Translators and gospelers: The roles of western missionaries in China during the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties from the perspective of cultural capital

Abstract

Christian culture, primarily shaped by adherents of Christianity, forms the core of Christian civilization. This religious culture was introduced to China through various channels, including language, Western missionaries, and translated texts. Over time, it has accumulated religious cultural capital, ultimately establishing the authority of Christian culture within China. During the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, Western missionaries played a crucial role in the spread of Western civilization into China and Chinese civilization to the West, especially in spreading Christian religious culture in China. Based on the theory of cultural capital by Bourdieu, this paper discusses the preaching activities of Christian religious culture of Western missionaries during the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, revealing the mission of Western missionaries as translators. On this basis, the article shows that how preaching strategies of Western missionaries as gospelers, were influenced by social field, clerisy, and symbolic capital. Furthermore, it finds that there is a strong correlation between translation and society, with both mutually influencing each other. Therefore, this article argues that Western missionaries in China, whether as translators or gospelers, is a reflection of the pursuit of religious authority and the capital competition for religious power in the religious field during the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties.