1582: Father Ricci (利玛窦) arrived in China
Trained in math, cosmology, astronomy, and theology
Father Matteo Ricci 利玛窦神父 [Zane Archives]
Father Matteo Ricci (1552–1610), an Italian Jesuit, was born in 1552. At the ripe age of 19, Father Ricci joined the Society of Jesus, also known as the Jesuits. On top of the three traditional vows typically made to the Catholic Church — poverty, chastity, and obedience — the Jesuits took on a fourth vow to go wherever in the world the Pope designates.
Father Ricci's life coincided with the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England and the Counter-Reformation movements in the west. The Catholic Church in Rome wanted to evangelise the world. With a population similar to that of the entire European continent, China was therefore instrumental to the Church. Father Ricci is known as one of the first missionaries to be sent to China.
The Jesuits placed heavy emphasis on education and scholarship. Thus, as part of his training, Father Ricci studied mathematics, cosmology and astronomy, as well as theology and philosophy.
Established the first mission house in mainland China
In 1582, at the age of 30, Father Ricci arrived in Macau, at the time a Portuguese colony. The following year, he then moved to the city of Zhaoqing (肇庆) in today's Guangdong Province. Due to his expertise in mathematics and cartography, he was allowed to have residency in the town and established the first Jesuit mission house in mainland China.
Created the first European-style world map in Chinese
In 1588, while in Zhaoqing, Ricci created the first European-style map in Chinese — Great Map of Ten Thousand Countries (万国图) — showing China’s geographical location in the world and “the existence of the five continents on which people of different races and cultures lived.”
Crucially, it challenged the widely held notion that China — or the Middle Kingdom — was the centre of the universe. This was a turning point in China's perception of the vast world that lay beyond her borders.
First dictionary linking Chinese and Latin alphabets
First Portuguese-Chinese dictionary. [Public Domain]
Father Ricci also spent years creating a Portuguese-Chinese dictionary, the very first dictionary that linked Chinese characters to the Latin alphabet.
“Never was a man more fitted for the work he had chosen,” a 20th-century writer remarked of Father Ricci, "never did a man so labour to make himself even more fit to perform it."
1601: Father Ricci arrived in Beijing
First Westerner allowed into the Forbidden City (紫禁城)
Emperor Wan-li 万历皇帝 [Zane Archives]
Father Matteo Ricci (1552–1610), the founder of the Jesuit mission in China, was a phenomenal astronomer whose ability to predict solar eclipses greatly impressed the Imperial Court.
In 1601, Emperor Wan-li (万历皇帝, reign 1572–1620) invited Father Ricci to Beijing — for his scientific expertise — making him the first-ever Westerner to enter the Forbidden City.
Father Ricci presented Emperor Wan-li with a chiming clock that greatly fascinated the emperor; being the only person in Beijing who could fix the clock, he was allowed to reside in the capital city.
Together with the other Jesuit Fathers of this time, Father Ricci was called 西洋人 (Pronunciation in Chinese: Xi-yang Ren; Meaning: Men from the West) and 修士 (Pronunciation in Chinese: Xiu-shi; Meaning: Scholar Priest). They actively engaged in the study of cosmology and astronomy, or the study of Heavens (天学) as referred to by the locals. Through the Chinese appreciation and their expertise in this science, they hoped to introduce Christianity into China.
Origin of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception
Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Beijing [Zane Archives]
Father Ricci’s residence in Beijing was near Xuanwu Gate (宣武门), southwest of the city wall. Attached to his residence was a small house of worship by the name of Xuanwumen Chapel (宣武门礼拜堂). This would become the site of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (圣母无染原罪堂), the oldest Catholic Church in the city today.
Evangelism through “adoptionism”
Commemorating the 400th anniversary of Father Matteo Ricci’s death, a musical production depicting the life of Father Matteo Ricci was performed at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre. [Zane Archives]
By the 1580s, Father Alessandro Valignano (范礼安, 1539–1606) had called for "adoptionism" to form the basis of Catholic proselytism. According to Handbook of Christianity in China, Father Valignano believed it was essential for the Jesuits to adapt to the Chinese culture for the Chinese, being people of sophistication and intelligence, would only accept “a religion, which is not all opposed but even conducive to the good administration of the state — something they require – and which does so much good to the soul by opening for it the way and the gate to paradise.”
