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The Xujiahui Library was begun in 1847 as a part of the Jesuit mission complex at the village of Xujiahui outside of Shanghai and grew over the next one hundred years to become a scholarly repository of over 200,000 volumes. It was known for its local gazetteers of China; long, complete runs of newspapers; reference books; and mission-related writings in Chinese and European languages. The advent of the People's Republic of China brought an end to the Jesuit Xujiahui mission, but its legacy continues in various forms. One of these is the Xujiahui Library, which since 1957 has been part of the Shanghai Library.

The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) Macao is organising and hosting an International Symposium from June 26 – 29, 2024 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the First Council for China (Primum Concilium Sinense) held in Shanghai in 1924. This was the first plenary council of the Catholic Church in China.  In 1924, Pope Pius […]

Bula pela qual Gregório XIII instituiu a diocese de Macau, que seria sufragânea da arquidiocese de Goa e concedendo ao rei de Portugal o direito de padroado e de apresentação do bispo da nova diocese. Publicada em Bullarium Patronatus Portugaliae. Olisipone: ex Typograhia Natione, 1868, pp. 243-245 e Corpo Diplomático Portuguez contendo os actos e relações políticas e diplomáticas de Portugal com as diversas potencias do mundo desde o século XVI até aos nossos dias. Lisboa: Typographia da Academia Real das Sciencias, 1884, vol. X, pp. 498-503.

Em 1549 os missionários da Companhia de Jesus estabeleciam a missão do Japão, inaugurando um período de evangelização católica que se prolongou até à década de 1640. O sucesso da conversão dos nipónicos levou a que, a partir da década de 1590, as ordens mendicantes fossem no encalço dos jesuítas. O período coincidiu com o momento em que o regime Tokugawa impôs no Japão um processo de centralização política de cariz autoritário. A doutrina católica e as atitudes dos missionários colidiram com a nova ordem estabelecida pelos Tokugawa que, por isso, promoveram uma política sistemática anticristã. O sucesso da evangelização deu lugar a uma missão martirizada que serviu para alimentar uma vasta produção tipográfica na Europa Católica de Seiscentos, tanto mais que ia ao encontro das tendências devocionais da Europa da Contra-Reforma e da espiritualidade do Barroco. Por esta via, a Europa tomou contacto com a longínqua Ásia. Mas os textos missionários impressos não tinham apenas fins informativos. A dinâmica tipográfica gerada servia também para fazer a apologia de cada uma das ordens missionárias e assim influenciar os poderes políticos e religiosos a fim defenderem os seus direitos de evangelização. O martírio no Japão foi assim utilizado como arma de propaganda pelas ordens missionárias na Europa.

This collection of ecclesiastical and administrative documents, dating from 1626 to 1772, comprises correspondence, reports, and decrees originating primarily from Portuguese colonial territories in Asia, including Macau, Goa, Malacca, Cochin, and Siam, with additional references to Japan, China, Mozambique, and the broader Indies. The materials, written in Latin, Portuguese, and hybrid ecclesiastical registers, were produced by Jesuit missionaries, Apostolic Vicars, and officials associated with the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith. Key figures include P. Melchioris, D. Domínico Thecis, P. Francisco Xavier Filippo, Father João de Fide, and Cardinal Alberico, among others. Central themes include the establishment and jurisdiction of Apostolic Vicariates, tensions between secular authorities and ecclesiastical governance, internal disciplinary matters, doctrinal disputes, and logistical challenges in trans-imperial communication. The texts reveal ongoing conflicts over oaths, appointments, property rights, and the suppression of local customs deemed incompatible with Catholic orthodoxy, particularly in mission territories. Detailed accounts address the administration of sacraments, succession protocols, allegations of misconduct, and efforts to maintain canonical obedience amid political instability. These documents provide critical insight into the operation of Catholic missionary networks under the Padroado system, the interplay between Rome and colonial religious authorities, and the socio-political dynamics affecting evangelisation efforts across early modern Asia and Africa.

Padre Marcelo Mastrilli, a Jesuit, is remembered for his martyrdom in Nagasaki, Japan, and a miracle attributed to him by St. Francis Xavier. In 1636, en route to India, he foresaw his martyrdom in a letter to S. Antonio Tegliez de Silva. In 1634, while dying in Naples, St. Francis Xavier healed him and tasked him with preaching in the Indies, promising him martyrdom. Mastrilli journeyed through Madrid, Lisbon, Goa, Malacca, and Manila before reaching Japan, experiencing miracles along the way. Leaving Goa in April 1636, with twelve companions, Mastrilli's group split up, heading for Malacca. He, along with Padres Baldassarro Citadella, Antonio Capece, and Francesco Carola, sailed on Domenico di Camera's Galeotta, intending to reach Japan, China, and other areas. However, Dutch vessels forced them to Manila. En route, when the Galeotta sprung a leak, Mastrilli reassured everyone with an image of St. Francis Xavier, promising salvation. In Manila, Mastrilli faced difficulties entering Japan due to restrictions on religious figures. It was decided he would go alone, while his companions went to Macao. Before departing, he accompanied the Governor of Manila to conquer Mindanao. During a battle, he flagellated himself, provoking a demonic reaction and receiving a revelation that the victory would be his and that the Governor would facilitate his journey to Japan. Mastrilli, with ten Japanese men disguised as locals, sailed from Manila on July 13, 1637, reaching the Kingdom of Saxuma on September 19. Seeking the Emperor, he landed at Xiguiso but was discovered and arrested with his companions, then taken to Nagasaki. There, he declared his mission to convert the Emperor. Mastrilli endured tortures, maintaining his faith. Sentenced to death, he was thrown into a pit of filth on October 17, 1637. After four days, he was beheaded; an earthquake occurred at his death.

