Confucianism and Christianity: The First Encounter, Volume 1This is a pioneer study of the Christian missionaries in late Ming and early Ch'ing China - in the sense that it draws upon source-materials hitherto neglected to give an entirely new perspective on the history of the first meeting between East and West. The book centres around a major theme: the first 'confrontation' between the Supreme Ultimate (or T'ien) of the Confucian cosmological order and the Christian anthropomorphic God as conveyed to the Chinese literati by the Western missionaries. This encounter, which is of an historical as well as metaphysical nature, also involves a conflict between two diametrically opposed value systems of human socio-ethical obligations. This study begins by examining the genesis of the Jesuit policy of accommodation and how the missionaries developed their particular approach. But the author probes beyond traditional scholarship and argues that Matteo Ricci was successful in convincing some Confucianists, notably Hsü Kuang-ch'i, of the universality of Christianity; On the other hand, the majority of the literati felt threatened by the 'heterodox' teaching and argued against it. Finally, the K'ang-hsi Emperor had to mediate, and the result was the end of the first phase of Western activities in the Middle Kingdom. Throughout, the major emphasis is on how one idea-namely, the idea of GOd-was viewed by the 'barbarians' from the West and by the Confucian I iterati. |
Contents
1 | |
The Policy of Accommodation | 9 |
Matteo Riccis Original Confucianism | 25 |
III | 33 |
The Kanghsi Emperor and Christianity | 109 |
Towards an EastWest Dialogue | 125 |
70 | 130 |
91 | 136 |
Bibliography | 149 |
Glossary | 167 |
Common terms and phrases
According actually Adam Schall antiforeign believed Buddhism Buglio calendar century Ch'en ch'i Ch'ing chap Chiao Chiao Hung Chinese Philosophy Christian doctrines Christianity in China chuan Chung-kuo classics Confucianists Confucius converts created cultural deBary deity earth edict ethics faith Ferdinand Verbiest foreign Francis Xavier heaven hell heterodoxy honour Hsü Kuang-ch'i Hsü's human Ibid idea Imperial Astronomical Bureau intellectual Japan Japanese Jesuit fathers Jesuits Jesus Jonathan Spence Joseph Levenson K'ang-hsi K'ang-hsi Emperor Kuang-hsien late Ming learning Li-ma-tou Liang Ch'i-ch'ao Lord-on-High Louis Buglio Manchu Master-of-T'ien mathematics Matteo Ricci Millennial Kingdom Ming dynasty moral Nanking Neo-Confucian Neo-Confucianists officials one's Original Confucianism P'o-hsieh Peking person principles problem PTIP Pu-te-i religion religious Rites Controversy sages scholars shang-chuan Shang-ti Shen shih Shih-lu society soul Supreme Ultimate T'ien T'ien-chu shih-i T'ien-chu-chiao T'ien-hsueh Taoism TCSI teachings things tradition Verbiest West worship writings wrote Yang's Yuan
Popular passages
Page v - Lu asked about serving the spirits of the dead. The Master said, 'While you are not able to serve men, how can you serve their spirits?' Chi Lu added, 'I venture to ask about death?' He was answered, 'While you do not know life, how can you know about death?