This is a subject near and dear to my own heart and research.
On this date in 1856, French missionary Auguste Chapdelaine (1814-1856) was executed in Guangxi province on the orders of the Xilin County magistrate. Prior to 1860, missionaries were forbidden to travel outside of the ‘treaty ports,’ an injunction that many routinely ignored at their own peril.
In 1856, Father Chapedelaine traveled illegally to Guangxi where he ran afoul of Qing officials. The French priest and 26 of his followers were rounded up by the local constabulary and on February 29, County Magistrate Zhang Mingfeng ordered Chapdelaine and two of his followers put to death. (Another account says that Chapdelaine died in custody, a result of having been beaten and locked in a small iron cage following his arrest. A stickler for details, the magistrate had the body beheaded anyway.)
Needless to say, the French were not amused.
The French used Chapdelaine’s execution as a pretext to join with the British (who would later in 1856 find their own, sketchier, excuse) to shake China down for more treaty concessions–including the right for missionaries to travel freely and build churches in the interior provinces.
Needless to say, the Qing were not amused…but that’s a story for another time.
Postscript: Pope John Paul II canonized Auguste Chapdelaine in 2000 along with 120 other martyrs who perished in China between 1648 and 1955. The Chinese government condemned the move claiming in a statement that the Vatican ‘had distorted history.’
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Image top right: Auguste Chapdelaine
9 responses so far ↓
1 Adam // Feb 29, 2008 at 11:30 am
Oy. It’s even worse that. Among those 120 canonizations were a bunch of folks killed during the Boxer Rebellion - not exactly the sorts of folks that Chinese governments past and present are quick to consider saints. And then, just to rub it in, the Vatican scheduled the canonization for October 1.
That’s right: National Day.
The net result was the absolute obliteration of the diplomatic initiative then ongoing between the Vatican and Beijing.
The more things change …
2 rick // Feb 29, 2008 at 11:54 pm
Sadly, the catholic church exists. Sadly, there exist a lot of groupings that believe rabidly in doctrines with no perceivable logic, but it doesn’t prevent the groups from causing a great deal of trouble and violence.
Off topic: Are you familiar with ” The secret life of a Taoist master” by Ming-dao Deng? I am currently reading this as non-fiction, and I was wondering if the historical descriptions ring true. I am not necessarily expecting you to know the book, but I do expect you will know people who do - and many may read your blog. Anyway, thanks.
3 Adam // Mar 1, 2008 at 2:07 am
Just to be clear, Rick - my comment was not meant to suggest that I’m sad that the Catholic Church still exists, nor that it is made up of people who “believe rabidly in doctrines with no perceivable logic.” My point was, merely (and I’ve made this point elsewhere), that the disagreements and misunderstandings that have long defined the Church’s relations with Beijing still define them. It’s beginning to change, but such change comes slow.
4 rick // Mar 4, 2008 at 4:19 am
Please, rest assured, I was not attempting to assign my beliefs to your post. Though my comment does reflect my opinion of all the religions that stem from the god of Abraham, and many, but not all, of the others. Having fairly well researched the history of pretty much all of the christian missionary efforts, I have designed, though not yet produced, a bumper sticker that states “Missionaries: Spreading ignorance and guilt world wide!”
I close with, “If we shadows have offended, Think but this and all is mended…”
5 Jeremiah // Mar 4, 2008 at 8:47 am
My research focuses on missionaries in late-19th century China, especially those of the Catholic Church. While I respect the Catholic faith, I would agree with Rich that despite good intentions, the missionaries often did as much harm as good.
As Paul Cohen once wrote, “Can a missionary be genuinely tolerant of a society which to a greater or lesser extent he wants to change? However sympathetic he might be?”
I also agree with Adam. It is striking to me how the political issues between the Vatican and the Chinese government reflect similar challenges in the past, most notable the rites controversy during the Kangxi reign.
6 Xian Ting Xin Zuo // Mar 4, 2008 at 4:08 pm
One of the many key flaws of Christianity, particularly of the Vatican-dispatched missionaries to the 19th-century China and of today’s Christians of the U.S., is its astoundingly painful ignorance and bigotry, which understandably originated from its self-assuring sense of superiority to the so-called pagans. This is most evident in today’s American politics in how the fundamentalist Christians, like the Republican presidential hopeful Huckbee, make desparate attempts to spread its so-called “pro-life” agenda, which precisely goes against human rights and liberty by trying to legalize discrimination against homosexuals and infringe upon women’s right to abortion.
Now this may be off topic, but a bigoted Christian church is bound to do more harm to the development of our soceity than good in the long run. Just think about how the pope still upholds the Vatian religious tribunal’s death sentence of European scientists who correctly told them earth was not the center of the universe.
Despite China’s somewhat xenophobic tendencies in the 19th century, which led to its downfall eventually, it’d be interesting to reflect on the history of the Vatican and its impacts on the rest of the world…
7 Adam // Mar 4, 2008 at 11:17 pm
Jeremiah -
If you make it down to Shanghai at some point, drop me a line. I cover the contemporary Catholic Church in China, and I think it’d be awfully interesting to compare notes. Drinks on me.
Adam
8 Jeremiah // Mar 5, 2008 at 11:52 am
Xian Ting Xin Zao,
Thank you for your comment. I do think that a sense of cultural superiority hampered missionary efforts in China (see the Paul Cohen quote above.)
As for connections to present day, one thing I’m always struck by is how closely the rhetoric on democracy in the 20th century mirrors that on Christianity in the 19th century.
Finally, I might avoid the term ‘xenophobic,’ which implies a kind of irrational fear and loathing. This may have been the case for some in China, but for many there was good reason to oppose the foreign presence on Chinese soil. Imperialism leads to resistance.
Thanks for stopping by.
9 Jeremiah // Mar 5, 2008 at 11:52 am
Adam,
Thanks for the offer. You’re on. And ditto if you ever make it up to the ‘Jing.
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