The Catholic Invasion of China Remaking Chinese Christianity [Hardcover]

The book is a fascinating account of Chinese Catholicism. The traditional view saw that history as an appendage of Western imperialism. M. acknowledges the colonial aspects, but he takes the long view to argue that the 'invasion' contributed to the transformation of a mission church into an indigenous expression of Catholicism, now growing into the millions, enriching both the Chinese church and the church universal.[Mungello] presents a nuanced argument about how the modern history of Catholicism in China (that is, from 1800) should be evaluated. Although he is critical of an earlier generation of Western interpretations of Catholic missions for judging the whole effort a failure, he readily acknowledges the errors and damages incurred, as suggested by his use of invasion in the title. From the beginning, however, he states his position that the ultimate achievement of an indigenous form of Catholicism, after centuries of European local management, was more important than the deleterious short-term effects of this invasion. He pursues this position through a series of essays on selected aspects of the modern history of the Chinese Catholic Church&. [H]e emphasizes the positive features of the experience, notably the long-term transformation of a mission church into an indigenous religion, enriching Chinese culture and making Catholicism more universal. He anticipates the election of a Chinese pope.The Catholic Invasion of China continues [Mungellos] orientation toward the recent past while returning to his intellectual roots in the history of Christianity.... The best bonus is a final historiographical overview.... Mungello speaks of reciprocal transformation, not only the Christian strengthening of China, but even the Chinese strengthening of Christianity. Mungellos approach locates the invasions great success in making Chinese Christianity Chinese.This book delivers a challenging account of events and a subtle analysis of socio-cultural currents in Sino-ChrilÆ