Most Tay practice ancestor worship.  The Tays are also heavily influenced by Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism. This mixed religion has been tenacious enough to create a definite spiritual stronghold.  In contrast with many people groups that are animists, and quite open to the Gospel, the Tay are quite closed to the claims of Jesus Christ.  Estimates place the number of believers in Christianity in Vietnam to be about 100.  This is far less than 1%! 

    Every Tay house traditionally has an altar to honor ancestors. Often an altar to Kwan Yin (Goddess of Compassion) or a Buddha image is found. These altar is treated with great respect.  Guests are not even allowed to sit in front of the altar, and women must not look upon the altar soon after giving birth to a baby, since this is considered disrespectful.   Men who attend a funeral are required to bathe before they can tend cattle.  Significant rituals accompany the seasons of the agricultural year, such as planting and harvest.

  Marriage rituals, naming conventions and funeral customs follow Confucian prescriptions.  They are not notably different from those of  rural Vietnamese.

    Early in the last century, there were several thousand Tay Catholics in China.  But this number has declined substantially.

    No Jesus film has been released in the Tay language (Tai).  The Gospel of Mark is the only scripture portion available in a script that modern Tay people can read.  Some Gospel recordings are available, and there is a radio broadcast in Tai that is aired for 15 minutes per week by the Far East Broadcasting Company.

06/27/2003