The synthesis of Catholic doctrine and Confucian ideas, set forth in the canonical text of the Chinese cultural tradition Lun Yu (Chinese: 論語), compiled from recordings of Confucius' speeches, was the basis for the unique monument of Catholic missionary literature in China during the late sixteenth and early eighteenth centuries – catechism. The catechism was written in the form of a dialogue between Western and Chinese philosophers, and was called “Tianzhu Shiyi” (Chinese: 天主實義) by M. Ricci. The composition of this text was the result of M. Ricci’s own reflections on how to preach Catholicism in China and the prospects for doing so. “Tianzhu Shiyi” catechism acts as a key document in cultural accommodation and intercultural dialogue, developed by M. Ricci. Fisrt published in 1603, the catechism became the most influential document governing the ways Catholicism was tought in China. Subsequent reprints and translations of “Tianzhu Shiyi”, including into different Chinese dialects, were used in Jesuit missionary preaching even after the death of M. Ricci. His work on Chinese religious culture and philosophy had a significant impact the ways and strategies for adapting Christian doctrine to the Chinese people. The translational and cultural deconstruction of the catechism text reveals the cultural and linguistic context used by M. Ricci to translate the Christian doctrine using its inherent terminological apparatus, interpreting and expressing it through the symbols, elements, and concepts of Confucianism. This article attempts to analyze the religious and cultural aspects of “Tianzhu Shiyi” catechism, compiled by the Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci, as a strategy to inculturate Christianity in China. The study was made possible thanks to the surviving text of the catechism in Chinese, which is stored in the archive of the Jesuit congregation (Rome, under the code Jap-Sin I, 44), as well as its translations into Italian and English. Russian religious studies and Sinology have not yet translated or studied the text, so the very fact of the missionary's contribution to religious and cultural exchange between China and Europe is novel.
Key words: Roman Catholic Church, inculturation of Christianity, intercultural dialogue, interreligious dialogue, evangelization, missionary activity, catechism, Matteo Ricci, Jesuits, culture, China, Europe
DOI: 10.22250/20728662_2024_2_47
About the author
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Nikolai V. Chirkov – religious studies scholar, PhD (Philosophy), Assistant Professor at the Institute of St. Tomas Aquinas (Žilina (Slovakia), Department of the Pontifical Salesian University (Turin, Italy), Head of the Laboratory of Frontier Srudies, Amur State University (Blagoveshchensk, Russia); 27 Sebastian Caboto st. Torino, 10129, Italy; сThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. |