Chapter 99 - The Hangzhou Church

The entire Catholic community in Hangzhou numbered around 1,400 to 1,500 people. On average, Lazzaro Cattaneo baptized two hundred people each year. He spoke of the various difficulties and unique aspects of proselytizing there, believing that gaining the support of the gentry class was paramount for missionary work in the Ming Dynasty. Their influence was extensive; not only could they protect the church, but the common people also often saw them as role models. The baptism of a local gentleman would often lead to the conversion of many people around him. Many scholar-official converts were baptized with their entire families; not only themselves and their relatives, but also their household servants would follow suit.

The baptism of gentry and scholar-officials immediately solved the church’s financial problems and the issue of housing for mission points. Without the donations of gentry converts, the poor believers were unable to contribute, nor were there enough of them to “build a tower from grains of sand.” The church would have to rely on remittances from Macau to survive, and it would be difficult to purchase houses and land.

It was precisely because of the support of a group of Catholic gentry, represented by the Yang and Li families, that the Catholic Church in Hangzhou was able to maintain a stable state. Its missionary work was rarely disturbed, and thus it developed rapidly.

Starting with Confucian scholars and scholar-officials to spread the faith was the missionary strategy formulated by Matteo Ricci after he entered China. In Zhao Yigong’s view, Ricci was truly the first European to understand the social conditions of China. Previous Europeans, including Marco Polo—whose visit to China is uncertain—were merely curious sightseers.

However, Zhao Yigong believed this strategy was too focused on the “upper echelons.” Although many from the poorer classes were also baptized—some even became martyrs in religious cases, with the first Catholic martyr in China being a pastry vendor in the “Nanjing Religious Case”—overall, the Catholic Church in the Ming Dynasty lacked social roots, “floating on the surface.” The result was that once Emperor Yongzheng banned Christianity, the already small Catholic faith was quickly eradicated throughout the country.

After the ban was lifted following the Second Opium War, Protestantism surpassed Catholicism in missionary work, largely due to their “popular” approach. The new churches opened hospitals, schools, orphanages, and organized various charities, achieving remarkable results.

But Zhao Yigong would not share this view with Cattaneo—the “lower-level route” was the Council of Elders’ secret weapon. Of course, Cattaneo was probably not unaware of the drawbacks of the “upper-level route,” but in the social environment of the time, it was a necessary choice. Without the “prestige” of Britain and France after the Second Opium War, the Protestant “lower-level route” might not have been feasible.

Although Cattaneo was in Hangzhou, he was not cut off from news of the church. The Catholic Church in Macau sent messengers every few months to deliver letters to the various churches in mainland China. The local churches would also give their letters to the messengers to take back. Some letters bound for Europe were loaded onto ships in Macau. Although the letters took years to travel, the church’s communication network never broke down. Even during the reigns of Emperors Yongzheng and Qianlong, when missionary work came to a complete halt, the missionaries in Beijing were still able to maintain contact with the churches in Macau and Europe.

Cattaneo had carefully read the letter from the Jesuit society. This old missionary, who had been through many storms, had a thorough understanding of China’s national conditions. Through information from the converts in the Hangzhou church and the missionaries in Beijing, he was well aware of the true identity of this Chinese man from “Guangdong”: they were the “Australians” in whom the Father President had placed great hopes.

The war between the Australians and the Ming in Qiongzhou and their vigorous promotion of the Holy Faith there had both surprised and delighted Cattaneo. The pastoral work of his brothers—such as Lu Ruohua—in Qiongzhou over three years had surpassed what they had achieved in forty years of arduous effort.

He didn’t quite understand why the Australians were interested in the Jesuit society and missionary work. The letters from Macau indicated that although there were a few Catholics among them, the Australians did not come from a Catholic country. They also had no particular religious beliefs—the letters specifically mentioned their atheistic tendencies, and the head of the church in Lin’gao was clearly not a qualified clergyman. Obviously, their help in spreading the faith in Qiongzhou was not out of religious fervor, but for some practical benefit.

Now, this mysterious Australian had appeared before him, and he was very interested in his purpose.

Zhao Yigong made no secret of his intentions. Evasion or clever wording was pointless; the Jesuit society was willing to help the Council of Elders precisely because of the Council’s strength. As long as the Jesuits intended to continue their missionary work in Qiongzhou, Cattaneo had no choice but to help him.

“You mean, to use the power of our Hangzhou converts to protect your commercial interests?” the Italian said after listening quietly to his explanation.

Zhao Yigong said, “Yes. You have been in the Ming Dynasty for many years and should understand the difficulties and interference I face as an outsider doing business here. And you certainly know the influence a gentleman has in Ming society.”

