Domingo Fernández Navarrete (c. 1610 in Peñafiel – 1689, in

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) was a Spanish Dominican missionary and archbishop. Born in Peñafiel in

Old Castile Old Castile ( es, Castilla la Vieja ) is a historic region of Spain, which had different definitions along the centuries. Its extension was formally defined in the 1833 territorial division of Spain as the sum of the following provinces: Sant ...

, Navarrete received the habit around 1630 and after completing his studies was offered the chair of Thomistic theology by several Spanish universities. He declined all the offers, preferring to go into the missionary field. In 1646, he and twenty-seven brethren left

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for the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

via

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. They arrived at their destination on 23 June 1648. Navarrete taught

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

at the Dominican University of St. Thomas, Manila, before he left with a group to go on a mission to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

in 1657. After learning the language, he labored chiefly in

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its ...

province. When persecution broke out in 1665, the effect on missions was disastrous. Forbidden to preach, Navarrate occupied himself with writing, hoping in this way to spread and confirm the faith. However, he was hampered too much and left for Rome in 1673 as prefect of the Dominican mission to discuss the question of

Chinese Rites The Chinese Rites controversy () was a dispute among Roman Catholic missionaries over the religiosity of Confucianism and Chinese rituals during the 17th and 18th centuries. The debate discussed whether Chinese ritual practices of honoring fami ...

. This problem had reached an acute stage in China, with the

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on one side and the Dominicans and

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on the other. Navarrate was highly respected by

Pope Innocent XI Pope Innocent XI ( la, Innocentius XI; it, Innocenzo XI; 16 May 1611 – 12 August 1689), born Benedetto Odescalchi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 21 September 1676 to his death on August 12, 1689. Poli ...

, who wanted to make him bishop of the Chinese missions; however, Navarrete refused. It was at this time (1676) that Navarrete's book, ''Tratados historicos, politicos, ethicos, y religiosos de la monarchia de China'' was published in Madrid. A strongly anti-Jesuit work (which, e.g. denied the authenticity of the

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), it was translated into most major European languages. It became particularly popular in England, and admired by the French

Jansenists Jansenism was an Early modern period, early modern Christian theology, theological movement within Catholicism, primarily active in the Kingdom of France, that emphasized original sin, human Total depravity, depravity, the necessity of divine g ...

and

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. Jesuits, on the other hand, tried to have this book suppressed. On his return to Spain in 1677, the Pope, at the suggestion of Charles II, forced him to accept the

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, where he laboured until his death. While on the question of Chinese Rites he was opposed to the Jesuits; in his diocese he had the highest regard for them. In his letters to the

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and to the king, requesting them to permit the fathers of the Society to establish a college in his residential city, Navarrete pays them a glowing tribute. Navarrete was one of the few individuals to visit Kaili on the west coast of Sulawesi, He provides some of the most accurate early accounts of Minahasa also.

Principal works

*''Tratados históricos, políticos, éticos y religiosos de la monarquia de China'' (Madrid, 1676) *''Catechismus, lingua sinica'', 2 vol. *''Præceptor ethnicus ex optimis quibusque Sinensium libris extractus, et ex eorumdem sententiis concinnatus, lingua sinica''

References

External links and additional sources

* (for Chronology of Bishops) * (for Chronology of Bishops) {{DEFAULTSORT:Fernandez Navarrete, Domingo 1610s births 1689 deaths Spanish Dominicans 17th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the Dominican Republic People of the Colony of Santo Domingo Roman Catholic missionaries in the Philippines Roman Catholic missionaries in China Spanish Roman Catholic missionaries 17th-century Spanish Roman Catholic theologians Spanish expatriates in China Dominican missionaries Roman Catholic missionaries in the Dominican Republic Roman Catholic archbishops of Santo Domingo Spanish expatriates in the Dominican Republic Dominican bishops