Theology Annual vol.5 1981 p.111-120
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Of the many religious movements which grew on the fringes of main-line Christianity in late Antiquity, two were particularly significant in view of their medieval developments, and deserve our special attention as Chinese students of the medieval West. They were Nestorianism and Manichaeism.
Nestorius was a Persian Christian who became bishop of Constantinople, His views about the nature and person of Jesus Christ led to his condemnation as a heretic by the ecumenical council of Ephesus in A.D. 431. His followers moved eastwards across Asia, and in the T'ang dynasty were the first to bring the Christian religion to China. Nestorianism became known in Chinese history as the Ching-chiao (景教), and it survived in China until at least the Yuan period. It forms an important chapter in the chronicles of Christian missions as well as in those of Sino-Western intercourse. The late-Ming Jesuits were able to cite the then-rediscovered Nestorian Steele, a magnificent T'ang monument in both Chinese and Syriac characters, as proof of the antiquity of their faith. Today, the 'shadow of a shade' of the followers of Nestorius can still be found in the mountain regions which form the frontiers between Iran, Turkey, and the USSR, among the Kurds. The Nestorian story links Chinese history closely with the medieval West, and should receive our attention.
Manichaeism, long regarded by the medieval Church as an ancient heresy, was actually a distinct universal religion which emerged at the confluence of Zoroastrainism, Buddhism, and Christianity, and which (like Islam) honoured Jesus as one of its prophets. Its founder Mani (A.D. 216-277) was also a Persian; his teachings, too, were condemned in the land of their origin. This sophisticated, dualistic, gnostic religion was persecuted and found followers in both the West and the East. Augustine of Hippo, the great Christian philosopher, had once been a Manichaean, and wrote some of the most famous refutations of Manichaeism. Po Chu-i (白居易), the T'ang poet, composed verses on Manichaean doctrines after that religon was introduced into the Chinese capital during the An Lu-shan (安祿山) Rebellion. In neither medieval China nor the medieval West, however, did Manichaeism enjoy any position of honour. Its gnosticism was condemned in both cultures as contradictory to orthodox teachings. Manichaeism thus formed an important undercurrent in both China and the West. Such heretical movements as the Bogomils, the Paulicians, and the Albigensians in medieval Europe, and Maitreya Buddhism and the White Lotus Sect (白蓮教), in China, bore close resemblances to the religion of Mani, and were probably inspired by his teachings. Hence, the story of Manichaeism would add greatly not only to our appreciation of Sino-Western relations, but would also enable us to see medieval religious history from a more comprehensive perspective.
The following reading guides give first of all general articles for the uninitiated reader, then more specialised and in-depth accounts in books and articles for the more serious student. They are based on what I read in the library of Indiana University, although most of the items are also readily available in one or another of the major collections in Hong Kong. The paucity of Chinese language studies in these two areas has made it necessary to compile the guides with mostly English language works. A few titles in French and German are included for readers proficient in those languages.
A very brief introduction to Nestorianism can be found in the History of the Catholic Church in China, by Joseph Motte, S. J., translated by 候景文 ,S. J., as「中國天主教史」(Kuangchi, Taichung, 1971), but the account is too brief to give anything but a vague impression. Similar is the article on 'Nestorius' in Macropaedia vol. 12 of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. Rather more detailed, albeit with a definite Catholic bias, are the three articles entitled 'Nestorian Church', 'Nestorianism', and 'Nestorius' in the New Catholic Encyclopaedia, v. 10. A detailed and theologically more technical account can be found under 'Nestorianism' in the Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics (Edinburgh, 1915; 4th impression, 1958), v. 9. This lengthy article concentrates on doctrinal aspects and yields very little information on the history of the movement.
On the Nestorianism which has survived into modern times, an interesting eye-witness report is George Percy Badger, The Nestorians and their Rituals (London, 1852; reprinted 1969, by Gregg International). This book is based on the author's expedition to Mesopotamia and Kurdistan in 1824-44, and is in general very sympathetic to the Nestorians. The first of its two volumes reports on the expedition and the recent history of the Nestorians in the region, while volume 2 is a description and discussion of Nestorian faiths and practices.