Thus, during Father Ricci's days in China, he already knew that commanding the Chinese language was not enough for him to bring Christianity into the Middle Kingdom. Instead, he adopted local customs, clothed in Confucian literati attire, was well-versed in Chinese literature, and understood well the Chinese mentality.
Father Ricci reasoned that the teachings of the Christian Church should not be revealed all at once, as they may be overwhelming and challenging to absorb. Therefore, he refrained from emphasising what he thought would be the most extreme parts of Christianity for the Chinese mind —the concepts of crucifixion, resurrection, and the divine trinity. Instead, he focused on Mother Mary and Baby Jesus, linking them to family values which was already a significant part of Chinese society.
Father Ricci also selected elements of Confucian philosophy and classics, synthesised them with Christian theology to make Western concepts easier to accept by the locals. In 1603, he published The True Meaning of the Lord of heaven (天主实義), a Chinese language catechism that illustrated the compatibility and the complementary nature of Confucianism and Christianity.
Father Ricci believed it was more efficient to convert the literati first and then spread the Gospel to the masses through them. Father Ricci and his fellow Jesuits studied hard the literature, arts, and science of the Renaissance, for the antiquity and sophistication of Chinese civilisation gave them the added burden of proving the value of European culture and their religion by association.
Although less dogmatic, Father Ricci was far more successful in interacting and converting the Chinese in many ways.
Accepted Chinese terms for God
Father Ricci believed telling the Chinese people what they had been doing for thousands of years was wrong would not be strategic. Accepting Christianity should not require the Chinese vernacular to be drastically altered. Thus, when teaching about the Biblical God, Father Ricci adopted the terminology used by the Chinese in referencing supreme beings — 天 (Pronunciation in Chinese: Tian; Meaning: Heaven) and 上帝 (Pronunciation in Chinese: Shang-di; Meaning: Lord Above).
Accepted Confucius and ancestral worship
Father Ricci also accepted the rituals conducted in worshipping Confucius and ancestors. Since Confucius was an ancient philosopher, not the Creator of the world, worshipping him was just like honouring the ancestors — a form of remembrance, respect and completely secular. This was a salient aspect of the Chinese way of life; removing them, Father Ricci believed, would be difficult and counter productive. Father Ricci believed in evangelism with tolerance and flexibility.
Translated Christian text into Chinese
Ricci Hall (利玛窦宿舍), founded in 1929 by the Society of Jesus in memory of Father Matteo Ricci, is an all-boys residence hall at the University of Hong Kong. [Zane Archives]
Father Ricci held the conviction that it would be far more effective to use written words — rather than pure oratory skills — to propagate his message to the most educated and learned Confucius scholars, for their fondness towards reading knew no bounds. Therefore, as a means to evangelise the Chinese, Father Ricci translated a significant portion of Christian text into Chinese.
This made Christianity far more accessible, a crucial step in converting the masses. Father Ricci will soon have a remarkable encounter with a small colony of Jews in China and bring them to the world's attention.
1610 May 11th: Father Ricci passed away at 57
Buried in Beijing instead of Macau
Statue of Father Matteo Ricci at the Cathedral ofthe Immaculate Conception, Beijing [Zane Archives]
As per the Great Ming Code (大明律), missionaries and other foreigners who pass away in China are buried in Macau. Father Ricci, however, wished to be buried in Beijing.
Diego de Pantoja (庞迪我, 1571–1618), a Spanish Jesuit Missionary who accompanied Father Ricci to Beijing, from the city of Nanjing, and worked closely with him thereafter, requested Emperor Wan-li (万历皇帝, reign 1572–1620) to allow for an exception to the rule which was granted. The site assigned was just outside of the Fucheng Gate (阜成门) to the west of Beijing's city wall. Father Pantojia prepared the site. The funeral ceremony was held on 22nd April 1611.
Father Ricci was celebrated for his humility in understanding and accepting the Chinese way of life; he was honoured as a legendary figure in the history of cross-cultural interactions, communications, and exchanges between the West and the mystical Middle Kingdom. His legacy was rich and taught in many classrooms, and his name decorates some of the most significant landmarks to this very day.
Father Longobardi took over the role
Father Ricci passed away while serving as the Superior General of the Jesuit China Mission. Upon his death, this role was assumed by Father Nicolas Longobardi (1559–1654), a man who would later be buried alongside his predecessor Father Ricci.
