Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Beijing (Agenzia Fides) – Catholics from the parish of Tong Tang, dedicated to St. Joesph, in the Archdiocese of Beijing, took a pilgrimage to the tomb of the great missionary Fr. Matteo Ricci, in honor of this year of Saint Paul and the missionary month (October), as preparation for World Missions Day. Hundreds of faithful and catechists of the parish, led by their parish priest, traveled to the tomb of Fr. Matteo Ricci on October 8. Other famous missionaries are buried there, including Fr. J.A. Schall von Bell and Fr. Ferdinand Verbiest, and another 80 foreign missionaries and 14 Chinese priests.
It was an impressive experience,” the participants said. The parish pastor, Fr. Liu Bao Wei, said: “Many of us were born and lived in Beijing, and yet many of us had never been here to pay our respects because we thought there would always be another opportunity, like what happens with evangelization, we’re always postponing it to tomorrow. This pilgrimage makes us understand that we have to start now, like St. Paul writes: “But how can they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach?” (Rm 10:14). After reciting the Our Father and the Hail Mary, the pilgrims made a solemn promise in front of the great missionary’s tomb, to work their hardest in following in his footsteps, so that the Gospel can reach all of Chinese culture and society, so that Catholicism spreads to all China, and the Christian roots may always remain firm. They prayed for support from Servant of God Matteo Ricci, and prayed that St. Joseph’s Parish may be able to take full advantage of its location in downtown Beijing to make God known to the largest number of people possible.
Matteo Ricci was born on October 6, 1552, in a noble family in Macerata (Italy). He entered the novitiate of the Jesuit Order in 1571. He left for India in 1577 and was ordained a priest on July 25, 1580. He arrived in Macao in 1582 and was later sent by his Superiors to Beijing in 1601, bringing gifts to the court of the Chinese emperor. He died in Beijing on May 11, 1610. For the first time in Chinese history, the emperor paid tribute to a foreigner with a solemn burial. During his stay in China, for nearly 28 years, Matteo Ricci maintained healthy relations with the emperor, permitting him to build several churches and convents, and evangelize the local people. He also made contributions to the scholastic world, translating many works on the faith, science, and Western philosophical thought into Chinese and Chinese works into Italian. Scholars say that Fr. Matteo Ricci was a “pioneer in inculturalization”: one of the few missionaries that gained an authentic Chinese sensibility, in terms of the local culture and the desire to establish missions in China. (NZ) (Agenzia Fides 14/10/2008)
