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Christian Literature in Nineteenth-Century China Missions— Apriority? Or an Optional Extra? John Tsz-Pang Lai

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Christian Literature in Nineteenth-Century China Missions— Apriority? Or an Optional Extra? John Tsz-Pang Lai christian literature in nineteenth-century china Missions— aPriority? or an optional extra? John Tsz-pang Lai ollowing the 1910 edinburgh World Missionary con- alexander Wylie (1815–87), from england, had ahigh regard fference, an international committee was appointed to for chinese catholic literatureand recommended that his fellow investigate the issue of christian literatureinthe missionary Protestantmissionarieslearnfromtheexperienceoftheircatholic enterprise. as ageneral principle, the printed page was not predecessors:“theearliestchristianworksextantinchinesedate intended as asubstitute for the living voice of missionaries, from the beginning of the 17th century.onthe arrival of the Jesuit but christian literatureadmittedly possessed some merits that missionaries, it soon became an object with them to employ the missionaries did not have. according to John h. ritson, “it can agency of the press in the dissemination of their views through be read and re-read and pondered over; it can reach avastly the empire. the books which they have left must ever prove an greater congregation than is to be found within the walls of the object of interest to the disciple of Jesus.”6 sanctuary; it can accompany the hospital patient to his home, and christian literatureindeed became prominent in the era of penetrate the most secluded harem and zenana; it can travel forth Protestantmissions,beginningwithrobertMorrison(1782–1834), as the pioneer wherethe climate is deadly,and the population the pioneering Protestant missionary to china in 1807. By the is sparse and conditions areunfriendly and hostile. the printed 1840s, missionaries lost any legal right to stay in mainland china page alone is the ubiquitous missionary.”1 and propagate christianity there. ahandful of pioneering mis- While the value of christian literaturewas recognized sionaries, including Morrison and William Milne (1785–1822), generally,its significance was even further emphasized in the dedicated themselves to the production of chinese christian china missions. John K. fairbank has suggested that missionary literatureinsoutheast asia (and secretly in china) to preparefor involvement in the written word“suited the original evangelical china’s eventual opening. Milne explicitly stated the importance belief in the efficacy of the printed scriptures. ...chinese condi- of tract operations: “such is the political state of this country at tions reinforced this literary predilection. the Protestant mission present, that we arenot permitted to enter it, and publish by the to the chinese became in larger part amatter of print.”2 living voice the glad tidings of salvation. tracts may,however, throughout the long span of chinese history,the class penetrate silently,even to the chamber of the emperor.they eas- of literati had emerged as rulers of the people. the dominant ily put on achinese coat, and may walk without fear through philosophical and religious systems in china rested on aliterary the breadth and length of the land. this we cannot do.”7 Brent foundation and on the people’s veneration for the writings of the Whitefield correctly points out that “the Protestant missionary sages. confucianism, which was largely built on the four Books effort in china, which was initiated by robert Morrison in 1807, and five classics, was for two millennia virtually synonymous was initially alargely literary phenomenon, with little mean- with literaturebecause of the implementation of the civil service ingful presence in mainland china prior to the first opium or examination in imperial china. furthermore, alarge corpus of anglo-chinese War.”8 Buddhist sutras werebrought from india and translated into the British defeat of china in the opium Warushered in a chinese from the second century onward. the significance of new era in the history of Protestant missions in the Middle King- tracts in converting china to Buddhism was also mentioned dom. With the signing of the treaty of nanking in 1842,9 hong by some missionaries, and it was proposed that Protestant mis- Kong island was ceded as acolony to the British, and five coastal sionaries follow this precedent of evangelizing china by means treatyportswereopened—canton,amoy,foochow,ningpo,and of religious tracts.3 china also had along tradition of distribut- shanghai—wheremissionaries were, for the first time, allowed ing morality tracts among the common people with aview to to reside, build churches, and preach the Gospel. alongside the inculcating moral and religious virtues.4 some christian tracts establishmentofmissionstationsandlocalchurches,missionaries weremodeled on the style and terminology of these chinese