SHOWING THE WAY TO GOD
By Fr Tom Renshaw SJ, Rector, Saint Ignatius’ College Riverview
Exactly two years ago, on 17 December 2022, Pope Francis recognised that Fr Matteo Ricci SJ, one of our house patrons, had lived a Christian life and exemplified virtues to a heroic degree. This was a significant step in the process of Fr Ricci being recognised as an official saint of the Church.
This mosaic of Matteo Ricci can be seen in the Chapel of Saint Ignatius’ College Adelaide. Image supplied.
At this point in time, in recognition of his life of holiness, he is referred to as the Venerable Matteo Ricci. Before Ricci can be declared a saint, he needs to be recognised as a Blessed, that is, be beautified. The steps of beautification and canonisation each require a miracle, that is, as part of the devotion to the person of Matteo Ricci, people pray for a miracle through his intercession.
Last month in Rome, the Jesuit Pontifical Gregorian University held a one-day conference titled, “Matteo Ricci: a Heritage of Friendship, Dialogue and Peace”. Ricci is a pivotal figure in the early missionary history of the Society of Jesus as he was the one who fulfilled the dream of St Francis Xavier, being one of the first Jesuits to enter the kingdom of China, and especially the Imperial court in Beijing.
There were a number of distinguished speakers at this conference, including Fr Arturo Sosa SJ, the Superior General of the Society of Jesus, Cardinal Pietro Parolin – the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Cardinal Stephen Chow SJ – the Bishop of Hong Kong, and Fr Mark Lewis SJ – the Rector of the Gregorian University. The other notable speaker was Fr Federico Lombardi SJ – the former Papal spokesman in the time of Pope Benedict XVI and one of the key people who works in the office of the General Postulator of the Society of Jesus for the cause of the beautification of the Venerable Matteo Ricci.
Fr Ricci was born in Macerata in Italy on 5 October 1552. He joined the Jesuits in 1571 and studied at the nascent Gregorian University in Rome. In addition to the usual study of philosophy and theology, he also engaged with astronomy, mathematics and geography. One of his teachers was Fr Christopher Clavius SJ, a prominent mathematician and astronomer at the time; his influence is recognised with a lunar crater being named after him.
Ricci’s diverse academic interests helped him in the subsequent years when he engaged with the Chinese intellectuals. Ricci moved to Goa in 1578 and initially taught there, until he moved to Macau in 1582, then Nanchang in 1595, and eventually Beijing, where he died in 1610. It was during these years that Ricci mastered the Chinese language and embraced inculturation, presenting himself as a Confucian man of letters, including the manner in which he dressed. Through the gift of friendship and dialogue, Fr Ricci was able to become a bridge between two cultures.
Image courtesy Jesuit Media.
One of his lasting legacies was his creation of a map of the world in 1602 (above) that had China in the centre, as well a reasonable depiction of the Americas. Given it was created in the early 1600’s, the great southern land of Australia does not appear.
A page of writing by Matteo Ricci. Image: Jesuit Media.
Fr Ricci is a significant figure within the history of China. At the time of his death, he was given a rare honour as a foreigner, in that he was allowed to be buried in Chinese soil. This was a mark of the esteem in which he was held. In more recent times, he was recognised as one of two foreigners, important to the history of China, in the Millenium Museum in Beijing: the other one being Marco Polo.
At the time of Ricci’s death in 1610, there were only 16 Jesuit missionaries in China and 3,000 people had become Catholics. It is worth remembering that at this time the population of China was estimated to be 150-200 million people. After 28 years of missionary activity in China, the fruit of his labours were rather humble.
During the course of the one-day conference in Rome, some of the following reflections on the life of Fr Ricci were shared:
- He had an openness to the world and was willing to embrace new opportunities;
- This openness led to a mutual appreciation and dialogue, creating the space for genuine encounter;
- Many of his encounters involved the exchange between western and eastern thoughts and learnings, especially with respect to science, mathematics, cartography and wisdom.
The last three Popes – Saint Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis have all praised Fr Ricci as the model of inculturation and an example for us to follow.
This article was originally published in a recent edition of the ‘Viewpoint’ newsletter for Saint Ignatius’ College Riverview.
Read ‘Matteo Ricci: A Heritage of Friendship, Dialogue and Peace’ on the Jesuits.Global website
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