Research
The research agenda of the Center for Global Christianity is driven by the interests of the people who are part of its community. Reports about their ongoing work will be posted from time to time.
Quid pro Quo? Missionaries and Their ‘Skill Capital’ in Qing Beijing
In the eighteenth century around thirty European Catholic missionaries lived in Beijing, partly employed in technical and artistic services at the imperial palace and at the Directorate of Astronomy, and partly engaged in religious work. Starting in 1724, however, the Yongzheng Emperor forbade Christianity in the provinces. Yet the foreigners, with semi-official permission, continued missionizing in the capital and its environs, employed Chinese personnel, purchased residences and other real estate, and built churches in the Imperial City, the “Tartar City,” and the Haidian suburb. The emperor and the Qing court (Manchu nobles, eunuchs, and other officials) allowed these Europeans to... More
Maryknoll 2019
This year’s meeting of the Eastern Fellowship of Professors of Mission held at Maryknoll was attended by 57 people from a total of 16 institutions—a record number on both accounts. The theme of “Visualizing Mission” fired the imagination of presenters and participants alike. On Friday, Maryknoll Father Larry Lewis unveiled jewels of “God images” and signs of divine presence in several mainstream American and foreign films, emphasizing the mission of fully living out one’s humanity for God. After dinner, filmmaker James Ault played an excerpt of his new film project on Mechanic Manyeruke, considered a father of gospel music in... More
Aristocratic Patronesses of the Chinese Catholic Mission
What do a Chinese élite lady in Shanghai, a Portuguese duchess in Madrid, an Austrian queen in Lisbon, and a Bavarian countess in Augsburg all have in common? These women, in spite of distance in time and space, all became revered patronesses of the Jesuit missions in China in the early modern period. Candida Xu (許甘第大, 1607-1680), granddaughter of the most prominent Chinese Catholic convert of the late Ming period, the imperial Grand Secretary Xu Guangqi 徐光啓, once widowed at age 46 poured her fortune and energies in religious endeavors within the Catholic mission, and became a paragon of patronage and... More
100 Women of 2019
Gina Zurlo ('17) was selected as one of the 100 women of 2019 by the BBC. She spoke in New Delhi at a BBC-sponsored event, discussing the role of women in religion. Her talk begins at 56:27.