May 15, 2012: China’s first exhibition center dedicated to Father Matteo Ricci (1552-1610)
has opened on Sunday in Zhaoqing, the place where the Italian missionary first set
foot on the mainland.
Acting director of the Paris Ricci Institute, officials
from the Guangdong provincial cultural bureau and Zhaoqing city attended the opening
ceremony. The new Matteo Ricci Cultural Exchange Exhibition Center details the life
of the Jesuit priest, known as Li Madou to Chinese people, through an array of exhibits
and written accounts.
The center is located near the ruins of the first church
and Jesuit house that Fr Ricci and his confrere Fr Michele Ruggieri were allowed to
build after they arrived in China in 1583. The church, called “Xianhua Temple” out
of respect for Buddhist custom, was dedicated to the Blessed Mother.
Father
Gabriel Li Jiafang of Jiangmen, who attended the inaugural ceremony, hoped the exhibition,
which is designed to boost tourism, would make more people aware of the missionary
and the Catholic faith. “The local Church has provided historical material such as
books and written records for the Ricci exhibition center which is managed by the
city museum. A replica of a Ricci statue owned by the parish is also erected there,”
the pastor of Zhaoqing’s Immaculate Conception Church said.
Other exhibits
include Fr Ricci’s writings, items of clothing, scientific instruments and astronomical
data, to help visitors understand his background, his six years in Zhaoqing (until
1589) and his contribution to cultural exchanges between East and West.