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Chinese Rites controversy

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Religious disputes

   The Chinese Rites controversy was a dispute within the Roman Catholic
   Church in the early 18th century about whether Chinese folk religion
   rites and offerings to the emperor constituted idolatry or not. Pope
   Clement XI decided in favour of the Dominicans (who argued that Chinese
   folk religion and offerings to the emperor were incompatible with
   Catholicism), which greatly reduced Catholic missionary activity in
   China.

   At the time, there was fascination among European intellectuals with
   Chinese culture, Confucianism, and the Chinese language. Some even
   pretended that the Church declared Confucius as a Christian saint.

   It was related to larger controversies between the two orders over the
   adoption of local practices of other countries, such as the ascetic
   brahmin practices of India.

Entry into China

   Emperor Kangxi
   Enlarge
   Emperor Kangxi

   The Kangxi Emperor, considered one of China's greatest, was at first
   friendly to the Jesuit Missionaries working in China. By the end of the
   seventeenth century, they had made many converts.

   From Decree of Kangxi ( 1692):

          The Europeans are very quiet; they do not excite any
          disturbances in the provinces, they do no harm to anyone, they
          commit no crimes, and their doctrine has nothing in common with
          that of the false sects in the empire, nor has it any tendency
          to excite sedition . . . We decide therefore that all temples
          dedicated to the Lord of heaven, in whatever place they may be
          found, ought to be preserved, and that it may be permitted to
          all who wish to worship this God to enter these temples, offer
          him incense, and perform the ceremonies practised according to
          ancient custom by the Christians. Therefore let no one
          henceforth offer them any opposition.

The problem

   The Society of Jesus (Jesuits) was successful in penetrating China and
   serving at the Imperial court. They impressed the Chinese with their
   knowledge of European astronomy and mechanics, and in fact ran the
   Imperial Observatory. Their accurate methods allowed the Emperor to
   successfully predict eclipses, one of his ritual duties. Other Jesuits
   functioned as court painters. The Jesuits in turn were impressed by the
   Chinese Confucian elite, and adapted to that lifestyle.

   The primary goal of the Jesuits was to spread Catholicism, but here
   they had a problem. The Chinese elite were attached to Confucianism,
   while Buddhism and Taoism were mostly practiced by the common people
   and lower aristocracy of this time period. Despite this, all three
   provided the framework of both state and home life. Part of Confucian
   and Taoist practices involved veneration of the ancestors. The Jesuits
   tried to argue, in Rome, that these "Chinese Rites" were social, not
   religious, ceremonies, and that converts should be allowed to continue
   to participate. (The debate was not, as is sometimes thought, about
   whether the liturgy could be in Chinese rather than Latin.) The Jesuits
   argued that Chinese folk religion and offerings to the emperor and
   departed ancestors were civil in nature and therefore not incompatible
   with Catholicism, while the Dominicans argued the reverse.

Pope Clement XI's decree

   Although in later European commentary on China it has continued to be
   claimed that Confucianism is a "philosophy" and not a "religion" -
   because it does not conform to the model of western religions, the pope
   made the assessment that the Confucian rituals were indeed in conflict
   with Christian teaching.

   From Decree ( papal bull) of Pope Clement XI ( 1715):

          The Jesuits claim Chinese terms could be used to designate the
          Christian God and that the Confucian ceremonies were merely
          civil rites that Christians could attend and that Chinese
          ancestor worship was compatible with Christianity was condemned
          by Pope Clement XI in 1715.

          Pope Clement XI wishes to make the following facts permanently
          known to all the people in the world....

                I. The West calls Deus [God] the creator of Heaven, Earth,
                and everything in the universe. Since the word Deus does
                not sound right in the Chinese language, the Westerners in
                China and Chinese converts to Catholicism have used the
                term "Heavenly Lord" (Shangdi) for many years. From now on
                such terms as "Heaven" and "Shangdi" should not be used:
                Deus should be addressed as the Lord of Heaven, Earth, and
                everything in the universe. The tablet that bears the
                Chinese words "Reverence for Heaven" should not be allowed
                to hang inside a Catholic church and should be immediately
                taken down if already there.

                II. The spring and autumn worship of Confucius, together
                with the worship of ancestors, is not allowed among
                Catholic converts. It is not allowed even though the
                converts appear in the ritual as bystanders, because to be
                a bystander in this ritual is as pagan as to participate
                in it actively.

                III. Chinese officials and successful candidates in the
                metropolitan, provincial, or prefectural examinations, if
                they have been converted to Roman Catholicism, are not
                allowed to worship in Confucian temples on the first and
                fifteenth days of each month. The same prohibition is
                applicable to all the Chinese Catholics who, as officials,
                have recently arrived at their posts or who, as students,
                have recently passed the metropolitan, provincial, or
                prefectural examinations.

                IV. No Chinese Catholics are allowed to worship ancestors
                in their familial temples.

                V. Whether at home, in the cemetery, or during the time of
                a funeral, a Chinese Catholic is not allowed to perform
                the ritual of ancestor worship. He is not allowed to do so
                even if he is in company with non-Christians. Such a
                ritual is heathen in nature regardless of the
                circumstances.

          Despite the above decisions, I have made it clear that other
          Chinese customs and traditions that can in no way be interpreted
          as heathen in nature should be allowed to continue among Chinese
          converts. The way the Chinese manage their households or govern
          their country should by no means be interfered with. As to
          exactly what customs should or should not be allowed to
          continue, the papal legate in China will make the necessary
          decisions. In the absence of the papal legate, the
          responsibility of making such decisions should rest with the
          head of the China mission and the Bishop of China. In short,
          customs and traditions that are not contradictory to Roman
          Catholicism will be allowed, while those that are clearly
          contradictory to it will not be tolerated under any
          circumstances.

   In 1742 Benedict XIV reiterated in his papal bull Ex quo singulari
   Clemens XI's decree and settled the question until Pius XII. He
   demanded that missionaries in China take an oath forbidding them to
   discuss the issue again.

Kangxi's ban

   The Kangxi emperor was not happy with Clement's decree, and banned
   Christian missions in China.

   From Decree of Kangxi ( 1721):

          Reading this proclamation, I have concluded that the Westerners
          are petty indeed. It is impossible to reason with them because
          they do not understand larger issues as we understand them in
          China. There is not a single Westerner versed in Chinese works,
          and their remarks are often incredible and ridiculous. To judge
          from this proclamation, their religion is no different from
          other small, bigoted sects of Buddhism or Taoism. I have never
          seen a document which contains so much nonsense. From now on,
          Westerners should not be allowed to preach in China, to avoid
          further trouble.

Pius XII's position

   In 1939, under the pontificate of Pius XII, the Congregation for the
   Evangelization of Peoples relaxed the certain aspects of Clemens XI's
   and Benedict XIV's decrees:

          + Catholics are permitted to be present at ceremonies in honour
            of Confucius in Confucian temples or in schools;

          + Erection of an image of Confucius or tablet with his name on
            it is permitted in Catholic schools.

          + Catholic magistrates and students are permitted to passively
            attend public ceremonies which have the appearance of
            superstition.

          + It is licit and unobjectionable for head inclinations and
            other manifestations of civil observance before the deceased
            or their images.

          + The oath on the Chinese rites, which was prescribed by
            Benedict XIV, is not fully in accord with recent regulations
            and is superfluous.

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