''You had to be careful what you said. Just mention you were cold and the next thing you know she was coming with bags full of Ralph Lauren sweaters,'' the neighbor said. 'When I made a comment about why she was bringing over all this stuff all the time, she said, 'I have so such money I don't know what to do with it.' ''Another example of the bizarre spirituality of Chinese folk. Their leader, who gave herself a westernized name, Celestia De Lamour, sounds like a charlatan to me, but who am I to judge? With a name like that I won't be surprised if she comes out with a new aromatherapy label.
I still can't quite figure it out. Falun Gong, wacko Taiwanese Protestant ministers, the cult of financial fortune and physical longevity--the Chinese have their own spirituality that mutates everything they embrace, which is why I'm always leery about simplistic missionary models applied to the Chinese. They may accept Christianity, look and sound Christian, but scratch underneath the surface and you'll find a trove of heresies.
