General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized, “Whether a country can become prosperous and strong, and whether a nation can achieve rejuvenation, hinges most critically on whether that country and that nation can keep pace with the trends of the times and seize the initiative in driving historical progress.” The spirit of historical initiative is a distinctive ideological advantage of Marxist political parties and has been a vital treasure enabling the Chinese Communist Party to overcome enemies and forge ahead over the past century. The history of development and the history of reform are, in essence, the history of the Party leading the people to continuously grasp underlying laws, pioneer innovation, and take the initiative in history. The report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC clearly stated that the central task of the CPC in the new era and on the new journey is “to unite and lead all ethnic groups across the country in fully building a modern socialist power and achieving the second centenary goal, and to advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation in a comprehensive way through Chinese-style modernization.” The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC has outlined a roadmap and timetable for further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-style modernization. On this new journey, we must continue to uphold the spirit of historical initiative characteristic of the Chinese Communist Party, further deepen reform in a comprehensive manner, and continually push Chinese-style modernization forward.

The spirit of historical initiative is the winning formula behind the Party’s great achievements.

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Over the past century, no matter how the situation and tasks have changed, or no matter what storms and tempests we’ve encountered, our Party has always taken the initiative in history, kept firmly focused on our goals, and moved forward with determination in the right direction.” Mastering the initiative in history is a leadership wisdom that the Communist Party of China has developed through its journey of struggle. The spirit of taking the initiative in history is the consistent, vigorous spirit displayed by CPC members throughout all historical periods. By pursuing reform and opening-up, the CPC has secured a position of historical initiative in the new context—and it will surely rely on this spirit of taking the initiative to push reform even further.

From the very moment of its founding, the Communist Party of China has possessed a distinct spirit of historical initiative. After the Opium War, confronted with the perilous fate of the nation, countless patriotic intellectuals and revolutionaries had undertaken arduous and extraordinary explorations—but all ended in failure. History has proven that, owing to the special nature of old China’s semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, any subordinate or passive struggle could never bring about fundamental change. This ancient land needed an active and thoroughgoing revolution. In 1921, the Communist Party of China came into being. From then on, the Chinese people’s struggle for national independence, people’s liberation, national prosperity, and people’s happiness found a guiding backbone; spiritually, the Chinese people shifted from passivity to initiative. Practice has shown that only the Communist Party of China has courageously shouldered the historic mission of national rejuvenation, consistently driven history forward with a strong spirit of historical initiative, and gradually become an indispensable vanguard force and the leading core of the Chinese people. Comrade Mao Zedong pointed out: “In today’s era, the responsibility of correctly understanding and transforming the world has historically fallen upon the shoulders of the proletariat and its political party.” With this spirit of historical initiative, the Communist Party of China achieved the great victory of the New Democratic Revolution. Faced with the national calamity of national humiliation, suffering of the people, and tarnishing of civilization, the Communist Party of China set its sights squarely on the primary tasks of national independence and people’s liberation. By combining the basic principles of Marxism with China’s specific realities, it independently explored the correct path for the Chinese revolution, proactively seized favorable factors for achieving revolutionary victory in modern China, led the people out of the profound crisis of national extinction and cultural annihilation, established a new China where the people are masters of their own destiny, and ushered in a new epoch in Chinese history. Throughout the process of leading the socialist revolution and construction, the Communist Party of China has always been mindful of seizing historical initiative. Facing the prospects and missions of the newly established people’s regime, Comrade Mao Zedong emphasized: “On what basis should our policy be founded? On the basis of our own strength—this is called self-reliance.” After the founding of New China, the Chinese communists led the people in arduous struggles and made earth-shattering transformations. Not only did they swiftly restore the national economy, but also—drawing on both the experiences and lessons of the Soviet Union—they began independently exploring the Chinese path toward socialist modernization, completed the socialist revolution, abolished all exploitative systems, and brought about the broadest and most profound social transformation in the history of the Chinese nation. Thus, the once impoverished and underdeveloped Eastern giant with a huge population took a giant leap forward into socialist society. The Communist Party of China has always adopted a materialist and dialectical approach to actively understand and transform the world, making the spirit of historical initiative a distinctive hallmark of Chinese communists.