On the Nestorians in China, there is no shortage of materials, partly because of the very interesting role of the Nestorians in the diplomatic exchanges between the Mongols and the West. Studies of Nestorianism in China centre to a large extent around the Nestorian monument discovered at Sian (西安) in the 1620's. Almost immediately there was an outpour of historical and propagandistic writings by the Jesuit missionaries as well as by Chinese Christians, and the interest has been revived in the present century. Thus, for example, we have馮承鈞「景教碑考」(Shanghai, 1931); Y. Saeki, The Nestorian Monument in China (London, 1916; 1928); G. Schlegel, 'Nestorian Monument at Si-ngan-fu', T'oung Pao, v. A8; L. Giles, 'Notes on the Nestorian Monument at Sianfu', ibid., v. 21; and P. Pelliot, 'Une phrase obscure de 1' inscription de Si-ngan-fu', ibid., v. 28. A faithful and beautiful rubbing of the monument is on permanent display in the library of Chung Chi College, C.U.H.K. The monument, however, is not the only evidence of Nestorianism in China; other relics and documents have also been discovered. Articles in the T'oung Pao faithfully record these discoveries. For example, J. Takakusu, 'The name of Messiah found in a Buddhist book－the Nestorian missionary Adam, Presbyter, Papas of China, translating a Buddhist sutra', v. A7; and A.C. Moule, 'The use of the cross among the Nestorians in China', v. 28. A number of Nestorian crosses found in Mongolia are in the collection of the Fung Ping-shan Museum at the University of Hong Kong.
The study of Nestorianism in China is not limited to topical reports of archaeological finds. There are quite a few comprehensive works, for example，羅香林「唐元二代之景教」(Hong Kong, 1966) narrates not only the spread of Nestorianism in China through seven centuries, the persecution it suffered, and its revival, but also its interactions with Taoism, a seldom treated subject. Y. Saeki, cited above, also has a Japanese work on the decline and fall of Nestorianism in China: 佐伯好郎「中國仁於什了景教衰亡之歷史」(1955). A. C. Moule, also noted above, did not think very much of Saeki's critcal ability as demonstrated in the Japanese scholar's earlier book. Moule's own work includes a general history, Christians in China before the year 1550 (19307); and a volume containing corrections and additions to that book, entitled Nestorians in China (London, 1940), in which he regrets both his own rash judgments as well as Saeki 's.
On the history of the Nestorians among the Mongols, Pelliot's classic Les mongols et la papaute (taken from the Revue de 1'Orient chretien, 1923, 24, and 31) is useful as a general introduction. J.A. Montgomery's translation from the Syriac original of The History of Maballaha III, Nestorian Patriarch, and of his Vicar, Bar Sauma (Columbia University Press,1927; reprinted by Octagon Books, 1966) is extrememly interesting both for Nestorianism and for contacts between the extremities of medieval Eurasia. This book also contains a brief but very informative introduction.
On Nestorian history in general, W. C. Emhardt and G. M. Lamsa, The Oldest Christian People (New York, 1926), gives an inside view, as Lamsa was a Kurdish Nestorian. A newer book, The Nestorians and their Muslim Neighbours－a Study of Western Influence on their Relations, by John Joseph (Princeton, 1961), opens up an interesting field, but unfortunately limits itself to the more recent centuries.
Better served than Nestorianism, Manichaeism is quite well-covered in the general encyclopaedias. The Britannica contains a long and learned article on 'Manichaeism' (Macropaedia v. 11) by H. C. Puech, an acknowledged expert in the field. The article on 'Manichaeism' in the New Catholic Encyclopaedia (v. 9) is even more substantial, and was written by another expert, J. Ries. Other relevant articles in the NCE include the ones on 'Bogomils' and 'Albigenses', which are brief and informative, and as one would expect, somewhat one-sided. The article entitled ‘Manichaeism’ in the Encyclopaedia of Relgiion and Ethics is again lengthy and technical, but in the present case, sadly outdated, since it was written before the Manichaean documents discovered at Turfan (吐魯蕃) in Sinkiang could have been properly studied. Another general article, on 'Dualism in philosophy and religion', in the Dictionary of the History of Ideas helps us put Manichaeism and the medieval heresies in broader perspective. Also somewhat outdated but broader in scope is F. Legge, Forerunners and Rivals of Christianity (Cambrideg, 1915), of which v. 2, ch. 8, gives a detailed description of the doctrines and history of Manichaeism, as well as its intellectual inheritance from, and legacy for, other religions of the early Christian era. In particular, this work traces the development of various forms of Gnosticism, of which Manichaeism was one.
