Temples, Urban Society, and Taoists: The Transformation of Modern Urban Chinese Religious Organizations

The goal of this research project was to examine the evolution of urban religious life in modern China, particularly the interaction between temple communities, lay urbanites, and professional Daoists. The project provided new perspectives on these issues via an interdisciplinary approach combining historical research and fieldwork centering on three sites: Hangzhou 杭州, Guangzhou 廣州, and the Han river valley area (Wuhan 武漢 and Nanyang 南陽). The participants undertook thorough comparisons between the sites, as well as with published evidence on other Chinese cities, in order to reach larger conclusions as to how modern history has changed the structure and social organization of religious life in modern Chinese cities.