CONTENTS: Author's Preface. Translator's Preface. Abbreviations.
I. RELICS FROM CHINA'S PAST : Traces of Christianity from the Seventh to the Fourteenth Century: I. The Xi'an Stele. Arrival of the First Christians in China. Imperial Authorization. 2. The Scripture Translations of Chang'an. The Christian Message Explained in Buddhist Terms. 3. The Dunhuang Gloria. The Mission of the Syrian Church of the East to China. 4. The Cross among the Mongols. Christians from the Steppes. Rabban Sauma's Pilgrimage to the Holy Places of the West. 5. A Bell Tower at Khanbalik. The Franciscan Mission. Giovanni da Montecorvino, First Archbishop of Beijing. 6. Arabesques in Chinese Ink. Muslims in China. Ethnic Implantation and Cultural Integration.
II. THE FRIENDSHIP OF WISE MEN : The meeting of Catholicism and Confucianism in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. 7. The discomfiture of the Conquistadors. Attempts to enter China from Macao and the Philippines. 8. Matteo Ricci's Journey. Italian Jesuits enter China. Their cultural approach. 9. Christian Scholars. First converts from Confucianism. Paul Xu, Leo Li, Michael Yang. 10. Candida Xu: A Mother of the Church. A Seventeenth-Century Convert Founder of the Church in Shanghai. 11. Eunuchs and the Kingdom. The Passing Dream of a Christian Emperor in China. 12. Confucians as Arbitrators. Confucian Dignitaries and their Different Attitudes toward Christianity.
III. WITNESSES ON THE RUN : The Gospel is Preached to Poor Peasants in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. 13. The Gospel in the Provinces. Dominicans in Fujian, Franciscans in Shandong, Jesuits in Shaanxi. 14. The First Chinese Bishop. Gregory Luo Wenzao,1616-1691. 15. Catholic Faith and Confucian Rites. The Chinese Rites Controversy. Political Context and Religious Motivation. 16. Andrew Li: Chinese Priest. Fr. Andrew Li's training and ministry, his work in Sichuan Province. 17. Catechists Witness to the Faith . Peter Wu Guosheng, Joseph Zhang Dapeng, and their ministry in Guizhou. 18. Apostles for Women. Consecrated Virgins in Fujian, Sichuan, and Guizhou Provinces. Agatha Lin Zhao, Martyr.
IV. THE COLONIAL PERIOD: AMBIVALENT EXPANSION : Advantages and Disadvantages of Foreign Protection 1840-1949. 19. Pressure from the West. Unequal Treaties Give Christians a Special Status. Anti-Foreignism. 20. Catholic Villages. Refuge in Times of Persecution. Communities of Converts. 21. The Upsurge of Protestantism. Protestant Missions in the Ports of China and Inland Christian Literature. 22. Christians for Progress. Christian Pioneers for Social Reform and Modernization. The Ma Brothers. Fr. Lawrence Li Wenyu, S.J. 23. The Church Outdistanced. A Revolutionary and Anti-imperial generation. The Catholic Synod of Shanghai 1924. 24. Christian Patriotism. Chiang Kai-shek's New Life Movement. Dom Lu Tseng-siang, 0.S.B.
V. DEATH AND RESURRECTION : 1949-2002 Communism and the Attempt to Destroy Religion. 25. The Great Ordeal. The Triple Autonomy Movement and Christian resistance. 26. Chinese Missionaries. The Spread of the Gospel in the Chinese Diaspora. Contacts between Chinese Abroad and the Land of the Ancestors. 27. Hong Kong: Refuge and Springboard. Growth of the Church in Hong Kong. An Opening to the Mainland. 28. Taiwan : Treasure Island. Attempts at a Christian Chinese Culture. Vatican II Applied. 29. Resurrection in Mainland China. Reopening under Ideological Discipline. Religion under Official Control. 30. One Big Family under Heaven. Divisions between Underground Christians and "Patriotic" Christians. Brotherly Support from Christians Abroad. Conclusion.
Appendix A: Chronological Table
Appendix B: Lexicon of Chinese Expressions
Appendix C: List of Personal Names in Chinese
Appendix D: Saints and Blesseds from China as listed in the Roman Martyrology (2001)
Bibliography: Books and Articles in English. Books and Articles in French. Books and Articles in Other Western Languages.
Chinese Bibliography. Maps. Illustrations. Index.

"Christianity first came to China by way of the Silk Road in the seventh century, and, ever since, this great and enduring civilization in the heart of Asia has been home to brothers and sisters of Christ.
Christians in China: A.D. 600 to 2000 chronicles the lives of the Chinese faithful who through the centuries have been both accepted and rejected by their own countrymen. It explores the unique religious and political situations in which Chinese Christians, Catholic and Protestant, have struggled to live their faith and give witness to Christ.
This major work covers each of the historic periods in China with a focus on the development of Christianity and its cultural interaction in each period. It shows the evolution of Christianity as it occurred within the People’s Republic of China. While telling the stories of various Christians throughout Chinese history, the author addresses a few key questions: How the did the Church develop over many centuries in a culture so different from the West? How do Christians in China give witness to their faith? How do they contribute to the life of the universal Church? The answer to such questions provides a meaningful historical background to the broad approach of Pope Benedict XVI in His Letter to the Catholics in China issued on June 30, 2007."--Publishers webpage.