The same Origin and different Roads: the old and recent hatred between Catholicism and Protestantism in Modern China

Abstract

In modern China, with the signing of a series of unequal treaties, there were constant disputes between Catholicism and Protestantism in order to fight for missionary authority, missionary regions and discourse power. As a modern Catholic Chinese Jesuit, Li Wenyu（1840-1911） had written many works on the relationship between the two denominations to defend for Catholicism. In the terms of the content, most of the works are the continuation of the sectarian argument triggered by the Reformation, concentrating mainly on the discussion of doctrines, rituals, the Bible and so on. However, few researches are concerned about new missionary issues such as Missionary cases or a type of inseparable connection between missionaries and Western Powers and they are just a kind of passive response to other people's queries. In the way of Apologetics methods, he once used traditional Chinese culture to explain the doctrines of Catholicism whereas it only occupied a little part. On most occasions, he interpreted doctrines through the Bible directly. By reviewing the relevant works of him, it can be seen that the modern Chinese Catholicism represented by Li Wenyu paid more attention to the enmities caused by differences in beliefs or doctrines instead of new problems arose in missionary work.