Confucius Making a Comeback

Confucius Making a Comeback In Money-Driven Modern China - washingtonpost.com:

"Confucianism is enjoying a resurgence in this country, as more and more Chinese like Guan seek ways to adapt to a culture in which corruption has spread and materialism has become a driving value. For many Chinese, a system of ethical teachings that stresses the importance of avoiding conflict and respecting hierarchy makes perfect sense, even if it was first in vogue centuries ago.
State-supported commemorations of Confucius have become more common, and the number of people studying his works has increased. A new best-selling book and TV program based on the sage's teachings have made Confucianism easy for the masses to digest.
'With the fast economic growth, many people have become selfish and have no morality,' said Ren Xiaolin, founder of the Zhengzhou Young Pioneers school, which Guan's son attends. 'This has created a need for Confucianism. . . . The change is overwhelming and many Chinese can't get used to it. It's created a clash of values.'
Because Confucianism has only recently regained its popularity -- it was seen as an obstacle to modernization during the anti-intellectual Cultural Revolution of 1966-76 -- many Chinese today are hard-pressed to fully describe the philosophy. It has become a grab bag of ideas that people are tailoring to their own needs as they search for a new belief system."