英文摘要 |
The ancient literati of China often exchanged poems they composed themselves as a sign of friendship. In this way, poetry records historical events as well as corroborates them. In the late Ming dynasty, Jesuit missionaries came to China to preach Christianity, becoming friends with scholar-officials in the process. Giulio Aleni (1582-1649), an Italian Jesuit missionary, came to Fujian Province at the end of 1624 and preached there for twenty-five years. He won the support and friendship of the Fujian literati, who responded to his preaching by writing poems in his honor. These poems, dedicated to him by scholar-officials in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, are compiled in Gift Poems from Fujian Literati《閩中諸公贈詩》. This paper investigates the reasons behind the gift poems; their historical background; their underlying messages; the effects of Christianity reflected in the poems; the interaction between the literati and Aleni; and the literati’s recognition and approbation of Christianity. The study also reveals the historical context in which Aleni spread Christianity in Fujian during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. |