The Chinese civilization, the only great civilization that still remains unchanged in root and species within a nation, has not been broken no matter in cultural values, system or social structure. When reviewing the history, the Chinese civilization was by no means born earliest-more than 5,000 years in historical records as some other civilizations took shape 6,000 to 7,000 years ago. However, it remains unchanged with a long history of more than 5,000 years. Other civilizations, though in its prime previously, have been suspended and some of them even became ever-lasting myths or pities with dead cultural relics appreciated and worshiped in museums. Therefore, Feng Youlan (1895-1990), a notable Chinese philosopher, said, “My country, as an ancient civilization in the world, ranks top in East Asia,” “Other strong powers features novelty devoid of history; Greece and Rome had disappeared nowadays though with a history. Only my country remains vibrant now through a long history, which proves a Chinese quote that even an established nation like Zhou (1046 BC-256 BC) still regards self-renewal as its mission.”

However, Chinese civilization doesn’t enjoy a smooth or lineal development though maintaining consistency. There were ups and downs throughout the history, even life-or-death challenges. While Chinese civilization is great in that it embraces challenges and resolves crises with new glories created through spiral upward trend, thus carrying forward its overall vigor and vitality in a long history. Since the modern time, the foreign powers broken the door of the ancient China, which stimulated Chinese people’s profound reflections, ranging from tools, system to culture, and even enable them to beset with cultural anxiety and crisis. In this critical moment, the Communist Party of China was born. Since then, as it was said in the Nineteenth CPC National Congress Report, “The Chinese people have had in the Party a backbone for their pursuit of national independence and liberation, of a stronger and more prosperous country, and of their own happiness; and the mindset of the Chinese people has changed, from passivity to taking the initiative.” Moreover, the founding of the People’s Republic of China and the rapid development of socialist course with Chinese characteristics helped shape a modern Chinese civilization on the basis of equality with new vigor and vitality, and restore the confidence and pride as an ancient civilization to a large extent.

Chinese civilization has never been isolated and rigid but a vigorous and open system that draws on diverse cultures at home and abroad, though it was born in the land of China. Unlike western tradition of theology, Chinese civilization is rooted in love for others, upholding such visions as “don’t do unto others what you don’t want others do unto you”, “harmony in diversity”, “proactively learn from others” and “bring out the best in others”-being reluctant to impose on others or conquer them by virtue of brutal force. When facing strong impact from other civilizations, Chinese civilization has been always trying to respect, understand, absorb and integrate them. In Chinese civilization, the tradition of “unification” upholds the idea of “so great that has no exterior”, in which “has no exterior” doesn’t means being exclusive to the outside world but keeping in contact with other civilizations in historical practice to resolve differences and contradictions and internalize them as an integral part. 

Since the late Qing dynasty, there have been new problems rising for China and western world, namely great challenges posed by western traditions. While the Chinese nation has blazed the great course of adapting Marxism to the Chinese context under the leadership of the Communist Party of China-a process of contacting, absorbing and integrating Marxism. Marxism was adapted to the Chinese context to revive and shape traditional Chinese culture. To this end, Chinese civilization not only addressed the challenges posed by western culture, but also were to be reborn in modern time with high-level inclusiveness. Nowadays, in the great course of national rejuvenation, Chinese civilization in the new era is rooted in the soil of fine traditional culture, and suits the world tide for development and progress.

In the 19th CPC National Congress Report, “Community” is frequently mentioned to underline creating a strong sense of community for the Chinese nation and reiterate building a community with a shared future for mankind. The report also stated, “Man and nature form a community of life; we, as human beings, must respect nature, follow its ways, and protect it.”  These important remarks have demonstrated the community-centered vision of Chinese civilization.

By comparing two civilizations, western civilization adopts a self-based vision while Chinese civilization commits to creating a strong sense of community. The former underlines right ethic worshiping dualistic contradictory, division, competition and hegemony. One’s deserved rights are partially stressed regardless of the real social conditions, let alone the great pressure imposed by unreasonable individual desire on the earth resources and environment. Moreover, right ethic only focuses on freedom and human rights, for which more people will be violated in freedom and human rights with hegemony of putting one’s self-interest first and self-serving greed seen among western countries. Besides, it will also result in multiple troubles, including economic fault, social division, religious conflicts, racial contradictions, national Nazism, terrorism, environment pollution and climate change. 

In order to deal with these contradictions and conflicts, address challenges facing human civilizations and make achievements in cultural adjustment, Chinese civilization must rejuvenate itself and stick to its subjectivity. Chinese civilization upholds a community-based vision, stressing responsibility ethnic and worshiping love for the country. Both community-based awareness and responsibility ethnic are rooted in family with kinship and love on one hand; they are beyond family with benevolence featuring “put oneself in another’s place-proceeding from managing family, governing the country and bringing peace to the nation, thus carrying forward family’s kinship and love, nurturing a larger community, shouldering greater responsibilities and pursuing a higher-level harmony and coexistence. Zhang Zai (1020-1077), a great Confucian in Song dynasty, said, “To ordain conscience for Heaven and Earth. To secure life and fortune for the people. To continue lost teachings for past sages. To establish peace for all future generations,” in which his love for the nation and courage to shoulder responsibilities have been fully demonstrated. Compared with western ethic of rights, the responsibility ethic of Chinese civilization upholds the theory of “peace and harmony” (Hehe in Chinese), focusing more on integration and cooperation, and advocating the king’s rule of convincing people with virtues, which doesn’t reject freedom and human rights but demand adherence to the principles of harmony and integrity. While guaranteeing one’s personal legal rights, it stresses one’s due responsibilities for sustainable development of the community. Today, the community with a shared future for mankind we uphold has demonstrated China’s proactive action to shoulder the responsibility for human’s future as a responsible giant power. 

As a Chinese saying goes, “As heaven maintains vigor through movement, a gentleman should constantly strive for self perfection; as earth is thick and obedient, a gentleman should accumulate his virtue and embrace all things of creation.” Chinese civilization has created one after another glories with full confidence in adhering to its own path and building on the past. To this end, when standing at historical and cultural level, Secretary General Xi Jinping declared confidently and proudly in the 19th CPC National Congress Report, “A just cause should be pursued for the common good. Rooted in a land of more than 9.6 million square kilometers, nourished by a nation’s culture of more than 5,000 years, and backed by the invincible force of more than 1.3 billion people, we have an infinitely vast stage of our era, a historical heritage of unmatched depth, and incomparable resolve that enable us to forge ahead on the road of socialism with Chinese characteristics.” It is true that we are sure to win greater victory and create more glories as long as we remain confident about socialist culture with Chinese characteristics with Chinese civilization as an abundant source of confidence.