120 martyrs of China

Who they were

The Gospel may have reached China very early, but the first sure traces of Christianity come from Syria in the fifth century; Franciscans followed, then Jesuits such as Matteo Ricci, who landed at Macao in 1582. An imperial edict of 1692 allowed preaching, but persecution returned. The protomartyr of China, the Dominican Francisco Fernández de Capillas, was killed in 1648; between 1648 and 1930 some 120 martyrs are counted, 87 of them born in China.

Augustine Zhao Rong, born in 1746 at Kweichou to a pagan family, joined the imperial army and, as a prison guard at Wuchuan, was put in charge of Christians jailed in the persecution of 1772. Listening to the imprisoned priests, he was converted, baptised as Augustine, served the missionaries and was ordained priest in 1781. A moving preacher of Christ's Passion, he was sent to evangelise the aboriginal peoples of Yunnan. When persecution resumed in 1815 he was recognised as a priest, imprisoned and tortured to death.

The miracles

For the Jubilee of 2000 St John Paul II united all the Chinese martyrs, beatified at different times, in one cause and canonised them together. As martyrs they did not need approved miracles.

Why that counted as sanctity

Priests, religious and lay people, Chinese and foreign, witnessed to Christ in word and life to the final sacrifice, among them a soldier who became a Christian by guarding Christians in prison.

Connected on this site

• Gabriel-Taurin Dufresse Saint
  “Murdered for his faith, he is one of the 120 martyrs of China, canonized by Pope John Paul II on October 1, 2000, on the feast of Thérèse of Lisieux, patron saint of the missions.” — Wikipedia
• Matteo Ricci Venerable
  “The Gospel may have reached China very early, but the first sure traces of Christianity come from Syria in the fifth century; Franciscans followed, then Jesuits such as Matteo Ricci, who landed at Macao in 1582.” — this site's research