Given the growing number of elderly people in China, and the growing number of old-age homes, a question arises: will the Confucian call to care for parents and the elderly be overwhelmed by the economic and cultural pressures of modernization? In other words, will China become more like the US in how it cares for its elderly population? Statements like this (from a 2007 article), suggest that the answer may be "yes:"
their children' is no longer a suitable solution for contemporary
society. The newer idea of 'having property to support one's later
life' may work but it cannot solve the fundamental aging problem," said
Liu Yunhua, deputy secretary-general of the Welfare Service Work
Commission for the Aged People, affiliated with the China Association
of Social Workers.
This is brought to mind today by a rather sad set of photos on Flicker (ht CDT), which document people an old age home run by Chinese Christians.
It is easy to see how the universalistic ethic of Christianity might lead some believers to care for other people's parents. But would a Confucian feel a similar obligation to care for others? I think the answer to that could be "yes," since Confucius tells us to care for elders more generally. So, I guess the question is whether China now is sufficiently "Confucian" to encourage and promote the care of elders?
The Useless Tree 
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