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New Procedures for Taoist Ordinations
Taoist Association, since the eighteenth day of the fifth lunar month of the year 2015, is eligible to give Taoist ordinations
During the year, there are three occasions on which we give Taoist ordinations and sacred registers (lu):
- The closest Sunday to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month (the Celebration for Shangyuan)
- The nearest Sunday to the eighteenth day of the fifth lunar month (The Ancestral Celestial Master's Birthday)
- The closest day to the fifteenth day of the tenth lunar month (The Celebration for Xiayuan)
For information on the exact dates, please call 02-28366519.
The conferring of sacred registers takes five days.
To receive a sacred register, the applicant must participate in a one-day liturgy and complete a four-day training. The classes in the educational center in Changhua precede the ceremony. The information about the exact time and duration of classes will be announced once the liturgy date is set. Usually, we choose two weekends (Saturdays and Sundays) before the official ceremony.
The ordination ceremony takes half of a day.
On Sunday, we prepare the conversion and ordination ceremonies which usually take half the day (until noon). After having a meal with everyone, the applicant is free to leave at any time.
Taoist Association resorts to old examination regulations and treats ordination and registers gratification as separate events. You can become a member of Taoist clergy without possessing a sacred register (you should provide your police criminal record beforehand to prove that you are a good citizen). You can also choose to become a member of Taoist clergy endowed with a sacred register (you must fulfill some additional conditions first).
Those who already received the sacred register from another organization, if they meet the Zhengyi Taoism requirements, can also be conferred with a complete register.
You are welcome to call us if you wish to acquire more information: 02-28366519.
Qualifications for Receiving Registers
The applicant should have no criminal record and meet one of the following criteria:
- Be a holder of a doctoral degree (or higher)
- Posses the Zhengyi Taoism Special Contributor Status (following the criteria of the Taoist Association)
- Be an author of books on Taoism
Two ordained Taoist priests must sign the applicant's request, which the LXV Celestial Master Chang will later review.
Applications for Taoist Ordination: adjustments to qualification criteria
Latest adjustments to the ordination criteria and ordination process:
Since the early times, Taoist schools followed the master-disciple(s) type of schooling. When the right time came, the pupils could grow to the positions of Taoist master or Taoist priest. In recent years more and more everyday people have expressed the desire to become ordained Taoist priests, but since they didn't have any master at keeping them in the loop, they failed to do so. We believe that the Taoist path is not only restricted to the Taoist trainees living in temples or following the Taoist approach since childhood. That is why the LXV Celestial Master Chang, in cooperation with various universities in Taiwan, since 2021, provides a particular class helping people prepare for the Taoist ordination.
To apply for Taoist ordination, an applicant should:
- Meet the criteria for Taoist ordination outlined by Taoist Association (clear criminal record and adequately filled application form);
- Pass with a positive result the interview with master Chang Yi-Chiang;
- Complete 100 hours of special training while attending the Taoist Priest Preparatory Course open at one of the following universities: Taichung University of Education, Tainan University, and National Kaohsiung Normal University.
Everyone who fulfilled all three criteria above can ask Taoist masters from the Taoist Association to become their mentors and complete all the necessary formalities (every aspiring Taoist priest should have two Taoist masters as mentors). The association does not take direct responsibility for teaching theory and practice in Taoism.
In case the applicant does not have a clear criminal record.
If, in the past years, the applicant had challenged or broken the law and repents profoundly for their actions, Taoist Association can still offer them a chance to enter into priesthood.
Such a person should attend the ceremony for Shangyuan organized by us, especially the liturgy of pardoning from guilt and saving from calamity by praying to the Three Judges from the heavenly world. In the presence of all Taoist masters in the Taoist Association and in front of the Three Judges and the Ancestral Celestial Master, the applicant should sincerely apologize and repent for their deeds, promising better conduct in the future as a Taoist priest.
If during the next three years, the applicant comes and attains the ceremony three times, and if every time the result of divination after repentance is positive, the applicant's guilt will be elevated, and the road to priesthood shall finally be open.