The Reception History of <i>The Seven Victories</i> and the Localization of <i>The Seven Victories</i> Spiritual Cultivation

• Published in: Religions
• Main Authors: Siyi Han, Chen Liu, Yaping Zhou
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2024-05-01
• Subjects: <i>The Seven Victories</i>; Seven Deadly Sins; The Seven Holy Virtues; <i>The Seven Victories</i> Spiritual Cultivation; localization
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/15/5/575

<i>The Seven Victories</i> is one of the most influential works in Catholic literature from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. <i>The seven victories</i> spiritual cultivation contained therein is the result of the localization of the practice of the Christian faith in the West. It is still a living tradition in the Christian religion and even in Western culture. Since the end of the Ming Dynasty, <i>The Seven Victories</i> has aroused significant repercussions in the ecclesiastical and academic worlds. Some scholars converted to Catholicism because of <i>The Seven Victories</i> and wrote preambles in response to it; some scholars wrote essays criticizing the ethical ideas of <i>The Seven Victories</i>; and some scholars were inspired by <i>The Seven Victories</i> to write about Confucian ideas of sin, the work of reform, and the liturgy of repentance. Together, these constitute the history of the reception of <i>The Seven Victories</i> in China. Through Confucian culture integration, Chinese Christian scholars have developed a localized interpretation of <i>the seven victories</i> spiritual cultivation, resulting in a localized Chinese spiritual cultivation of sin.