Reform and opening-up is the “key move” that enabled the Party and the people to catch up with the times in great strides and seize the initiative in history. In the late 1970s, at a critical historical juncture when the international situation was undergoing dramatic changes and the cause of the Party and the country faced major questions about its future direction, Comrade Deng Xiaoping explicitly pointed out: “If we fail to carry out reform now, our modernization drive and the socialist cause will be doomed.” Driven by a strong sense of historical initiative, Chinese Communists—with Comrade Deng Xiaoping as their chief representative—re-established the Party’s ideological, political, and organizational guidelines along Marxist lines, accurately assessed the historical position of the Party and the country’s cause, and decisively made the great turning point of shifting the Party’s work focus entirely onto the cause of socialist modernization and implementing reform and opening-up, thus embarking on an extraordinary journey into a new era of reform and opening-up and socialist modernization. Reform and opening-up represents a great awakening for our Party—a major milestone marking the Party and the people’s ability to unleash their historical initiative and seize the initiative in the new historical context. Under the Party’s united leadership, the whole Party and all ethnic groups across the country “blazed a bloody trail,” successfully rescuing the national economy from the brink of collapse and enabling the Party and the country to rise again from peril, thus forging a path of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Our Party has profoundly summarized both the positive and negative experiences of world socialism—and especially those of China’s own socialist development—and clearly proposed taking our own path and building socialism with Chinese characteristics. This has inspired the enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity of hundreds of millions of Chinese people, and through the continuous improvement and perfection of various institutional mechanisms, it has fully unleashed the historical initiative deeply embedded in the masses. As a result, the Party and the people have formed a powerful synergy driven by historical initiative, profoundly transforming China’s appearance, the face of the Chinese nation, the face of the Chinese people, and the face of the Communist Party of China. The historic transformations and experiences achieved by the Party in leading the people since the start of reform and opening-up fully demonstrate that the spirit of historical initiative is the ideological driving force behind the Communist Party of China’s ability to grasp the trends of the times and make scientific plans at critical historical junctures; it is also the powerful weapon that enables us to turn crises into opportunities and overcome difficulties.

Since the advent of the new era, the great achievements made in comprehensively deepening reform would have been impossible without the spirit of historical initiative. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “After long-term efforts, we now possess more complete institutional guarantees, a stronger material foundation, and a more proactive spiritual force for realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.” Since the 18th National Congress of the Party, confronted with a new situation characterized by the intertwined evolution of the strategic overall picture of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the unprecedented global changes unfolding over the past century, the Party Central Committee—with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core—has, from the vantage point of socialism with Chinese characteristics entering a new era—the Party and the country’s new historical position—accurately grasped the laws governing historical development. With a great spirit of historical initiative, tremendous political courage, and a strong sense of responsibility, it has broken free from ideological constraints, surmounted barriers of vested interests, and at this critical historical juncture, made major strategic decisions to comprehensively deepen reform in the new era, thereby pushing reform and opening-up to greater depths. Based on a profound examination of the multifaceted transformations that Chinese society has undergone since the start of reform and opening-up, the Party Central Committee—with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core—has clearly affirmed that upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics means, as the overarching task, achieving socialist modernization and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. It has also clearly identified that the principal social contradiction in China in the new era is between the people’s ever-growing need for a better life and the imbalance and inadequacy of development. Furthermore, it has defined the overarching goal of comprehensively deepening reform as perfecting and developing the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. Standing at a new historical starting point, the Communist Party of China has engaged in scientific planning and proactively seized historical opportunities, enabling reform to shift from localized exploration and breakthroughs to systematic integration and comprehensive deepening. As a result, it has swiftly established and perfected foundational institutional frameworks across various fields in the new era, driving historic transformations, systemic reshaping, and holistic reconstruction in many areas. If the great tide of reform and opening-up initiated by the Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee was the Communist Party of China’s proactive “breaking of the deadlock” under the pressure of the times, then the comprehensive deepening of reform unveiled at the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee represents the Party’s proactive “construction” in the context of the new era—anchoring itself firmly on the goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, creating favorable conditions, and accumulating advantageous factors. This marks a new height reached by the historical initiative of the Chinese communists in the new era.

