Xu Guangqi
1562-1633 16th century
No truth is foreign to God: searching, calculating, translating can become a way of serving him.
Who was Xu Guangqi?
A Shanghai scholar who passed the highest imperial examinations, baptized Paul in 1603 after meeting Matteo Ricci. With Ricci he translated Euclid into Chinese, reformed the calendar, wrote a complete treatise on agriculture, and publicly defended the persecuted missionaries in his 1616 memorial to the emperor. He died Grand Secretary of the empire in 1633 and lies buried in the Shanghai district that still bears his name, Xujiahui; his cause for beatification is open.
In their own words
This teaching has the service of Heaven as its foundation, the saving of souls as its goal, the practice of love and kindness as its method, the changing of evil into good as its way, and repentance as its discipline.
The essence of their teaching is to cultivate personal virtue in order to serve the Lord of Heaven.
They are disciples of the holy sage: their way is right, their discipline strict, their knowledge vast, their understanding deep, their hearts pure and their resolve firm.