This collection, catalogued as JAP. SIN. 141, comprises documents pertaining to the Chinese Rites Controversy spanning from 1720 to 1737. The documents offer a multifaceted view of the dispute, incorporating perspectives from various individuals and religious orders involved. The collection includes transcriptions of diaries concerning the Mezzabarba legation from Emperor Kam Hi, summaries of Roman decisions and concessions related to the rites (1645-1720), and testimonies regarding the innocence of the Jesuit order in China. Correspondence within the collection sheds light on the Jansenism in Cocincina and developments in missions across China and other Eastern territories. Furthermore, the series contains a historical overview of the mission in China from 1583 to 1737, highlighting the initial acceptance and subsequent extinction of Christianity before its re-establishment by Jesuit missionaries . It also delves into the examination of Chinese customs and the ensuing debates regarding the compatibility of certain rites with Christian doctrine. The documents reflect the differing viewpoints and resolutions concerning the rites, including papal decrees and the positions of various religious orders such as the Franciscans and Dominicans. They also touch upon the implications of these controversies on the Chinese mission and the challenges faced by missionaries in administering sacraments and navigating imperial mandates.

This 1926 diplomatic memorandum, issued by the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ General Directorate of Political and Diplomatic Affairs, addresses ecclesiastical jurisdictional disputes between the Portuguese Crown and the Holy See concerning dioceses under the Padroado system in British India and Asia. Dated 5 May 1926 and addressed to the Portuguese Minister Plenipotentiary to the Holy See, the document analyses a proposed agreement on the reorganisation of Portuguese ecclesiastical jurisdictions, specifically Goa, Daman, Cochin, Mylapore, and potentially Macau. It outlines Portugal’s position on four key issues: approval of boundary modifications only with governmental consent; extension of the state’s response period to three months in episcopal appointments; clarification that the semi-Padroado arrangements over Indian dioceses such as Bombay, Trichinopoly, Quilon, and Mangalore should remain subject to Portuguese input; and strong objections to the proposed transfer of spiritual jurisdiction over enclaved Padroado Christian communities to local bishops under Propaganda Fide. The author, Vasco Inge (or Vase Boye), argues that such transfers—particularly affecting Daman and Mylapore, which would lose up to half or one-third of their Christian populations—would cause severe institutional harm. Instead, he proposes a system of territorial compensation based on reciprocal exchanges of equivalent Christian populations, citing precedent from the 1923 establishment of Tuticorin. The document underscores Portugal’s determination to preserve its historic patronage rights while advocating for negotiated, equitable solutions to complex transcolonial ecclesiastical governance challenges.

This is a diplomatic correspondence collection comprising three interrelated official notes dated 15–16 February 1925, originating from the Portuguese Legation to the Holy See in Rome. The documents address the Holy See’s establishment of an Apostolic Prefecture in Guangdong Province (referred to interchangeably as Canton Province), decreed by Apostolic Letter of 31 January 1924 and published in the *Acta Apostolicae Sedis* on 1 April 1924, and entrusted to the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America (Maryknoll Fathers). Key figures include J. A. de Castro (signatory of the principal note), F. a) A. (author of the dispatch to the Portuguese Minister for Foreign Affairs), and Cardinal Pietro Gasparri, Secretary of State to the Holy See. The correspondence centres on Portugal’s assertion that the Holy See’s ecclesiastical reorganisation in Guangdong does not abrogate the Bishop of Macau’s pastoral jurisdiction over specified territories, as guaranteed under Article VI of the 1857 Treaty between the Holy See and the Kingdom of Portugal and reaffirmed by Article XI of the 1886 Convention. The documents further identify the Prefecture’s territorial composition—Sanwui (Xinhui), Chak-hai (Jianghai), and Sanning (Sanxing)—and argue for its de facto subordination to Macau on religious, political, and economic grounds. The material constitutes primary evidence of early twentieth-century Portuguese ecclesiastical diplomacy, colonial ecclesiastical jurisdiction, and Holy See–state relations in East Asia.