Attending the conference, the delegation included Dr. Bui Huu Duoc, Head of the Buddhism Department of the Government's Committee for Religious Affairs; Most Venerable Thich Gia Quang, Vice President of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha (VBS)’s Executive Council; Most Venerable Thich Quang Tung, Vice President of the VBS Executive Council; Most Venerable Thich Thanh Nha, Standing member of the VBS Executive Council; Most Venerable Thich Thanh Dat, the Head of Vietnam Buddhist Research Institute in Hanoi; Priest Phan Khac Tu, Vice President of the Vietnam Catholic Unity Committee; Pastor Nguyen Huu Mac, the Head of the Church Pastor (in northern Vietnam); Master Giac Hoang, representative of Mendicant Sect; foreign scientists including Dr. Onishi Kazuhiko, Dr. Fukuda Yasuo...; along with researchers and staffs from the Institute for Religious Studies (IRS).
Making the opening speech at the conference, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Chu Van Tuan, Deputy Director of the Institute for Religious Studies, summarized the establishment and progress of IRS (formerly Department of Scientific Research on Religion) under Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences. He also emphasized that the turning point in the perception of Communist Party of Vietnam on religion through the Resolution 24-NQ/TW issued on 16 October 1990 marked the formation of Religious Studies in Vietnam.
IRS’ main tasks and functions are to examine theoretical and practical issues related to religion in Vietnam and in the world in order to provide scientific arguments for the Party and the Government to develop guidelines, policies, and law related to religion. In recent years, IRS has put a lot of effort into realizing their assigned functions and duties. Many of their ideas, suggestions, proposals and arguments have been highly appreciated by the Party, the government and agencies and departments, from the central to the local levels. Furthermore, IRS has also collaborated with scientists and leading experts to implement projects and tasks assigned by the Party and the Government.
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Nearly 40 presentations submitted to the conference by researchers, administrators, religious leaders all around Vietnam focused on speaking of two main themes: (1) A summary and an assessment of the formation and development of Religious Studies in Vietnam, the achievements and issues raised in religious studies in Vietnam for 25 years and prospects; (2) Introduction of specific studies different religions such as Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestantantism, etc. in Vietnam.
The presentations at the conference clarified several theoretical issues in religious studies (Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Hong Duong, Prof. Dr. Nguyen Huu Vui, researcher Nguyen Quang Khai) as well as issues related to specific religions (Buddhist studies – Most Venerable, Dr. Thich Gia Quang; the worship of Mother Goddess – Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Thi An; Catholic Studies – Dr. Pham Huy Thong…).
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The conference did not only intend to summarize and generalize the achievements in religious studies from both theoretical and practical aspects for the last 25 years but also aimed to generalize the most common achievements in religious studies in Vietnam. Especially, the conference was an opportunity to gather many researchers in religious studies national wide and collaborators of IRS during these years in order to form religious study network in Vietnam. The contents presented in presentations and opinions during discussion sessions at the conference would be useful for studying, or teaching in religious field as well as state management of religious activities in Vietnam.
Nguyen Thu Ha
