Longshan Temple: A Glimpse into Confucian Taiwan

On a free weekend afternoon, I ended up visiting Longshan Temple（龍山寺）, which is located in western Taipei. I was curious to see the inside of the Buddhist temple, mainly for its old architecture and layout. I was expecting only a few tourists to be there, but was surprised to find that many Taiwanese people had also come to the temple to make food and incense offerings to their Buddhist gods. The worshippers ranged from the devout to the nominal; there were young people who seemed out of place and old monks with calluses on their knees from extended periods of kneeling and praying. From the many new churches I had seen in Taipei, I had the impression that other faiths were slowly dying out— however, my visit to Longshan Temple convinced me that there is still much Kingdom work left to do in Taiwan as people cling to false gods deeply rooted in their culture and families.

The environment of the temple also reminded me of when Jesus’ anger burned against those who were not truly worshipping at His Father’s temple (Matthew 21:12-13). Inside the temple, a store sold incense, food, and paper money that could be offered to the Buddhist gods. Not much further from the temple entrance, people had set up booths for selling various goods, and even stands for betting and gambling. Many of the people at the temple looked like they had come to offer up a one-time prayer, driven by a pressing need either for a job, health, or family. My heart was deeply moved and saddened to see so many lost people, worshipping false gods that would never be able to provide true help or hope. My only prayer is that God would continue to work mightily in Taiwan, rescuing people from the kingdom of darkness and into the Kingdom of truth and light of the knowledge of Him, the one and only true God.

Advertisement