In the Taiwanese movie "The Pig, the Snake, and the Pigeon," which recently hit theatres nationwide, the scenes in which the protagonist, Chen Kui-lin, slays the evil cult leader, Lin Lu-ho (bullhead) and wipes out the entire cult have certainly made many viewers' blood boil.
This has raised the curiosity of some netizens: what kind of cult is depicted in the movie? Some people point out that the cult in the movie has some features very similar to some Christian heresies spread in mainland China, such as confessing sins, singing hymns, personal control, and so on. Some extremists even claim that what is shown in the movie is the Christian faith and focus their attacks on it.
So, what is the actual prototype of the cult in the movie? In the movie, when the bullhead talks about their faith, he uses concepts like "heaven and earth" and "the heavens," which obviously come from Chinese Confucian cosmology. He also mentions Buddhist concepts such as "rebirth" and "destroyers." For instance, in the scene where the male protagonist exposes the cult and the cultists kill him, he used the word "karma" (obstacles consisting of actions). But actions such as confessing sins and singing hymns are obviously based on the practices of the Christian faith. Therefore, this cult can be said to be a hybrid of several religions.
Many modern cults are often a mixture of several religions. For example, many Korean cults are a combination of shamanism and Christianity. As for the American cult "Peoples Temple," its leader, Jones, claimed to be the reincarnation of Buddha, Christ, and Lenin.
In the movie, the bullhead is simply a villain who repackages himself under the guise of a cult so he can continue to harm people.
The cult plot in "The Pig, the Snake, and the Pigeon" also reveals a significant dark side of Taiwan: cultism is widespread. Take the Korean cult "Providence" or "Jesus Morning Star" for example, the cult continues to operate in Taiwan under the name "Chinese Christian Youth Association" despite the exposure of the documentary "In the Name of God," and it has gone to great lengths to deify and whitewash Jung Myung Seok, who is currently serving a prison sentence in South Korea. The largest cult in Republican China, "Yiguandao," is now operating legally in Taiwan after New China outlawed it.
Taiwan's rampant cults are largely the result of the prevalence of feudal superstition in the area. Because folk beliefs such as "Youshen" (wandering gods), which were passed down from the Fujian area during the Spring Festival (with the removal of rituals such as divination and mediumship), have been well preserved in Taiwan, cults are able to flourish.
The extreme liberalism in Taiwan is also an important factor in the spread of cults. Since religious freedom is made absolute in Taiwan, there is a lack of proper control over religious beliefs. Just like the "Providence," cults can operate openly and would not be banned even if they were reported. In addition, some members of cults also join the political circle, and administrative resources become available to them, which increases the difficulty of managing these cult groups and results in the proliferation of monster and demon worship.
The cult in "The Pig, the Snake, and the Pigeon" is not large. Since there are countless cult groups and folk masters of the same type in Taiwan, they are not prone to creating social destructiveness like the cults in Korea. This dispersion of cults also makes it difficult to control them in terms of social harm, which is another important factor in their spread. It is likely that the director saw the inability of the law to deal with the cult groups, which is why he had Chen Kui-lin act as a messenger of justice to eliminate the cult.
(The article was originally published by the Gospel Times and the author is a Christian from Xiamen.)
- Translated by Joyce Leung
最近台湾电影《周处除三害》在全国热映，剧中陈桂林杀死恶贯满盈的尊者，血洗邪教组织的情节，令不少观众看得热血沸腾。
有些网友很好奇，电影中的邪教到底是什么背景的？有的人指出，这就跟大陆流传的一些带基督信仰色彩的异端非常像，比如里面的认罪、唱诗歌、人身控制等等。有些极端的人甚至指出，这就是基督教信仰，并对此进行了攻击。
那么《周处除三害》中的邪教原型又是什么呢？剧中的尊者常谈到信仰时，使用了“天地”、“上天”等等观念，显然是中国儒家宇宙观的产物。他提到的“往生”“魔障”等又是来自佛教的。比如当男主揭露了邪教本质，被邪教徒杀害时，就用了“业障”这个词。而认罪、唱歌等等举动，显然又是借鉴了基督教会的模式，这可以说是个多种宗教杂糅的邪教。
当代兴起的许多邪教组织，都存在多教杂糅的情况。比如韩国很多邪教中，都是萨满教与基督信仰的结合。美国邪教人民圣殿教的教主琼斯，则自称是佛陀、基督以及列宁等转世。
电影中的尊者本来就是个恶棍，假借邪教将自己重新包装，从而继续干着危害人们的事。
《周处除三害》的邪教情节，也向我们展现了台湾地区一个重要的阴暗面，那就是邪教横行。比如被纪录片《以神之名》曝光的韩国邪教摄理教，就在台湾换了个“中华基督教新时代青年会”马甲继续活动；并且大肆洗白、神化在韩国服刑的教主郑明祈。而民国时期第一邪教一贯道，在被新中国取缔后，在台湾成了合法团体继续存在。