fullyrealizedthattheprovisionofchristianliteraturewasamore morality tracts. china’s age-old reverence for the printed word efficient and effective means of propagating the christian faith thereforeboth constituted challenges and offered opportunities to awider audience. the number of missionaries was, after all, to the literary efforts of christian missionaries. negligible10 when compared with the vast population of china.11 the interior provinces wereinaccessible to Westerners until the Perspectives of Missionaries signing of the treaty of tientsin (1858) and the Peking conven- tion (1860), which followed in the wake of the anglo-french against this background it is impossible to exaggerate the expedition to Peking. Before1860 the distribution of christian importance of literatureasameans of converting the chinese publications was almost the only way of conveying areligious to christianity,something that was grasped by the early Jesuit message in the hinterland of china. missionaries during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. under these historical circumstances, quite afew Protestant Matteo ricci (1552–1610), an italian, arrived in Peking in 1601, missionaries to china made painstaking efforts to acquirethe and by 1631 the Jesuit missionaries, together with their chinese language and create christian literatureinchinese, either by converts, had published no less than 340 treatises on religion, translating existing Western religious works or by writing their philosophy,mathematics, and natural sciences.5 own. for them, the formation of abody of chinese christian literatureserved several purposes: first, as an instrument of conversion; second, as apreparation for futureevangelism; John Tsz-pang Lai is assistant Professor of Translation at Hong Kong Baptist third, as language-study guides for newly arrived missionaries; University. and fourth, as away for missionaries to fit into their social niche april 2008 71 as recognized scholars or teachers in the chinese community, fedonthem. theschools aretrained by them.the churches are thereby facilitating their missionary work.12 foundedanddisciplinedbythem.thereligiousworkofhospitals Protestant missionaries to china repeatedly stressed the anddispensariesisconducted through them. and the general importance of christian literatureintheir missionary endeav- enlightenment of the people, and the undermining of idolatry, ors. tract production and distribution went hand in hand with arepromoted by the same agency.”17 oral preaching in the propagation of christianity.samuel Wells While missionaries in the field placed emphasis on christian Williams (1812–84) remarked that “the voice explains the book literature, the literary mission could not have been accomplished and the book recalls the ideas and teachings of the preacher.”13 through missionary enthusiasm or literary talents alone. the it was also generally believed that missionaries, “until they have whole enterprise of publishing and distributing christian litera- mastered the language, can do nothing without tracts; and even turerequiredextensivefinancialresources,inwhichinstitutional when they can preach with fluency and power,they regardtracts patronageplayedanindispensablerole.Missionarysocietiesseem as important subsidiaries to impress the truth on the awakened to have been the natural source of financial support. hearer.”14 religious tracts usually prepared the way for oral preachingbyfamiliarizingthepeoplewithchristiantermsandthe Policies of Missionary Societies christian message. thomas h. hudson (1800–1876) maintained that christian tracts would “give much knowledge of gospel While most missionary societies tended to channel substantial truth, make the people acquainted with terms and phrases used resources into missionaries’ salaries, the building of churches, inchristianbooks,andthuspreparethemtohearandunderstand and the upkeep of mission schools and hospitals, the home com- the instruction of the christian missionary.”15 mittees differed considerably in their attitude towardchristian the most important function of the tracts was to inculcate literature. some societies did contribute quite afew prominent christian faith by introducing the doctrines of sin, atonement, writers and translators of chinese christian literature,18 and oth- and salvation. every effort was made to adapt the tracts for ers earmarked special funds towardthe cost of publishing books evangelisticpurposesinordertoreachtheunconverted.timothy (chiefly denominational) that their missionaries needed. it was richard(1845–1919) highlightedthe valueofchristian literature nonetheless the exception rather than the rule for missionary by arguing that “salvation of the multitudes in each of the tribes, societies to make generous grants for publication, or to set aside and kindreds, and tongues must be through saving knowledge, missionariesexclusivelytooffertheirliterarytalents.asoverseas
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