One of the main points of Orientalism is the division of humanity into us and them. The Occidental and the Oriental, East and West, these are divisions created by Europeans in order to dominate the other. By separating the peoples an Orientalist can justify the subjugation and forced change of other races. Said’s overall point is that Orientalism was created by Europeans in order to justify the subjugation of the Orientals. Cultural and intellectual superiority and the separation of us and them led to three hundred years of European imperialism in the so called Orient.
In order to understand how Orientalism affected Missionaries in China and Japan, one must first understand the Orientalist’s views of foreign religions. Most Orientalists were Christians and therefore believed all none Christians were destined for hell. “This, oddly enough, even applied to pre-Christians such as Aristotle and Abraham. In Dante’s Inferno both these men are in the first layer of Hell, even though Christianity did not exist during their lifetimes. So from this intolerant view one can see the basic attitude towards non-Christians. Muslims, Hindu and Buddhists were all considered heathen that needed the word of Jesus to save them from eternal damnation. “The Church’s commission to preach the gospel of Christ to ‘every creature’ also lays upon her the task of inviting all to accept Christ as Lord and Saviour and to join his Church through baptism.” With this belief in mind Christian Missionaries went to the Orient to “save” the heathens and convert them to the one true faith, whether they wanted too or not.
One of the earliest Christian Missionaries Father Matteo Ricci of the Society of Jesus, better known as the Jesuits, arrived in China in 1582 after a four month journey from Goa. He was a Roman Catholic priest who was trained the Rome in numerous subjects. The Jesuits were the most well educated order within the Catholic Church; for this reason they were particularly well suited for missionary work in Asia. The Jesuit tactic was too convert the social elites and then have their support in the conversion of the masses. This worked particularly well in Asia due to the strict social structures and relatively good education of the elites. Also the widespread belief in Confucianism fit well with Christianity. Ricci said in his work “The True Idea of God”, “the Confucian Classics contained allusions, albeit in an inchoate manner, to such Christian notions as God and a future life.” Well educated bureaucrats in China respected Ricci’s education and intelligence, and were interested in the Western ideas he possessed. Techniques such as Ricci’s Memory Palace interested the Chinese and often spawned further interest into the religion Ricci brought with him.
Ricci’s view of the Chinese is full of contradictions. Many aspects of Chinese culture and government Ricci respected, such as their dress and level of education; the hygiene of the people and the relative order imposed by the Chinese bureaucracy. At the same time that Ricci praised aspects of Chinese civilization, he abhorred a great deal of Chinese practices. Among these are the corruption rampant throughout China, the worship of heathen religions and their disrespect for human life. Ricci once remarked “This country is full of slaves. ” Most importantly Ricci despised the widespread homosexuality within China.
There are two main reasons for describing Ricci as an Orientalist. The first is his reason for being in China. Ricci sought to convert all of China to Catholicism. He cared little for the established religions in China and sought to impose his Christian faith upon the peoples of China. Ricci once remarked “…Buddhism violated the very first of the Ten Commandments, and it had not raised moral standards in China despite its two thousand years during which it had been preached.” Viewing his own faith as superior to any other and being so disdainful of all others, Ricci can be labeled an Orientalist.
The second reason for labeling Ricci an Orientalist is his general disdain for all things Chinese. While he may admire certain attributes he generally views everything Western superior; for example his disgust with open prostitution in the streets of major Chinese cities. Ricci completely glosses over the fact that prostitution was legal within Rome itself. In fact prostitution within Rome was widespread. Montaigne on visiting Rome remarked, “Taking coach rides or strolling to view the prostitutes was a major Roman pastime.” In his criticism of homosexuality, Ricci also ignores the previous acceptance of homosexuality in Europe. Montaigne remarked during his visit too Rome, “several marriages between Portuguese males had been celebrated in the church of St. John a few years before, and that the couples had went to bed and lived together for some time before being arrested and burned at the stake.” This method of criticizing China while ignoring the fact that the same problems existed within Europe labels Ricci as an Orientalist.
Ricci had additional goals beyond simply the conversion of the Chinese. Along with the conversion to Christianity Ricci hope to rebuild China along European lines. Ricci spent a great deal of time extolling the virtues of European civilization, and purity of the Catholic faith. Ricci hoped to rid China of corruption, create a perfect Christian society, and cleanse China of heathen practices such as abstaining from meat year round and homosexuality. These goals of changing Chinese society certainly label Ricci to be an Orientalist.
Father Francis Xavier of the Society of Jesus arrived in Japan in 1549 aboard a Chinese junk. Xavier had many initial difficulties in Japan; the first of which being his inability to speak Japanese, and later to understand it. His interpreter caused Xavier many troubles later on due to his using Buddhist names for Christian figures, and forever linking Buddhism to Christianity in the minds of the Japanese. The other difficulty for Xavier was his misunderstanding of Japanese society. When Xavier first arrived he hoped to convert “the king of Japan”, by this he meant the Shogun. But when Xavier met the Shogun he found him to be a man of little importance who could barely maintain his own territory, let alone the whole country. Japan was in the period of sengoku, or country at war, and was divided among many feudal lords all vying for power. This state of civil war later benefited the Christian missionaries greatly, but initially confused Xavier.
Xavier spent the majority of his time in Japan attempting to convert Japanese daimyo and kokujin to Christianity. He succeeded in a few cases largely due to his link with Portuguese trade ships. Daimyo within Japan were looking for a way to gain advantage over their enemies, and trade with the Portuguese greatly enriched many lords. The Japanese believed that converting to Christianity would give them more favorable trade with the Portuguese, and for this reason many converted.
Xavier can be labeled an Orientalist for two main reasons. The first is his overall goal of converting the heathen Japanese to Christianity. His total disdain for Buddhism is apparent when he refers to the religion of Dianichi, “an invention of the devil, as also were all the other sects of Japan.” The second reason for labeling Xavier an Orientalist is for his views on homosexuality. Ricci’s beliefs on homosexuality among Asians stem from Xavier. When Xavier was the head of the Far East mission he declared that homosexuality was an evil to be combated in Asia. For these reasons Xavier is clearly an Orientalist the same as Ricci.
For all of their efforts to convert the peoples of China and Japan, neither Ricci nor Xavier succeeded in any significant way. The problems in China were numerous; deep seated beliefs in Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism kept many from converting, also the lack of interest by the elite made any type of wide scale conversion impossible. In addition the basic fear of outsiders made the Chinese distrustful and angry towards the Christian missionaries. In Japan the eventual consolidation of Japan under the Tokugawa shogunate forced all Christians too abandon their faith. The Tokugawa did not want any opposition to their regime and barred any foreigners from entering Japan. Also deep seated religious beliefs and xenophobia as in China caused few too embrace Christianity. Neither Ricci nor Xavier succeeded in their goal of converting the Far East; the task they committed their lives too. One must wonder; if they had taken a more open, non Orientalist approach, would they have been more successful?
Said, Edward W. Orientalism. (New York: First Vintage Books Edition, October 1979.), 2.
Manikam, Rajah B. Christianity and the Asian Revolution. (New York: Friendship Press, 1954) 185.
Ching, Julia. Confucianism and Christianity. (Tokyo: Kodansha International, 1977) 10.
Hellyer, Robert. Lecture. “The Jesuits in Asia.” Allegheny College. Meadville, Pa. 11 February 2002.
Spence, Jonathan D. The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci. (New York: Penguin Books, 1985.) 2-5
Elisonas, “Christianity and the Daimyo,” (Cambridge History of Japan, volume 4, 301-372.) 307-310.