The Party’s Inherent Logic in Leading Further Comprehensive Deepening of Reform with a Spirit of Historical Initiative

The spirit of historical initiative is both a theoretical hallmark of Marxism and a practical characteristic of Marxist political parties. The essence of this spirit encompasses a profound awareness of history, a clear understanding of the historical subject, and an emphatic commitment to historical responsibility. We must deeply grasp the mechanisms by which the spirit of historical initiative guides reform, fully harness this great spirit of historical initiative, and provide deep-seated and enduring internal impetus for the Party-led people to further deepen comprehensive reform and seize new historical initiative in the new journey ahead.

Gaining proactive theoretical guidance through a high degree of historical consciousness. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Historical development follows certain laws, yet humans are not entirely passive or inactive within it. As long as we grasp the general trend of historical development, seize the opportune moments for historical change, and strive vigorously with determination and enterprising spirit, human society can move forward more effectively.” Unlike the mere description of an agent’s state—“proactive spirit”—Marxism’s “historical proactive spirit” embodies the scientific insight of the Marxist materialist view of history. From the Marxist perspective of practice, all social life is essentially practical; humans can—and indeed should—adapt to and transform the objective world by exercising their subjective initiative. However, exercising subjective initiative must not be blind and reckless action that disregards objective laws; rather, it must be guided by scientific theory and correct ideological orientation. Therefore, the historical proactive spirit must be firmly grounded in an accurate and thorough understanding of the objective laws of history, the stages of historical development, and the trends of historical evolution—a cognition that constitutes “historical consciousness.” At the cognitive level, historical consciousness provides the space and conditions for the historical proactive spirit; theoretically, it answers the crucial question of “where the historical proactive spirit should go.” Possessing historical consciousness is both the first step for Chinese Communists to unleash their historical proactive spirit and the deep-seated factor enabling them to secure a position of historical initiative. Having a high degree of historical consciousness serves as the ideological foundation for the Communist Party of China in the new era to formulate the right theoretical guidance for reform and proactively advance the comprehensive deepening of reform. Since the 18th National Congress of the Party, General Secretary Xi Jinping has accurately grasped historical laws, the general trends of history, and historical opportunities, putting forward a series of new ideas, new perspectives, and new judgments on such questions as what comprehensive deepening of reform entails and how to carry it out comprehensively. These contributions have formed General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important expositions on comprehensive deepening of reform, enabling the Party to gain the upper hand in theoretical guidance and fully demonstrating the Communist Party of China’s high degree of historical consciousness in the new era.

To gain practical momentum, we must clearly identify the historical subject that takes the initiative. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “We must fully unleash the historical initiative of all the people. Only the people—no one else—can be the driving force behind the creation of world history.” Historical initiative must be borne and realized by specific historical subjects; and from the perspective of historical materialism, only the people are the true subjects who create and transform history. History is written by the people themselves—the masses are the creators of history, the decisive force behind social transformation, and the historical subject most endowed with practical power and initiative in society. This means that if a political party wishes to possess historical initiative, it must translate this spirit into an objective reality that secures its own position of historical initiative—and it can do so only through the historical subject of the people, through the historical activities of the masses. At the practical level, the historical subject provides the source and impetus for historical initiative, and in practice, it answers the crucial question of “who will realize” historical initiative. The historical initiative of Chinese Communists requires fully respecting the people’s status as the principal actors and their pioneering spirit, using the Party’s proactive actions to inspire the people’s own initiative and creativity, thereby ultimately forming the driving force behind history itself. A clear understanding of the historical subject is an essential condition for the Communist Party of China in the new era to secure a solid social foundation for comprehensively deepening reform and to acquire sustained, long-term momentum for reform. On the one hand, advancing reform for the sake of the people and genuinely addressing their most pressing expectations will help enhance the people’s identification with the reform agenda and build broad social consensus for comprehensively deepening reform. On the other hand, relying on the people to drive reform, emphasizing the people’s central role, unleashing their vitality, and tapping into their wisdom can effectively rally the collective strength and determination needed for concerted efforts and shared struggle. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, the Party Central Committee—with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core—has consistently made it clear that the people are the main actors and the source of strength behind comprehensively deepening reform. By widely soliciting public support for reform and closely relying on the people to push forward reforms, the Party has gained the initiative in securing the necessary momentum for reform. With the ocean of the people lifting this mighty ship of reform, it is bound to sail steadily and far into the future.