台湾地区之所以邪教横行，跟他们封建迷信盛行有密切关系。民间信仰（如春节福建地区流传下来的游神，去除了占卜、扶乩等仪式）因在台湾完好地保存下来，使得邪教横行。
而台湾地区极端的自由主义，也是邪教泛滥的重要因素。他们把宗教信仰自由绝对化，失去了对其应有的治理。就像摄理教可以公开活动，即使被举报也无人取缔。此外，有些邪教分子也混入其政界，掌握了行政资源；这就加大对膜拜团体治理的难度，造成了牛鬼蛇神愈加泛滥。
《周处除三害》中的邪教规模不大，而台湾这类膜拜团体或民间大师可谓是多如牛毛，不像韩国的邪教那样容易产生社会破坏力。而正是这种弥散性的邪教格局，难以从社会危害角度治理他们，这也是其大行其道的重要因素。因此很有可能导演是看到法律对膜拜团体的无能为力，才让陈桂林充当了清除邪教的正义使者。
注：本文为特约/自由撰稿人文章，作者系厦门一名基督徒
热映影片《周处除三害》中的邪教原型是什么？
In the Taiwanese movie "The Pig, the Snake, and the Pigeon," which recently hit theatres nationwide, the scenes in which the protagonist, Chen Kui-lin, slays the evil cult leader, Lin Lu-ho (bullhead) and wipes out the entire cult have certainly made many viewers' blood boil.
This has raised the curiosity of some netizens: what kind of cult is depicted in the movie? Some people point out that the cult in the movie has some features very similar to some Christian heresies spread in mainland China, such as confessing sins, singing hymns, personal control, and so on. Some extremists even claim that what is shown in the movie is the Christian faith and focus their attacks on it.
So, what is the actual prototype of the cult in the movie? In the movie, when the bullhead talks about their faith, he uses concepts like "heaven and earth" and "the heavens," which obviously come from Chinese Confucian cosmology. He also mentions Buddhist concepts such as "rebirth" and "destroyers." For instance, in the scene where the male protagonist exposes the cult and the cultists kill him, he used the word "karma" (obstacles consisting of actions). But actions such as confessing sins and singing hymns are obviously based on the practices of the Christian faith. Therefore, this cult can be said to be a hybrid of several religions.
Many modern cults are often a mixture of several religions. For example, many Korean cults are a combination of shamanism and Christianity. As for the American cult "Peoples Temple," its leader, Jones, claimed to be the reincarnation of Buddha, Christ, and Lenin.
In the movie, the bullhead is simply a villain who repackages himself under the guise of a cult so he can continue to harm people.
The cult plot in "The Pig, the Snake, and the Pigeon" also reveals a significant dark side of Taiwan: cultism is widespread. Take the Korean cult "Providence" or "Jesus Morning Star" for example, the cult continues to operate in Taiwan under the name "Chinese Christian Youth Association" despite the exposure of the documentary "In the Name of God," and it has gone to great lengths to deify and whitewash Jung Myung Seok, who is currently serving a prison sentence in South Korea. The largest cult in Republican China, "Yiguandao," is now operating legally in Taiwan after New China outlawed it.
Taiwan's rampant cults are largely the result of the prevalence of feudal superstition in the area. Because folk beliefs such as "Youshen" (wandering gods), which were passed down from the Fujian area during the Spring Festival (with the removal of rituals such as divination and mediumship), have been well preserved in Taiwan, cults are able to flourish.
The extreme liberalism in Taiwan is also an important factor in the spread of cults. Since religious freedom is made absolute in Taiwan, there is a lack of proper control over religious beliefs. Just like the "Providence," cults can operate openly and would not be banned even if they were reported. In addition, some members of cults also join the political circle, and administrative resources become available to them, which increases the difficulty of managing these cult groups and results in the proliferation of monster and demon worship.
The cult in "The Pig, the Snake, and the Pigeon" is not large. Since there are countless cult groups and folk masters of the same type in Taiwan, they are not prone to creating social destructiveness like the cults in Korea. This dispersion of cults also makes it difficult to control them in terms of social harm, which is another important factor in their spread. It is likely that the director saw the inability of the law to deal with the cult groups, which is why he had Chen Kui-lin act as a messenger of justice to eliminate the cult.
(The article was originally published by the Gospel Times and the author is a Christian from Xiamen.)
- Translated by Joyce Leung
Where Does the Cult in Blockbuster 'The Pig, the Snake, and the Pigeon' Come From?