Similar in scope to Legge, but more up-to-date and of a less introductory nature, is Alexander Bohlig. Mysterion und Wahrheit, gesammelte Beitrage zur spatantiken Religionsgeschichte (Leiden, Brill, 1968). H. C. Puech, Le manicheisme: son fondateur, sa doctrine (1949) is a classic in the field. F. C. Burkitt, The Religion of the Manichees (Cambridge, 1925), and G. Widengren, Maniund der Manichaismus (Stuttgart, 1961) are also useful general works.
The place of Manichaeism in the thought and religion of the West has provoked a good deal of refutations from the Christian point of view. Frederick Palmer, Heretics, Saints, and Martyrs (Harvard, 1925), ch. 7: 'Mani and Dualism', gives not so much a description of Manichaean dualistic doctrine as a logical discussion of dualism from a Christian, monotheistic angle; it is a very stimulating survey. A. A. Moon, The 'de natura boni' of St. Augustine－a Translation with an Introduction and Commentary (Catholic University of America Press,1955), also contains a systematic examination of Manichaean doctrine in addition to Augustine's refutations. Augustine himself may also be read in his Confessions, of course, and in De moribus ecclesiae catholicae et de moribus manichaeorum, translated under the title The Catholic and Manichaean Ways of Life, by Gallagher and Gallegher (Catholic University of America Press, 1966). Other works of the Patristic period, such as Alexander of Lycopolis's Contra Manichaei opinione disputatio and St. Archelaus of Carrha's Hegemonius acta Archelai are also refutations of some importance. From the Middle Ages, Bernard Gui, ed., Manuel de 1 'Inquisiteur (Paris, 1926) gives a medieval treatment of the Catharian variety of Manichaeism.
The medieval heresies that resembled Manichaeism of Antiquity and probably descended from it have received considerable attention. A. S. Tuberville. Medieval Heresy and the Inquisition (1920; London, Archon Books, 1964), ch. 2, gives a general narrative which includes the Bogomils, the Paulicians, and the Cathari, emphasising the last one. D. Obolensky, The Bogomils, a study in Balkan neo-Manichaeism (Cambridge,1948) was a seminal work that brought together the study of the medieval history of the two ends of Europe. Another seminal work is S. Runciman, The Medieval Manichee－a study of the Christian dualist heresy (Cambridge, 1955), which has stimulated much rethinking on the meaning of heresy in medieval history.
The study of Manichaeism in Asia, and in fact of Manichaeism in general, has benefitted tremendously from the archaeological discoveries at Turfan in Sinkiang. In this connection may be mentioned A. V. W. Jackson, Researches in Manichaeism, with special reference to the Turfan fragments (New York, 1932). Most of the Turfan documents are in the Sogdian language, an eastern branch of Middle Persian spoken by the Samarkand merchants and missionaries who plied the Silk Route. The work of Professor Mary Boyce has been particularly important for elucidating these texts. The T'oung Pao has carried many studies on Manichaeism in Asia, for example, E. Waldschmidt and W. Lentz, 'Die Stellung Jesu in Manichaeismus', V. 25; A. von Le Coq, 'Ein Manichaisch-uigurisches Fragment aus Indiqut-Schahri ', and 'Fragment einer manichaischen Miniatur', both in v. 9; Haneda Toru, 'Fragment de Manicheens en ouigour, trouves a Turfan', v. 28; E. Peterson, 'Le Manicheisme et le culte de Maitreya', v. 28; and P. Pelliot, 'Le traditions manicheens en Foukien', v. 22. Another article of some general interest, which would be hard to obtain in Hong Kong, is in the Asiatische Studien (Bern), entitled 'Manichaeism, Buddhism, and Christianity in Marco Polo's China', by L. Olschki, 1951. On Manichaean influence on the Bon religion of pre-Buddhist Tibet, there is a discussion in Helmut Hoffman, Die Religionen Tibets, Bon und Lamaismus in ihrer geschichtlichen Entwicklung (Freiburg-Munchen, 1956).
No discussion of Manichaeism in Asia can leave out E. Chavannes, Manicheisme en Chine, which is available in the Chinese translation by 馮承鈞 as「摩尼教流行中國考」. On the influence of Manichaeism as a force in Asian history, Denis Sinor, Inner Asia (Bloomington, Indiana, 1969), is a must. Sinor narrates the role of the Sogdians and discusses the conversion of the Uighur ruler Mou-yu as well as the Manichaeism of the Uighur at Turfan. In this connection, other works listed under the Sogdians in Sinor's Introduction a 1 'etude de l 'Eurasie Centrale (Wiesbaden, 1963) would also be useful. In fact, this critical bibliography would be useful for the study of Nestorianism as well.
Prepared by: Holy Spirit Seminary College