Abstract: This paper tries to analyze and research the miracle stories (miraculous tales) of Catholicism in China during late Ming and early Qing dynasties based on related Chinese and western resources. Through exploring different types of miracle stories, this paper points out that description, propagation and acceptance of these stories in fact reflects the trend of development of Catholicism in Chinese society during late Ming and early Qing dynasties. When more and more villagers gradually joined the Church and Catholicism continued deeply into the rural communities, the missionaries changed their former apostolate through books or sciences and so on. Catholic Church began to use other ways to spread Catholicism such as exorcising demons, healing diseases, praying for rain and sons. It also shaped and strengthened Christian communities’ identity by describing the imagination of heaven and hell, the revelation of Cross and the Virgin Mary in these stories. These tales reflect that Catholics concern the supernatural religious life, the other facet of Catholicism in China during late Ming and early Qing. And they also actually construct the supernatural or spiritual tradition of Chinese Catholics, and further promote the realization of “popularization” of Catholicism in China.

Keywords: Miracle stories, popularization, dreaming /healing diseases /exorcising demons /Cross

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