Note | In: Tianzhujiao dongchuan wenxian sanbian 天主教東傳文獻三編, v. 4-6.
Full citation see: Ad Dudink & Nicolas Standaert, Chinese Christian Texts Database (CCT-Database )
Full text of late Qing edition hosted at University of Macau.
“….Exegesis was not excluded, however, as appears from Shengjing zhijie 聖經直解 (1632-1642) composed by Manuel Dias, Jr. This large work (14 juan) translates and comments on the Gospel readings of each Sunday and the major religious feast days. The commentaries are said to be based on Commentaria in Concordiam et Historiam Evangelicam (4 vols; v.1, 1599) composed by Sebastianus Barradas SJ (1543-1615), who was a teacher at the universities of Coimbra and Evora, and who was also a popular preacher. This was an extensive and well-known commentary (34 reprints until 1742). Manuel Dias, however, does not appear to have translated Barradas’ commentary, even though he may have used it as one of his sources. The actual use of Dias’ book is not entirely clear. It is uncertain, for instance, whether it was ever used in liturgy. The difficult style made it inappropriate for public reading. Shengjing guangyi 聖經廣益 (1740), compiled by Joseph Anne Marie de Moyriac de Mailla 馮秉正 nevertheless shows that the same translations could be used in prayer life. It takes its inspiration from Ignatius of Loyola’s Spiritual Exercises in which Biblical texts were used for meditation. The ordinary form of the yearly Spiritual Exercises was an eight day retreat. Shengjing guangyi is a handbook for such a retreat, constructed on the basis of the Sunday readings. These readings were simply copied from Shengjing zhijie.” -- Cf. Standaert, Handbook of Christianity in China, v. 1, p. 623-624.
Jap-Sin I, 70
Shengjing zhijie 聖經直解
Translated by Yang Manuo 陽瑪諾 (Manuel Dias Jr.).
Fourteen juan. Chinese bamboo paper in seven volumes. Published by the Catholic Church of Wulin 武林天主堂印. No date of publication.
The cover bears the title in Chinese with a Latin inscription: “Explicatio Evangeliorum | totius anni.”
The middle column of the title page gives the title: Tianzhu jiangsheng shengjing zhijie 天主降生聖經直解. On the right is the name of the translator. On the left the name of the publisher is given.
The preface of the translator (five folios, the first of which is missing) was written in 1636 (Chongzhen bingzi 丙子). The table of contents consist of seven folios and the index (zashi mulu 雜事目錄) of sixty-four folios. Hsü Tsung-tse points out that this index is a peculiarity of the book, quite unusual for those days among the Chinese. According to Hsü the book was printed in 1642 (Chongzhen 15) and according to Pfister it was printed in Peking.
The book is a partial translation of Sebastian Barradas S.J. (1542–1615), Commentarium in concordiam, & historiam quatuor Evangelistarum . . . Editio tertia. Cum duplice Indice, Scripturae & rerum, seu sententiarum copiossimo . . . Lugduni . . . , 1610 (cf. Verhaeren, no. 939: probably brought to China by Trigault). Also in making an index Dias followed the original of Barradas.
Cf. Pfister, p. 109; Hsü 1949, pp. 23–24; Courant 6729–6730 (Hangzhou edition, without date), 6722–6723 (reprint, Peking 1739), 6740–6741 (reprint, Peking 1790); Couplet, p. 13; Sommervogel, vol. III, col. 44, no. 3; JWC 1:175; DMB 1:415.
Source: Albert Chan, Chinese Books and Documents in the Jesuit Archives in Rome, p. 123. |