Marists in China: a story of resilience, creativity and love of mission
The book “The adventure of the Marist Brothers in China” was launched on-line on March 19 during the closing of the course on Marist Spirituality and Patrimony, promoted by UMBRASIL. The Marist Memorial of the Province of Brasil Centro-Sul, in collaboration with the publishing company PUCPRESS and the General Administration of the Institute, were responsible for the Portuguese and Spanish versions of this book, first published in the original English in 2017.
During the launch, broadcast live on canal do Farol 1817 do Youtube, the panellists were Br Ernesto Sanchez, Superior General of the Marist Institute; Br Carlos Huidobro, former Secretary General of the Marist Institute; and Br Benê Oliveira, Provincial. One of the authors of the book, Spes Ku, a former Marist student, also participated in a video message. The transmission can be seen on https://youtu.be/gr09IFS1ZK0
Br Carlos met with the entire team that produced the book at the General House when he was Secretary General. Captivated by the story described there and seeing the inspiration that this experience could mean for Marist life today, he took it upon himself to promote the translation and publication of the work in the other languages of the Institute, Spanish, Portuguese and French.
The authors of the book are Spes Stanley Ku and Nathalie A. Pasa. It was published in 2017 by New City in the Philippines. Spes Ku is a Marist ex-student of St Francis Xavier’s College, Hong Kong (class of 1982). The original title of the book is “Dawn of the word – In Silence – The adventure of the Marist Brothers in China”. The authors present how the work of Marcellin Champagnat developed in China from 1891, when the first six Brothers arrived, to 1954. During their research, the authors studied diaries, personal letters, notes, interviews and other documents found in the Marist archives. On the day of the presentation, Spes Ku said that he had spoken personally with the last brothers still living in the country. Without a shadow of doubt, it is a story that involves much resilience, creativity and love for our mission. And one whose fruits go far beyond the date of the closure of the Chinese Province, which is now encompassed by the Province of East Asia and the District of Asia.
During his presentation. Br Ernesto stressed that the authors “had an extraordinary intuition in transforming into a written document all the valuable information about the Marist presence and mission in China, thus ensuring knowledge and inspiration of our legacy in Chinese lands for present and future generations “.
The Portuguese version was printed in Brazil and will be distributed through the Marist Memorial. The Spanish version, translated and printed by the General House, will be mailed to the Administrative Units in the coming days. A French version is also being produced and will be published in the coming months. The work will also be translated into German.
This book is important for the Marist world today because it shows how the 6 French Brothers who arrived in China in 1891 can be an example of global availability mandated by the last General Chapter. It also shows the missionary ardour of the young Brothers who started this adventure: “the missionary spirit of Saint Marcellin remained very much alive in the hearts of these Brothers”, emphasised Brother Carlos, during the presentation of the book.