明清之际的浙东学人与西学

The Hidden Link between East Zhejiang Scholars and European Missionaries at the Turn of the Ming and Qing Dynasties

浙东蕺山学派与西方传教士之间的关系,比我们所知道的要密切得多。鄞县人朱宗元是浙东最早的天主教徒之一,其出生时间应为1617年或稍早,而不是目前所说的1609年;他受洗的时间应为1638年,而非目前所说的1631年。经朱宗元介绍,刘宗周的学生张能信成为天主教徒。张能信的父亲曾投靠魏忠贤,而其岳父则是魏忠贤的反对者,张能信皈依天主教,可能与这种家庭背景有关。明朝灭亡后,朱宗元很快归顺清朝,而张能信则走上了武装反清的道路。黄宗羲与张能信同是刘宗周的弟子,同是抗清战士,但黄宗羲却没有提到过张能信,其原因很值得深入研究。此外,黄宗羲的好友魏学濂等人也与传教士有着密切的联系。

When European missionaries introduced Western culture to China in the first half of the 17^th century, the famous scholar Liu Zongzhou founded the Ji Shan School in East Zhejiang, which developed greatly by his student Huang Zongxi. Many researchers have probed into the relations between the Ji Shan School and European missionaries, to only find some indirect evidence. The hidden link between Western missionaries and East Zhejiang scholars represented by the Ji Shan School is revealed by examining documents carefully, and the key person in the link is Zhu Zongyuan, a native of Yinxian. Zhu Zongyuan was one of the earliest Roman Catholics. He was born in 1617 or a little earlier, not in 1609 as presumed. He was baptized in 1638 by Louis Buglio, not in 1631 by Emmanuel Diaz Junior. He not only helped his European friends such as Joao Monteiro, Stanislas Torrente, Girolamo de Gravina to compile books about Christianity in Chinese, but also wrote several pamphlets preaching the Gospel. Under the influence of Zhu Zongyuan, his friend Zhang Nengxin became a Jesuit. Although Zhang Nengxin＇s father Zhang Jiude toadied to the famous eunuch Wei Zhongxian while his father-in-law Liu Xianchong was firmly opposed to the eunuch. Zhang Nengxin＇ wife was recorded in the official Ming History as a model female. Zhang Nengxin＇s conversion may be due to this peculiar family background. What is important is that Zhang Nengxin was a direct student of Liu Zongzhou, and even an excellent one. In 1646 when Qing soldiers conquered East Zhejiang, the two Chinese Jesuits Zhu Zongyuan and Zhang Nengxin took an opposite attitude. Zhu Zongyuan swore allegiance to the new dynasty immediately. He took part in the imperial examinations organized by the Qing government only some months later after Qing occupied this area and attained the Gongsheng degree, before attaining the higher degree Juren in 1648. Most literati contemporary with Zhu Zongyuan in East Zhejiang were opposed to the Qing Dynasty, which may explain why Zhu Zongyuan had not been mentioned in the voluminous works of these literati. However, since Zhang Nengxin was a brave anti-Qing soldier as Huang Zongxi, why is it hard to find any record of Zhang Nengxin in the works of Huang Zongxi and other literati？ The fact may be explained by their different religious beliefs. Huang Zongxi had an intimate friend named Wei Xuelian who was Liu Zongzhou＇s student, too. Wei Xuelian, together with Zhu Zhongyuan helping the European missionary Joao Monteiro to write in Chinese, expressed his obvious inclination towards Christianity. It is very clear that Zhu Zhongyuan, Zhang Nengxin, Wei Xuelian and some others formed a hidden link between the Ji Shan School and the European missionaries.