Jean-François Foucquet S.J., also Jean-François Fouquet (12 March 1665 – 14 March 1741), was a Burgundy French Jesuit, bishop and

scientist A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosoph ...

who was active in the Jesuit China missions for 22 years. He also was

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox ...

of ''Eleutheropolis in Macedonia'' (1725–1741). ''(in Latin)''"Bishop Jean François Fouquet, S.J."
''

Catholic-Hierarchy.org ''Catholic-Hierarchy.org'' is an online database of bishops and dioceses of the Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Catholic Churches. The website is not officially sanctioned by the Church. It is run as a private project by David M. Cheney in ...

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved January 4, 2017"Eleutheropolis in Macedonia (Titular See)"
''

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved January 6, 2018"Titular Episcopal See of Eleutheropolis in Macedonia"
''GCatholic.org''. Gabriel Chow. Retrieved January 6, 2018

Life

Fouquet was born in

Vézelay Vézelay () is a commune in the department of Yonne in the north-central French region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. It is a defensible hill town famous for Vézelay Abbey. The town and its 11th-century Romanesque Basilica of St Magdalene are de ...

in a wealthy family. He studied at Lycée Louis le Grand in Paris. In 1681 he entered the order of the Jesuits. Four years later he taught mathematics. In 1693 he became a priest and in the following year he decided he wanted to volunteer in Asia. In 1699 he arrived in

Amoy Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong' ...

. Until 1711 he worked 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 cap ...

and

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...

, then he was invited to Peking, to teach math and astronomy. He left hurriedly in 1720 with 1200 manuscripts. In Canton he had to wait one year for a French ship. He returned to Europe in 1722. Fouquet had taken with him a Chinese man, named Jean Hu (Hu Ruowang 胡若望), who liked Paris and got lost in

Quartier Latin The Latin Quarter of Paris (french: Quartier latin, ) is an area in the 5th and the 6th arrondissements of Paris. It is situated on the left bank of the Seine, around the Sorbonne. Known for its student life, lively atmosphere, and bistros ...

. Hu preached for a while in the Chinese language in front of

Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis The Église Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis is a church on rue Saint-Antoine in the Marais quarter of Paris. The present building was constructed from 1627 to 1641 by the Jesuit architects Étienne Martellange and François Derand, on the orders of Lou ...

, attracting a crowd. Fouquet decided to go to Rome and planned to take Hu with him; Hu did not like to travel by stagecoach, got furious and preferred to go by foot. When Fouquet set off by himself, Hu was taken with a

lettre de cachet ''Lettres de cachet'' (; ) were letters signed by the king of France, countersigned by one of his ministers, and closed with the royal seal. They contained orders directly from the king, often to enforce arbitrary actions and judgments that ...

to an asylum in Charenton, etc. On 8 June 1723, Fouquet was received by Pope

Innocent XIII Pope Innocent XIII ( la, Innocentius XIII; it, Innocenzo XIII; 13 May 1655 – 7 March 1724), born as Michelangelo dei Conti, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 May 1721 to his death in March 1724. He is ...

. Fouquet met another Chinese in Rome, who offered him help with translating. In 1725 he was appointed as bishop of Eleutheropolis in Macedonia by

Pope Benedict XIII Pope Benedict XIII ( la, Benedictus XIII; it, Benedetto XIII; 2 February 1649 – 21 February 1730), born Pietro Francesco Orsini and later called Vincenzo Maria Orsini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 May ...

, with Giovanni Francesco Nicolai,

Titular Archbishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of ''Myra'', and Giacinto Gaetano Chiurlia,

Bishop of Giovinazzo The Diocese of Giovinazzo e Terlizzi (Latin: ''Dioecesis Iuvenacensis et Terlitiensis'') was a Roman Catholic diocese in Italy, located in the city of Giovinazzo, in the Metropolitan City of Bari, Apulia. In 1836, it was suppressed to the Dioces ...

, serving as co-consecrators. He remained as Titular Bishop of Eleutheropolis in Macedonia until his death on 14 March 1741. While bishop, he was the

principal co-consecrator A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

of Antoine-Joseph-Amable Feydeau,

Bishop of Digne The Diocese of Digne (Latin: ''Dioecesis Diniensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Digne'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in France. Erected in the 4th century as the Diocese of Digne, the diocese has bee ...

(1730); and Domenico Maria Salvini, Archbishop of Nachitschewan (1732). He published the ''Tabula Chronologica Historiæ Sinicæ'' ("Chronological table of Chinese History"). Foucquet, a Figurist, endeavoured to show that the ''Book of changes'' ( I Ching) anticipated the coming of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

.Mungello, p. 80

Works

*''De la Doctrine et des Livres des Chinois'' *''Tabula Chronologica Historiæ Sinicæ Connexa cum Cyclo qui vulgo Kia-Tse dicitur''

Notes

References

* John W. Witek S.J., ''Controversial ideas in China and in Europe: a biography of Jean-François Foucquet, S.J., (1665-1741)'', Institutum Historicum S.I., Roma, 1982 * David E. Mungello ''The Great Encounter of China and the West, 1500-1800: 1500-1800'' Rowman & Littlefield, 2005, , * Jean-Claude Martzloff, Jaques (FRW) Gernet, Jean (FRW) Dhombres ''A History of Chinese Mathematics'', Springer, 2006 , {{DEFAULTSORT:Foucquet, Jean-Francois 1665 births 1741 deaths 17th-century French Jesuits 18th-century French Jesuits Jesuit missionaries in China Roman Catholic missionaries in China French Roman Catholic bishops in Asia French sinologists 18th-century French historians French male non-fiction writers French expatriates in China French Roman Catholic missionaries Bishops appointed by Pope Benedict XIII Jesuit bishops