What was the role of religious groups in the development of anti-colonial feeling in Vietnam?
Religion had
always played a pivotal role in the lives of people in Vietnam. Vietnam's
religious beliefs were a mix of Buddhism, Confucianism and local customs.
Christianity looked down upon their reverence for the supernatural. In 1868,
the Scholars' Revolt protested against the tyrannical spread of Christianity,
and though the movement was defeated, it inspired others to follow suit. The
Hoa Hoa movement in 1939 drew upon popular religious ideas of the nineteenth
century, and its leader Huynh Phu So was a famous entity. These groups were not
in tandem with political parties which tended to look down upon their
activities with discomfort. Nevertheless, religious movements were successful
in arousing anti-imperialist tendencies in the Vietnamese people.
Religion had always played a pivotal role in the lives of people in Vietnam. Vietnam's religious beliefs were a mix of Buddhism, Confucianism and local customs. Christianity looked down upon their reverence for the supernatural. In 1868, the Scholars' Revolt protested against the tyrannical spread of Christianity, and though the movement was defeated, it inspired others to follow suit. The Hoa Hoa movement in 1939 drew upon popular religious ideas of the nineteenth century, and its leader Huynh Phu So was a famous entity. These groups were not in tandem with political parties which tended to look down upon their activities with discomfort. Nevertheless, religious movements were successful in arousing anti-imperialist tendencies in the Vietnamese people.
