TO LEARN MORE... Confucius Confucius (c. 551-479 B.C.) was a philosopher born of a poor family. He occupied political o ices before being exiled for thirteen years. He traveled from province to province o ering counsel to princes and teachings to his disciples. He developed a system of education with the aim of improving man’s virtue and happiness, as well as society. His disciples gathered his teachings in many books. Confucianism is not a religion, but it contains certain rituals. It was to become o icial state doctrine for a thousand years, until the fall of the empire in 1911. Matteo Ricci’s world maps Matteo Ricci o ered Emperor Wan Li an incredibly complete map for the time. He wrote it in Chinese and included European, Chinese, and Arab knowledge of the world. For the first time in China, he depicted a world that was round, and he included America. He positioned China in the center in relation to the rest of the world. The dispute over the Chinese rite Matteo Ricci tried to combine some Confucian customs with Catholic worship. After him, other Jesuits copied his way of doing things. But this practice has been controversial. Franciscans and Dominicans arrived in China in 1631 and disapproved of the Chinese elements that had been added to the Mass. Pope Innocent X banned the Chinese rite in 1645. In return, the emperor, furious, chased away all missionaries in 1724. It was not until 1939 that Pope Pius XII allowed Chinese Catholics to practice the Chinese rite. An astronomical honor In 1935, the International Astronomical Union gave the name Riccius to a lunar crater in honor of Matteo Ricci. 58
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