Matteo Ricci and China - Research Paper Example

1-50).1 The aim of this research paper is to discuss Matteo Ricci in China, why he came to China, what he completed during his stay in China, as well as the impacts he had on Chinese society during that time and in the modern day. Why Matteo Ricci came to China The main reason why Matteo Ricci went to China encompasses the desire to spread the Christian gospel to China. As an intelligent and talented Jesuit, Ricci sought to preach the Christian message in China. He entered China during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), marking the beginning of what can be referred as the third period of the history of Christianity in China.

Together with other Jesuits, Ricci intended to see the implementation of the insights of Alessandro Valignano, their Jesuit chief. In order to make China a Christian society, he made attempts to connect with both the ordinary people and the educated Chinese. The Christian doctrines that Ricci wanted to spread in China mainly included those of Catholicism (Fontana 2011, p. 1-50).1 Ricci also came to China with the aim of amassing knowledge, which he could disseminate to people in other parts of the world.

Of utmost importance was his desire to spread Christianity to the Chinese cultures, which had no prior knowledge of Christianity but used to be strict followers of other religious beliefs. Thus, his determination to see Christianity spread in China can be termed as the main reason why Matteo Ricci came to China (Brockey 22007, p. 10-250). What Matteo Ricci completed during his stay in China and his impact during that time up to modern day China Some of the accomplishments that Ricci made in China included preaching and spreading Christianity to most of the parts of China.

His main focus included spreading Catholicism doctrine, teaching astronomy, geography, and mathematics. During his stay in China, Ricci collected maps of China and merged them with maps of the west to come up with the map of the entire world (Brockey 2007, p. 10-250).2 For the first time, there came to be the Chinese Global map, which Ricci himself compiled. His other contributions included the introduction of geographic coordinate system, as well as western geography. The coordinate system helped in the measuring of longitude and latitude in maps, which led to China.

Ricci introduced western civilization to the Chinese people; this civilization spread to other countries around China such as Japan (Hsia 2010, p. 30-120).3 His other accomplishments while in China included doing twenty writings in Chinese. These writings encompassed scientific works, religious writings, as well as treaties; one of the most famous writings that he did was the “True Doctrine of God.” Moreover, he contributed to the compiling of the first European-Chinese dictionary and two Portuguese-Chinese dictionaries.

Ricci’s accomplishments in China also encompassed leaving behind 2,500 Chinese Catholics at the time of his death; most of them included the educated ones. His legacy also encompassed a Friendship Treatise, Mnemonic arts treatise, as well as a translation of Elements of Geometry in Chinese (Lehner 2011, p. 4-70).3 Ricci’s accomplishments while in China also encompass writings that entailed catechisms and the translation of Chinese prayers. Moreover, Ricci was highly involved in the composition of hymns in the Chinese language, which played a crucial role in his efforts to spread the doctrines and teachings of