Cattaneo nodded thoughtfully. “You are right.”

“Therefore, I must ask for the help of the Hangzhou church,” Zhao Yigong said, looking into the eyes of the stately old Italian.

“What kind of business do you plan to start in Hangzhou?” Cattaneo was very interested. He knew from the letters from Macau that the Australians were skilled craftsmen who could produce many novel and cheap goods.

“Many things,” Zhao Yigong said. “For example, raw silk.”

Cattaneo said no more, only nodding slightly. The raw silk trade was an important source of income for the Jesuit society in Macau. Before the trade with Japan was cut off, the Jesuits would buy “Nanjing silk” through merchants every year and resell it in Japan for huge profits. The priest certainly knew that the so-called Nanjing silk was actually “Huzhou silk” from Zhejiang and Southern Zhili.

It was not surprising to him that the Australians had come to Zhejiang to get involved in the production and trade of raw silk. Their request for the church to use its influence for protection was also expected—no matter how powerful the Australians’ warships and cannons were, they would not appear at the mouth of the Yangtze River.

Of course, he had to agree to the Australians’ request. This was not only his duty as a Jesuit but also necessary for spreading the gospel in China.

He made the sign of the cross and murmured, “Let God’s will be done.”

In the subsequent conversation, Zhao Yigong mentioned Sun Yuanhua. Cattaneo praised him highly, considering him the future pillar of the church in the Ming Dynasty. Li and Yang were already dead, and Xu Guangqi was old; only Sun Yuanhua was in his prime. He was already the governor of Dengzhou and Laizhou, the highest-ranking official among Chinese converts besides Xu Guangqi.

Sun Yuanhua’s home was in Jiaxing, not far from Hangzhou. He had prepared a quiet and comfortable villa there for the missionaries. Cattaneo had once stayed there to write, and the two had a good personal friendship.

Without much effort, he obtained Cattaneo’s promise to write a letter of introduction to Sun Yuanhua for them. Zhao Yigong’s reason for wanting to see Sun Yuanhua was also quite valid—he wanted to sell arms to this high-ranking local official who was most deeply versed in Western military theory and technology at the time.

He received all the support he wanted from Cattaneo. Consequently, when Zhao Yigong later visited the main gentry converts of the Hangzhou church, he was received with great hospitality. The heads of both the Li and Yang families hosted banquets for this “inquirer of the faith.”

Zhao Yigong knew that he could gain the trust of the key figures in the Hangzhou church with the letters of introduction from the Jesuit society and Cattaneo. However, the necessary courtesies also had to be observed. Therefore, he had already prepared a large number of gifts.

Considering that newly baptized converts and church organizations were always more fundamentalist, he avoided overly luxurious gifts to prevent causing offense. The bulk of the gifts were religious books. He had the Jiangnan inspection team bring a large box of Chinese-language religious books printed in Lin’gao. Most of these were based on religious pamphlets compiled by the Three-Self Patriotic Movement of the Catholic Church in the old world, including commonly used books like “Catechism” and “Compendium of Essential Prayers.” This was like sending charcoal in a snowstorm for the converts who were in desperate need of high-quality Chinese Catholic books. He also donated three hundred taels of silver to the church—in Delong banknotes—and promised to ship plate glass to renovate the church windows.

He also presented a batch of simple and practical “Australian goods”: matches, small knives, and windproof oil lamps with glass shades, which were given to the leading figures and ordinary converts in the church. These items had recently appeared in small quantities on the market, but their high prices made them inaccessible to most people.

This gift indeed won him great favor with the Hangzhou church. Not to mention Cattaneo, even the ordinary converts were impressed by the generosity of this “inquirer of the faith” from afar. Zhao Yigong was humble in his speech and frequently expressed his “admiration for the Holy Faith,” which further endeared him to the real power brokers of the church.

The arrival of a new priest also created a small ripple in the quiet church—people always liked new things. On his first Sunday after arriving at the Hangzhou church, Jin Lige celebrated Mass for the congregation. Hearing that a new missionary had arrived, many of Hangzhou’s Catholics came, and the small church was filled with four or five hundred people. Jin Lige was moved to tears during his sermon. Zhao Yigong, however, found it dull—but to win the favor of the local church, he still maintained a respectful appearance.

In the end, his actions were a complete success. Although Zhao Yigong was not a convert, his status as an “inquirer of the faith” was recognized by the Hangzhou church. He easily gained the support of several gentry members of the church, especially the Li and Yang families. He received several calling cards and a letter of introduction from Cattaneo to Sun Yuanhua.