A Ruified Christian with Lauren Pfister

In this episode of Religion to Reality, Dr. Lauren Pfister shares how decades of living and teaching in Hong Kong transformed his understanding of Christianity through the lens of Confucian thought. From his personal conversion to Christ to his work in Chinese philosophy, he explores faith, family, humility, and the power of listening across cultures. Discover how Christian faith and Confucian wisdom can deepen our understanding of God, relationships, and authentic discipleship. IN THIS EPISODE WE EXPLORE • Confucius (Kong Qiu / Master Kong) — founder of the Ru (Confucian) tradition • The Confucian Analects, Mengzi, Zhongyong, Shujing, Xiaojing — foundational Ru texts referenced throughout • Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Søren Kierkegaard — early spiritual influences on Dr. Pfister • Ralph Covell — missionary-scholar and mentor at Denver Seminary • Chang Chung-ying (Chen Dongyin) — Dr. Pfister's teacher, whose late-in-life conversion is discussed • Hans-Georg Gadamer — philosopher whose dialogue with Chang Chung-ying helped shape the latter's turn toward theism • Lin Yutang, From Pagan to Christian — Chinese writer and intellectual referenced as a parallel conversion story • C.K. Yang — sociologist who coined the term "dispersed religion" to describe folk Confucian practice in modern China • [00:00] Cold open — Dr. Pfister on encountering "a personal relationship with the living God" • [00:01–03:00] Host Dave Plisky's solo primer on Confucianism: the five core virtues (ren, li, yi, zhi, xin), the five foundational relationships, and the ideal of the junzi • [05:00] Dr. Pfister's upbringing in a shrinking Methodist church in Colorado and his start at the University of Denver in 1969, amid the "Woodstock West" protests • [08:00] A life-changing lecture leads to his conversion and a shift from mechanical engineering into the humanities • [11:00] The call to Hong Kong Baptist College in 1987, and mentor Ralph Covell's influence • [12:00] June 4, 1989 — the Tiananmen Square massacre and the moment his university's president wept publicly during Sunday service, cementing the Pfisters' decision to stay in Hong Kong for good • [18:00] What it means to call himself a "Ruified Christian", drawing parallels to Origen, Augustine, and Aquinas adopting Greek philosophy into Christian thought • [21:00] A deeper look at what Confucianism (the Ru tradition) actually is, and why it's often called a philosophy rather than a religion • [26:00] The story of his own teacher's late-in-life conversion, sparked by a dialogue with philosopher Hans-Georg Gadamer • [27:00] Chinese intellectual Lin Yutang's journey from Christian, to skeptic, back to Christian • [33:00] A crash course in Chinese history: the Warring States period, the rise of the Qin and Han dynasties, and how Confucian thought shaped "Imperial China" • [39:00] How ancestor veneration, ritual, and cosmology (yin and yang) gave early Ru tradition religious dimensions, and the centuries-long "Rites Controversy" it caused for Christian missionaries • [44:00] The three-year mourning ritual Dr. Pfister created after his parents' deaths, including growing out his beard as a living, daily act of remembrance • [52:00] Where Confucian tradition remains strongest today (hint: Korea) and why most modern Chinese wouldn't call themselves "Confucian" • [57:00] Remonstrance — the Confucian duty to respectfully challenge elders who go astray — and why that's a dangerous idea in contemporary China • [58:00] The closing question: how Dr. Pfister cultivates a posture of listening without agenda RESOURCES MENTIONED Religion to Reality Substack (episodes, essays, and monthly interfaith gathering signup): religiontoreality.substack.com Show notes & resources: religiontoreality.org