The Study On The Education Practices Of The Society Of The Jesus In The Far East (1549-1650)

The Society of Jesus is one Religious Institute,and also a sacred Teaching Order.The great efforts it taken in education ever bolstered and flourished the whole Order.A Jesuit school,however,is commonly thought to have a characteristic flavor of its own,even as a Benedictine or a Quaker or a Buddhist school has its individual tone.That this in turn indicates the presence of an underlying theory,at least in the tradition preserving significant traits and convictions,is a reasonable supposition.The social continuity of the Society of Jesus throughout four centuries argues to the maintenance of an essential identity amid vicissitudes and change for otherwise the institution would either have perished or been substantially altered.The educational activities of the Society of Jesus in Europe,had great impact on Catholic Reformation and Counter-Reformation.Furthermore,its own characteristic in education management,and its success in taking the education,first of the priests,then of the ruling classes,into their hands in Europe,accompanied with the arrival of hundreds of the Jesuits into Asia,give huge strengths to the new development of education of this area..The Society of Jesus attached so great importance to its educational enterprise,that when they originally set their foot on Asia,they just began to facilitate the foundation of St· Paul College of Goa,which functioned as the central spot of missionaries and teaching activities of Far East.However,the Jesuit College in Goa then had not ever attempted to distinguish itself from other structures,it functioned not only as a school,but also as a church,or a logistics.And,the Jesuit College then also didn't distinguish itself from the ordinary catholic school-seminary.The immature thoughts and practice concerned with education in India had great influence in the educational activities of Japan,which otherwise gone through a shocking failure,although the whole Japan Missionary were going well.Not until the 1580s,when the respectively foundation of the seminary and Jesuit College in Kyoto and Funai of Japan,the Society of Jesus could make a clear distinction between seminary and Jesuit College,and could have a clear understanding of their essences.Meanwhile,the great scale of educational practice in Japan draw lessons from certain experiences of India.The compilation of textbooks and dictionaries in India was the early experiment of the Project of Christian Works in Japan.However,because of the deterioration of Japan political situation,and the gradually escalated level of suppression on missionary,education work in Japan faced an unprecedented crisis.On the other hand,the missionary work in Macao got an opportunity to show its benignant development,accordingly,the superior of the Society began to put hope on Macao Jesuit College's educational activities,and looked forward to the good effects it brought about.And it's also at this time that Japan and Macao isolated from the domination of India,got their own Province.Because of Macao's role in missionary work becoming more and more important,the schools set up by the Society in Far East were confronted with a new integration,so many educational resources were distributed to Macao's Jesuit College,that more and more students from different countries and cultural background gathered to throw themselves into the study of theology.From the perspective of Japan,the Society's educational practices in Far East experience three phrases.Phrase 1(1549-1574),the Society put more emphasis on India's education,established Saint·Paul College in Goa.Phrase 2(1575-1612),Goa's Saint Paul College still maintain its influence on the educational style of the Far East.Meanwhile,much attention was put to Japan,and the central spot of education practices were also transferred to Japan.The Society set up numerous seminaries and colleges in Japan.Phrase3(1613-1650),on the one hand,Japan became to prohibit Christian all-round,the education enterprise thereupon got worse.On the other hand,Macao rose up as e new educational central spot of the Far East.The dissertation does not attempt to discuss the first and third phrase,because precedent scholars have already studied the materials of both phrase.It mostly going to focus on the second phrase,inquiring into the educational relation between Macao and the place outside Macao.