Matteo Ricci
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| Matteo Ricci (left) |
| Map of the Far East by Matteo Ricci in 1602 |
Matteo Ricci (October 6 1552 - May 11 1610) was an Italian Jesuit priest whose missionary activity in China during the Ming Dynasty marked the beginning of modern Chinese Christianity. He is still one of the greatest known missionaries to Chinese today. The church he built remains the largest catholic church after the Cultural Revolution.
Ricci arrived in south China in 1582, and at Beijing in 1601, where he presented himself at the Imperial court of Wanli. Not only could he write in difficult ancient chinese, he was also renowned for his great understanding on Chinese cultures.
Unlike the missionization in South Asia, he found that Chinese culture was strongly tied with Confucius values and therefore, Christianity was localized and adapted to Chinese Culture in order to take influence in China. He coined himself as a Western Confucian (西儒). With the introduction of western science and state-of-the-art gadgets, like an automatic clock and world altas, he drew the attention from some traditional Confucianist literati and officials.
In a debate, he argued that the Confucian Ancestor Worship was nothing more than showing remembrance and respect to ancestors. It was irrelevant to any gentilism. His view was praised by Chinese scholars but disapproved by other competing churches. Others argued that the Ancestor Worship was a cult and had to be prohibited. Ironically, the long debate finally resulted that all Catholics were banned after his death. All missionization went underground until the Opium War in 1841.
During Matteo's life, he introduced many aspects of China to Europe, generally in a favorable light.
He died in Beijing and his contribution was fully recognized by the Emperor Wanli. He is buried in what is now the School of Beijing Municipal Committee. Life magazine named Ricci one of the 100 most important people of the last millennium.
See also: Religion in China
External link
ja:マテオ・リッチ nl:Matteo Ricci zh:利玛窦