Father Trigault to publish Father Ricci’s journals
Father Longobardi entrusted fellow Jesuit Father Nicolas Trigault (金尼阁, 1577–1628) to collate Father Ricci's journals.
In 1615, this book was published in Augsburg, De Christiana expeditione apud Sinas suscepta ab Societate Jesu (On the Christian Mission among the Chinese by the Society of Jesus).
1615 January: Father Trigault (金尼阁)
Seek support in Rome for Jesuits’ China mission
Father Nicolas Trigault (1577–1628) was a French Jesuit. He arrived in Beijing a few weeks after Father Matteo Ricci’s death in 1610 and helped Father Nicolas Longobardi (龙华民, 1559–1654) with the administrative work of the Jesuit establishment in China.
Like Father Ricci, Father Longobardi believed the best way to evangelise China was by converting the elite in society first; then, by leveraging their influence and reach, the Jesuits would spread the word of God to the ordinary people of the country.
Thus, in 1613, Father Longobardi sent Father Trigault to Rome to update Pope Paul V (1550–1621) and Claudio Acquaviva (阿瓜維瓦, 1543–1615), Superior General of the Society of Jesus, on the Jesuits’ progress in China; and to petition Rome for further support of the China mission. It was hoped that Father Trigault would bring back a team of scientists so that the educated Chinese elites would be impressed with all that the western culture has to offer and, in turn, open their ears to the Gospels.
Published Father Ricci’s journals while in Germany
During his trip to Europe, Father Trigault translated Father Ricci’s China journals from Italian into Latin, the lingua franca of western scholarship; the work was published in January 1615 in Augsburg, Germany, under the title De Christiana expeditione apud Sinas (The History of the Christian Expedition in China, 基督教远征中国史).
The book included Father Ricci’s journal entries regarding his two meetings with Ai Tian, the experiences of the two Chinese representatives he sent to Kaifeng, as well as the visit paid to him by the three young Kaifeng Jews.
Co-existence of Christianity and Confucianism
The book detailed Ming Dynasty’s geography, culture, politics, and philosophy and the challenges the early missionaries stationed in the Far East faced. The publication outlined Father Ricci's "accommodationist" attitude in expanding Christendom into the Chinese domain. In a sense, Father Ricci, a pragmatist, was a firm believer in the co-existence of Christianity and Confucianism.
Father Ricci's approach guided the Jesuits' footsteps for centuries to come. He impacted the course of Chinese history significantly.
Sixteen editions in multiple languages
The following year, in 1616, Father Trigault’s nephew, David-Floris de Riquebourg-Trigault, translated the book into French.
Over the next few decades, at least sixteen editions were published in numerous different European languages.
Returned to Far East with twenty new Jesuit recruits
Father Trigault then travelled throughout Europe to fundraise and recruit missionaries. Finally, in 1619, he returned to China with 20 newly recruited Jesuits.
First missionary to work in Hangzhou
Father Trigault spent the latter part of his life in Hangzhou, where he was the first-ever missionary.
1623: Father Trigault (金尼阁)
Passed through Kaifeng
In 1623, Nicolas Trigault (1577–1628) passed through the Kaifeng community en route to Shanxi Province (山西省). Unfortunately, no detail of his interaction with the Kaifeng Jewry was documented.
Published early system of romanising Chinese
In 1626, while in Shanxi, Trigault continued the work of Matteo Ricci (利玛窦, 1552–1610) and published one of the first systems of Chinese romanisation in the book Aid to the Eyes and Ears of Western Literati (西儒耳目资). The book contains Chinese characters and their corresponding phonetics and definition and the Latin transliterated versions of them. It was intended to help foreigners hear the sounds of Chinese characters by associating sounds with the roman alphabet; this would make Chinese somewhat phonetic.
The book focusing on Chinese characters had three chapters for shape, sound, and meaning.
§ General Introduction to Phonology (译引首谱)
§ Chinese Characters According to the Rhymes (列音韵谱)
§ List of Chinese Characters according to Radicals (列边正谱)
This publication was instrumental to western scholars who were interested in learning about the Chinese language and culture.
The book was edited by Han Yun (韩云) and published by Wang Zheng (王征). Zhang Wen-da (张问达, 1554–1625), who wrote one of the prefaces, funded the project but passed away a year before it was published.