It is with great sadness that TBC reports the passing of Dr. Yang Hengda, who was a great leader, academic, and friend. Professor Yang had an incredible impact on The Beijing Center for Chinese Studies and the world of literature, having translated many works by Friedrich Nietzsche and written many works of his own. He died July 12, and services were held July 27.
The Beijing Center (TBC) has recently been honored with a donation of Sinology books and Han Dynasty artifacts from Mr. Mok. TBC spoke with him to learn a little more about him and his motivations for this generous donation.
Ian is a film director and producer from New York who first came to China for a year-long exchange program at TBC in 2014. After graduating from university, he returned to China and founded his own media production company. During his time in China, he filmed a documentary about No Dogs Left Behind, an animal rescue organization. In this interview, Ian shares his initial intentions of coming to China and his rich experiences in the country.
Matteo Ricci died on May 10, 1610, so it’s fitting that two groups of visitors to TBC in May were focused on learning more about him. On May 12, students from the Colegio Mateus Ricci in Macau came to visit, and on May 17 graduate students from Peking University got up close and personal with our rare books and treasures. TBC Interns and current UIBE students Laury Castro and Noel Atukunda reflect on the visits.
Cliché as it may sound, Beijing is a city of many faces; the Beijing you encounter today will very possibly not be the same Beijing you’ll see tomorrow or the day after that. The UIBE campus suffers, or actually enjoys the same fate as all Beijingers! We go from marveling at the picture-perfect autumn hues from the orange skies and yellow rustling leaves, between September and November to the clear blue skies of the frigid and dry winters with temperatures that go down to -12ºC in the nights. Around March, the weather slowly transitions to spring with the sun, bringing out the green buds as it gets warmer by the day. The gradually rising temperatures eventually usher in summer – the most anticipated season of the year. Summer is anticipated not only because it’s when students can press pause and go on holiday, but also it sets the ideal atmosphere that urges the best of us to indulge our impulses and cross the fun things off our yearly to-do lists.
Last month, The Beijing Center hosted a culture event titled “A Taste of Spring: Tea Etiquette and Culture with Dr. Meng” as part of our 25th Anniversary celebrations. This event drew participants from various countries, including the United States, Sweden, and China. Even some friends from Hong Kong were able to make it! The event took place in our newly renovated and redecorated tea room, which is equipped with the latest technology to enhance the learning and class experience.
The Beijing Center for Chinese Studies, the preeminent Jesuit education center in mainland China, had the honor of welcoming Bishop Stephen Chow, SJ, to our campus on Thursday, April 20, 2023. Bishop Chow was previously the Provincial of the Chinese Province of the Jesuits and is a longtime friend of TBC, so it gave us great joy to welcome him again to TBC’s offices as the Bishop of Hong Kong.
This April, The Beijing Center is hosting A Taste of Spring: Tea Etiquette and Culture with Dr. Meng. Our tea room has been newly renovated and redecorated to welcome visitors with tea paraphernalia (or wanju), excellent varieties of tea sourced by experts from around China, the latest technology to facilitate learning and classes, and a comfortable atmosphere.
The Beijing Center for Chinese Studies (TBC), founded by Fr. Ron Anton SJ in 1998, has formally opened its first satellite site inside Mainland China. The Kunming Liya Center, or 昆明理雅学苑, is located in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan Province. Yunnan Province is one of China’s southernmost provinces, bordering Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam. Kunming is often referred to as the ‘City of Eternal Spring’ for its fair climate and lush biodiversity.
The Beijing Center’s Anton Library has almost 30,000 books in English on and about China. In honor of World Book Day 2023 yesterday, we’ll introduce you to a rare book in our collection:
Trigault, Nicolas and Ricci, Matteo. De Christiana expeditione apud
Sinas Suscepta ab Societate Jesu. Lugduni: Horatij Cardon 1616.