By embracing a strong sense of historical responsibility, we can proactively harness spiritual motivation. As Marx once put it, humans are “beings endowed with passion”; human activity is not external to us but rather driven by subjective, intrinsic spiritual factors. The spirit of historical initiative refers to a specific mental state and volitional quality—a proactive stance toward historical creation and the full realization of the essential power inherent in our pursuit of objectives. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “Generation after generation of Chinese Communists have braved hardships and obstacles, confronted risks and challenges head-on, fought tenaciously, and striven tirelessly, demonstrating a great spirit of historical initiative. This has shaped the spiritual genealogy of Chinese Communists and forged the Party’s glorious traditions.” The spirit of historical initiative runs as a unifying thread through the entire spiritual genealogy of Chinese Communists. The powerful, positive dynamism that drives them to strive relentlessly in the face of difficulties and challenges stems from their sense of responsibility for historical creation and their mission to advance history. It is precisely this sense of responsibility and mission that embodies the historical commitment of Marxists. On the level of values, historical commitment provides the core and driving force behind the spirit of historical initiative; spiritually, it addresses the crucial question of “how” historical initiative can be realized. Chinese Communists have consistently maintained a confident and self-reliant sense of historical commitment, regarding the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation as their unwavering historical responsibility—and it is precisely because of this that they possess a great spirit of historical initiative. It is precisely the firm belief that “the road ahead, though rugged and steep, is truly made of iron”—that gives rise to the fighting spirit of “now, let us start anew and stride forward”; and it is precisely the historical insight that “if heaven had feelings, even heaven would grow old; the right path for humanity lies in enduring vicissitudes”—that inspires the proactive action of “ten thousand years are too long; seize the day.” A profound understanding of historical commitment is the spiritual code that enables the Communist Party of China in the new era to boldly break through barriers and shatter old constraints, resolutely remove systemic and institutional shortcomings in all areas, and push reform forward with determination. Since the advent of the new era, the Communist Party of China has consistently focused on preserving its political advantages and spiritual backbone, refining its spiritual character through self-revolution, deepening ideological education to solidify its intellectual foundations, and remaining steadfastly committed to fulfilling the Party’s original aspirations and missions. Through these efforts, the Communist Party of China has been forged into an even stronger and more effective leadership core, achieving proactive momentum in the spirit of reform.

In the process of further deepening reform in a comprehensive and thorough manner, we must uphold the spirit of historical initiative and continuously advance Chinese-style modernization.

General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “Modernization will not fall from the sky; rather, it must be achieved through the vigorous promotion of a sense of historical initiative.” This great historical initiative embodies the fine traditions and spiritual qualities that the Communist Party of China has cultivated over its long-term practice in revolution, construction, and reform. It is the intrinsic spiritual essence that CPC members must uphold for the long term and continually refine. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party has sounded the clarion call for a new era and a new journey—further deepening comprehensive reform and advancing Chinese-style modernization. All Party members must continue to carry forward this great historical initiative, face difficulties head-on, take proactive measures, further deepen comprehensive reform, continuously open up broad prospects for Chinese-style modernization, and strive vigorously toward the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

We must take a more proactive approach to grasping the overarching trends of our times. In further deepening and comprehensively reforming, we should continue to uphold the spirit of historical initiative. First and foremost, we must proactively enhance our historical consciousness, basing our decisions on an accurate understanding of the situation and tasks at hand, and thereby defining the direction and principles for further reform. Reform must be advanced in accordance with the laws governing historical development. No matter how deeply socialist reform is pursued and developed, it must ultimately address the principal social contradictions of the time, ensuring that relations of production are aligned with the level of productive forces and that the superstructure is adapted to the actual conditions of the economic base. We must advance reform by following the general trend of historical development. As we enter a new era, after long-term efforts, the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process—this is the clearest historical trend we face on our new journey. We must seize the opportune moment of historical transformation to push forward reform. The current period and the coming one represent a critical phase for fully advancing China’s modernization and realizing the great cause of national rejuvenation—a pivotal juncture of historic leaps that we must and absolutely must seize. Therefore, further deepening and comprehensively reforming must remain firmly anchored to the overarching goal and adhere to the correct direction of reform. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee once again clearly stated that the overarching goal of comprehensively deepening reform in the new era is to improve and develop the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and to promote the modernization of the state governance system and governance capacity. We must deeply understand and grasp this overarching reform goal, plan strategically and scientifically, and ensure that reform stays on track and makes steady progress. At the same time, we must coordinate the two overall situations, charting out clear paths and methods for reform—both building upon the Party’s long-standing experience in exploring and advancing Chinese-style modernization and paying close attention to contributing Chinese wisdom and solutions to the global modernization process.

