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The Search for Peace in Times of Chaos—Volume There were also teachings that gods are the souls of people who have lived particularly meritorious lives and have retained spiritual power that they can use to benefit worshipers People worship them at home and in temples; specific g ods are often patrons to particular neighborhoods, villages, cities, guilds, or even social clubs And the yearly religious ritual to a community’s god is one of its most important occasions Religious Taoism added the doctrine of three classes of spirits: gods, ghosts,and ancestors Ghosts were often neglected ancestors while some great ancestors or historic figures could rise to become gods The various greater and lesser gods of the Chinese pantheon vary considerably, some being local or regional deities, others enjoying tremendous popularity.9 The veneration of secondary gods does not conflict with an individual’s chosen religion but is accepted as a complementary adjunct to Buddhism, Confucianism, or Taoism Some mythical figures in folk culture have even been integrated into Buddhism Other folk deities may date back to pre-Buddhist eras of Chinese history The Chinese dragon is also one of the key religious icons in these beliefs Christ Since the 1600s, the idea of salvation through Jesus has also attracted the attention of some Chinese In the past, these Chinese Christians were required to abandon ancestral rites Since 1939, the Catholic Church has allowed Chinese to worship Jesus as well as perform rituals for ancestors, with some Protestant groups following the trend At this writing, it is estimated that there may be as many as 40 million Christians in mainland China Basic Doctrine As time passed, religion in China evolved Slowly, the early gods were forgotten or incorporated with the “Three Doctrines” of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism—ideologies that work both as philosophies and as religions The Han religion is conveniently, though overǦsimplistically, composed of a …‘„‹ƒ–‹‘ of those three doctrines—a series of ancestor worship, folk eliefs and practices and also retains traces of some of its ancestral neolithc