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Reviewed by:
  • China’s Saints: Catholic Martyrdom during the Qing (1644–1911)
  • Joseph Tse-Hei Lee
China’s Saints: Catholic Martyrdom during the Qing (1644–1911). By Anthony E. Clark. [Studies in Missionaries and Christianity in China Series.] (Bethlehem, PA: Lehigh University Press. 2011. Pp. xv, 270. $75.00.ISBN 978-1-61146-016-2.)

China’s Saints is an original and insightful study that examines the transmission and appropriation of martyrologies within the Catholic Church. These martyrologies are very moving from the start, and they are as much concerned about what happened to the martyrs as about the violent world in which they lived. The martyrs came from diverse backgrounds, including the missionaries and converts who were executed by the imperial officials in the eighteenth century, and many innocent church members who were trapped and killed in the chaos of the Boxer Uprising.

This book has contributed to our understanding of Chinese Christianity at several levels. Thematically, Anthony E. Clark builds on the latest studies of Catholic movements by Henrietta Harrison, Lars Peter Laamann, Paul Mariani, Eugenio Menegon, and R. G. Tiedemann to discuss the dialectical relationships between faith and politics as well as between history and memory in the Church. Using martyrdom as an analytical tool, Clark reinterprets the indigenization of Catholicism, the frequent outbreaks of church-state conflicts, and the Catholics’ responses to state persecution. His findings throw light on the production and reception of the martyrologies, and the transformation of Christianity from a heavily persecuted religion into a fast-growing spiritual movement today.

Furthermore, the martyrologies reveal an intrinsic linkage between conversion and identity formation among Chinese Catholics. These accounts appear to be hagiographical and problematic on first sight, portraying the martyrs as moral exemplars who refused to compromise with the anti-Christian officials and sacrificed themselves for the faith. The act of defiance displayed their absolute obedience to God rather than to the Confucian emperor. This image of a victorious enthronement and vindication over the imperial rulers represented the triumph of the soul over the flesh and established [End Page 837] that martyrdom, as part of the imitation of Christ’s Passion, was obligatory and fundamental to Christianity. This theological understanding inspired many believers to overcome their fear of death and to uphold the faith in times of persecution.

In addition, the martyrologies constitute a larger project of religious memory production within the Chinese Church. According to Elizabeth A. Castelli, the brutal violence of religious persecution and its suffering must be infused with new meanings in order for martyrdom to work. Therefore, the contest over whose sense of justice and whose side of the story would prevail lies at the center of discussion.1 Although the Church presents the martyrologies as spiritual commentaries in line with the exhortation of Christ, the way of reading martyrdom is contingent upon the changing circumstances around us. As the issue of Sino-Vatican relations has become highly contentious in recent years, the pro-Vatican Catholics in Hong Kong and mainland China turn to the history of martyrdom for guidance. Every year, the Church celebrates the feast of the Chinese martyrs on July 9. While commemorating the saints and reflecting on their sacrifices, Catholics see martyrdom as a living experience that continues to inspire them for spiritual growth and social action.

In short, Clark tells the stories of martyrs with great clarity and emotion, making them easily accessible to readers. When reading China’s Saints, it is hard not to sympathize with these courageous individuals. Its engaging style and readability should appeal to everyone. [End Page 838]

Joseph Tse-Hei Lee
Pace University, New York

Footnotes

1. Elizabeth A. Castelli, Martyrdom and Memory: Early Christian Culture Making (New York, 2004), p. 34.

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