A Visionary priest
Roderick O'Brien
The one time home of pioneer missionary to China, Jesuit Fr Matteo Ricci, was in Zhaoqing, an attractive city in Guangdong province. In history, it enjoyed a much greater prominence than it does today.
The city still retains some historic elements such as the city walls and the Judge Pao ancestral temple. It also boasts the beautiful Seven Stars Crags scenic area and pleasant riverside walks along the banks of the West River.
In this city Ricci and his colleagues began the cultural and religious interchange that has contributed so much to the development of our Catholic faith in China. Currently, the city is hosting a valuable and attractive exhibition celebrating Ricci's life and work.
The exhibition is currently located in the Bell and Drum Tower in the old city. It's known as Liqiao Lou. However, because it is red in colour, it is popularly known as Hong Lou (red house). The exhibition fills the two levels of the tower building. It was prepared for a conference on Ricci in 2006 and is colourful and in good condition.
A local told me that the exhibition would not be permanently housed in the Bell and Drum Tower. An old building is being renovated adjacent to the Chongxi Pagoda. The exhibition will be moved to that building. This is appropriate, because Ricci's house was also adjacent to the pagoda although it has long been demolished.
Matteo Ricci
Matteo Ricci was an Italian Jesuit priest. He was born on October 6, 1552 in Macerata and joined the Jesuits on August 15, 1571 devoting his attention to mathematics, cosmology and astronomy. In 1582, he arrived in Macao to prepare to enter China. Ricci started learning the Chinese language and customs and became a rarely seen Western scholar who mastered Chinese classical script. The next year he moved inland and settled in Zhaoqing in Guangdong Province. Ricci moved there after receiving an invitation from the governor of Zhaoqing, Wang P'an, who had heard of Ricci's skill as a mathematician/cartographer. Ricci stayed there from 1583-1589 before having to leave after a new viceroy expelled him.
It was in Zhaoqing, in 1584, that Ricci composed the first ever map of the world in Chinese.
He first reached Beijing on September 7, 1598, but because of a Korean/Japanese war Ricci could not reach the Imperial Palace. After waiting for two months he left Beijing. In 1601 he returned but wasn't initially granted an audience with the Wanli Emperor of China. Eventually Ricci was finally allowed to present himself at the Imperial court of Wanli and became the first Westerner to be invited into the Forbidden City. Although he was given free access to the Forbidden City he never met the Wanli Emperor but was able to meet important officials and leading members of the Beijing cultural scene.
Ricci could speak and write in Chinese. Added to this he was known for his appreciation of the culture of the Chinese. Ricci became the first to translate the Confucian classics into a western language, Latin.
Ricci lived on in China until his death on May 11, 1610.c
