucian decline. From a positive angle, Buddhism compensated for Confucianism’s lack of religiosity; from Confucianism’s own perspective, it was a hard lesson in losing “Heaven” (God).

By the Song dynasty, Zhu Xi and others recognized this grave deficiency. Absorbing Buddhist theories of mind and nature, they created Neo-Confucianism, elevating Confucianism to a semi-religious height. Zhu Xi posited an objective “Heavenly Principle” in the universe and held that all principles converge in the “Supreme Ultimate” (Taiji). Neo-Confucianism stopped at Taiji without answering who governs it. Had Zhu Xi said that God presides over the Taiji, people would have had a God to worship; Confucianism would have become a full religion with Heaven and God, standing shoulder to shoulder with Buddhism. One might even say, “Confucius is the Son of God,” and Confucianism would have been complete—a religious philosophy addressing everything from Heaven to the human realm. With seven hundred years of development from Song through Ming to Qing, laying a firm heavenly foundation, Confucianism might have been impervious to the Marxist invasion of the twentieth century. By the 1919 May Fourth period, no one would have dared to speak of “criticizing Confucius.” Confucius would have been a religion with God, and Confucius the Son of God—who would dare touch a hair? Yet even when Confucianism was described as a “Confucian religion,” people still needed to “pray to gods and worship Buddhas.” With no Confucian deity, people continued to worship the Buddha.

After China “removes Xi, abandons Mao, and discards Communism,” restoring the Confucian tradition is the only path—there is no doubt. Zhang Zhidong’s late-Qing dictum, “Chinese learning as substance, Western learning as application,” is entirely correct. “Chinese learning” means Confucian learning; the Way of Confucius is the “substance,” replacing the Marxist-Maoist “substance.” But because Confucianism is not a religion and China needs religion, an external faith must supplement it. Christianity, introduced by Matteo Ricci in the Ming dynasty, has a five-hundred-year history and is widely accepted. Many missionaries attested that Confucius and Jesus are like brothers, with essentially identical doctrines. Christian faith in God can remedy Confucianism’s lack of religiosity. The Chinese concept of “Heaven” is the same as the personalized Christian “God.” From Emperor Yao onward, belief in Heaven has existed for four thousand years; “Heaven” and “God” are identical. The ethics of Jesus and the morality of Confucianism are of the same substance; their mutual acceptance was realized five centuries ago. Emphasizing faith in God can enrich the people and strengthen the nation, fostering social harmony and providing spiritual anchorage. Israel stands as the most persuasive example. China, taking Israel as a model, can likewise succeed in building a “city upon a hill.” Taiwan and Hong Kong, long steadfast in Confucian tradition, are beacons; as mainland Confucianism emerges from underground to join hands with Taiwan and Hong Kong, together they can create a resplendent revival of Chinese civilization.

Beyond Confucius and Jesus, there is also Buddhism, another pillar for restoring Chinese civilization. By Buddhism here we mean Sinicized Mahayana Buddhism. Mahayana differs from Hinayana: the latter is like riding a small ox-cart—self-cultivation for one’s own liberation, crossing the sea of suffering alone. Mahayana is like riding a great ox-cart—benefiting oneself while benefiting others, practicing charity without distinction of rank, affirming the equality of all beings, bringing benefit and joy to all, sharing in others’ peace and happiness, compassionately saving all. It is not merely self-cultivation. Mahayana Buddhism has two thousand years of roots in China and spread to Korea, Japan, and Vietnam. Many Confucian scholars embraced Buddhism, practicing both to compensate for Confucianism’s religious deficiency. In modern times, great Confucians such as Liang Shuming and Xiong Shili exemplified this dual cultivation.

Since Xi Jinping took power, Buddhism has been abused: temples are required to establish Party branches; monks must pledge loyalty to Xi; temples are graded and controlled by the United Front; Buddhism is Party-ized. Businesses are encouraged to invest in temples; major monasteries are even listed on stock markets, commercializing Buddhism. To survive, temples submit to Xi’s control; visiting temples becomes mere festival-going, while true faith retreats into private households. Only after “removing Xi, abandoning Mao, and discarding Communism” can Buddhists properly return from households to temples.

China’s future lies in Confucius plus Jesus plus Buddhism—building on the past and opening the future, reconstructing a new lineage of the Way with these three as the nation’s spiritual pillar. This will restore national vitality, cleanse the lingering toxins of Communism, revive Chinese civilization first, and then influence the world. As early as 1973, the great British historian Arnold Toynbee (1889–1975) predicted that Confucian and Buddhist civilizations would address the Western malaise of material advancement and spiritual decline, helping Western civilization regain youth and ascend toward a higher spiritual civilization, welcoming a more beautiful and harmonious new century.

In fact, since Yao, Shun, Tang, King Wen, King Wu, and the Duke of Zhou—fifteen hundred years before Confucius—Huaxia civilization had already formed a Heavenly Way of revering God and worshiping Heaven. The Book of Songs selected by Confucius records hymns praising God, earlier than Moses’ praises in the West. Regrettably, Confucius did not complete this synthesis into a formal religion; instead, he said, “Respect the spirits but keep them at a distance,” choosing distance rather than closeness and intimacy with God. This single word difference—keeping God at a distance—meant failing to establish God in accordance with the Heavenly Way, leaving the people above and below without a true God to worship. Without a supreme deity, a proliferation of folk gods followed; the people’s need for faith could not be suppressed.

Confucius may have been eager to resolve pressing human problems—ethics and governance—temporarily setting the divine aside. Unbeknownst to him, people must heed God and draw near to the divine. However good your teachings, without God people will not listen; God stands above all. Thus Confucius’s Way was reduced to worldly philosophy; however excellent and correct, it must stand beneath God. This shortcoming affected Confucianism for a thousand years, leaving it unable to rival incoming Buddhism.

Christianity, in fact, was accepted by Ming emperors five hundred years ago; Ming Confucians regarded Jesus as akin to Confucius. When Confucius entered America in the eighteenth century, Americans immediately accepted him, praising Confucius and Jesus as akin to one person and calling Christianity a version of Confucius’s teaching. They believed China was blessed by God in sending Confucius, viewing Confucius and Jesus as brothers with many shared moral teachings. Yet Confucius is not a religion, and the Chinese need religious faith; the Christian God can meet this need while also bringing Western civilization. Confucius, Jesus, and the Buddha—integrated to establish a new Chinese lineage of the Way—are a great blessing for China after it abandons Communism and emerges from darkness.

Taiwan, Europe, and Africa have ancient trees over three thousand years old that still flourish. Confucius is a two-thousand-year-old great tree, with intertwined roots deeply planted in the land of China, hard to shake. Though Confucius was battered for a hundred years by Maoist Communism, once he returns to the land and ascends the sacred altar again, he will surely regain youthful vitality—emerging from underground to become the spiritual pillar of 1.4 billion people. Hand in hand with Jesus and the Buddha, with Jesus’s universal love, the Buddha’s compassion, and Confucius’s benevolence, they will heal the world’s wounds, cleanse a century of Communist poison, and guide China into the twenty-first century—a new century of peace.