Franciscan Minorite Monks in China from the “Great Religious Incident” to the Cultural Revolution

Abstract

The article is an attempt to systematize the preaching of the Franciscan order in China, starting with the Papal embassies to the Great Khans who conquered the Middle Empire and founded the Yuan dynasty until the end of the 20th century. The author groups the information into several major periods, suggesting a five-stage periodization of the Franciscan presence in the Far East. A change in the preaching paradigm is noted during the 700 centuries of the fickle Minorites’ presence in China. While the first reconnaissance missions, achieving modest success in preaching to non-Chinese subjects of the Mongol emperors, were mainly diplomatic in nature, in modern times the mission, enjoying the support of the Spanish Padroado system, is purposefully concentrated on preaching work, especially among the poor segments of the population. The culmination of all European Catholic missionary enterprise in China, the famous ‘Rites Controversy’, which split the Christian orders in the Celestial Empire, is examined in connection with the role played by the representatives of the Franciscan Order in this dramatic conflict. The author concludes that the Controversy hit, as a result, all Chinese Catholic missions – the Franciscans no less than their main opponents, the Jesuits, eventually leading to persecution, repression and expulsion of missionaries. Attempts of new penetration of Catholic Christianity into the PRC are resumed only after the end of the Cultural Revolution in the second half of the 20th century. The article is a continuation of the piece by the same author, focusing on theoretical foundations of the Franciscan proselytization, published earlier.