We must more proactively uphold our political integrity. The Communist Party of China is an active practitioner and promoter of the spirit of historical initiative. The Party’s centralized and unified leadership is the fundamental guarantee and greatest source of confidence enabling us to consistently maintain strategic initiative as we continue to deepen reform in a comprehensive and all-round manner. Therefore, in further deepening reform in a comprehensive and all-round way, we must fully leverage the Communist Party of China’s proactive advantages and forge a Marxist party endowed with an even greater spirit of historical initiative. First, we must uphold and strengthen the Party’s overall leadership, ensuring its initiative and leading role throughout the entire process of further deepening reform in a comprehensive and all-round way. During the reform process, we must emphasize the Party’s core role in grasping the overall situation and coordinating all parties, integrating Party leadership into every aspect and stage of the reform to ensure that the reform always advances in the right political direction. Second, we must carry forward the Party’s great spirit of struggle, constantly honing the Party’s ideological and practical consciousness in seizing the initiative amid major historical trends. Promoting Chinese-style modernization is an entirely new undertaking; along the way forward, we will inevitably encounter various contradictions, risks, and challenges. In the course of reform, we must focus on cultivating the spirit and capability for struggle among the vast number of Party members and cadres, encouraging the Party to take the lead and assume responsibility actively on the front lines of further deepening reform in a comprehensive and all-round way. Third, we must advance self-revolution with an even more resolute spirit of historical initiative, remaining clear-headed and firm in addressing the unique challenges faced by a large party. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “I have often spoken of Chairman Mao’s ‘Cave Dwelling Dialogue’ with Mr. Huang Yanpei. Only by daring to carry out self-revolution can we seize the initiative in history.” To forge iron, one must first be strong oneself. On this new journey, we must always maintain a high degree of consciousness in using the Party’s self-revolution to lead social revolution, continuously promoting the Party’s self-purification, self-improvement, self-innovation, and self-enhancement, thus building the Party into a stronger, more vigorous force that remains invincible in the face of all kinds of storms and tests.

We must more proactively uphold the people-centered stance. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party has identified upholding a people-centered approach, respecting the people’s principal status, and valuing their pioneering spirit as one of the guiding principles for further deepening reform in a comprehensive manner. In the new era of reform and opening-up and socialist modernization, the Communist Party of China has harnessed the proactive creative energy of hundreds of millions of people through reform and opening-up. As we embark on a new journey toward fully building a modern socialist country, the Party must, with a spirit of historical initiative, lead the broad masses of people to unleash their subjective initiative and pool powerful synergy in the process of further deepening reform comprehensively. Therefore, further deepening reform comprehensively requires us to integrate Party leadership with the people’s central role, to combine top-level design with practical exploration, and to blend seeking truth from facts with the mass line. On the one hand, we must clearly define that the guiding principle behind further deepening reform comprehensively is to put the people at the center; we must continue to take promoting social equity and justice and enhancing the well-being of the people as both our starting point and ultimate goal, and persist in putting the people first in advancing reform. On the other hand, we must respect the people’s principal status and give full play to their pioneering spirit. We must always keep asking the people for their opinions and drawing on their wisdom, establish institutional mechanisms that protect and encourage innovation, and fully unleash the creative power of the people in the reform process. We should draw nourishment from the people’s practices, transform the practical experiences they have gained in production and daily life into guiding policies and theoretical frameworks for reform, and fully mobilize the creative forces of the 1.4 billion Chinese people, turning them into the historical driving force for fully advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-style modernization.