In this article, I demonstrate that in the Late Ming and Early Ch'ing, under the challenge of popular religions and Christianity, some Confucian scholars attempted to remold Confucian teachings into a religious system Wang Ch'i-yüan, Wen Hsiang-feng, and Hsü San-li were three representative figures of this movement. However, this phenomenon has not been studied before. Wang Ch'i-yüan was well studied by Ch'en Shou-i in the 1930s, but Wen Hsiang-feng and Hsü San-i, are virtually unknown to modern scholars. In this essay, I discuss how Hsü, a Neo-Confucianist, gradually moved away from his original beliefs, and intentionally followed Buddhist and Taoist practices to reinterpret Confucian classics as religious canons. I also discuss the historical implications of Hsü's efforts.
