Cross Culture and Faith : The Life and Work of James Mellon Menzies

impossible to acknowledge appropriately all the many individuals whose knowledge, insights, and support influenced the development and writing of the thesis and then this book. But there are specific people to whom I am especially indebted. While these individuals share in the quality of the book, any errors or limitations are mine alone. My thanks go to Song Jiaheng, who taught me how to be a scholar and introduced me to Canadian studies at Shandong University; Peter Mitchell, who has never let me down as a good mentor and who introduced me to the topic and to the Menzies family; William Westfall, Margo Gewurtz, and Bernard Luk, who supervised the writing process of the thesis; Bernard Frolic, who taught me Sino-Canadian relations; Bob Wakabayashi, who introduced me to Japanese culture and history; and Alvyn Austin, who patiently read the second draft of the thesis, correcting my writing almost sentence by sentence, and reformatted the thesis for publication, making it more interesting. Marion, Frances, and Arthur Menzies, James's children, allowed me unconditional access to the family collection of letters and manuscripts. Fang Hui shared his thoughts on Menzies's scholarship. And as every writer acknowledges, no book can be written without archives. I must thank the many librarians and archivists who offered me their dedicated help in retrieving papers and documents.

James Mellon Menzies (1885-1957) was a Canadian engineer, Presbyterian missionary, and archaeologist active in China in the 1920s and 1930s. In a tradition that saw archaeology as a means of gathering artefacts for the collections of Western museums, Menzies believed in collecting for the people of China. He also saw his archaeological work as an extension of his missionary work, connecting, through his discoveries, the religious beliefs of ancient China to those of evangelical Christianity.

In Cross Culture and Faith, Linfu Dong sheds new light on the modern encounter between China and the West through Menzies's life, work, and thought. He elucidates the difficult 'negotiation' processes that Menzies endured on multiple levels and with multiple forces, including Chinese nationalism, Western imperialism, the evangelical Mission, and his own personal interest in Chinese archaeology within that world.

Despite his belief in assuring Chinese artefacts remained in China, some of Menzies's personal collection was donated to the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto and to the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria in British Columbia. This has assured his place in the cultural memory of both East and West - appropriate, since his life so often straddled the two worlds.

"James Mellon Menzies (1885-1957) was a Canadian engineer, Presbyterian missionary, and archaeologist active in China in the 1920s and 1930s. Rejecting a tradition that saw archaeology as a means of gathering artefacts for the collections of Western museums, Menzies believed in collecting for the people of China. He also regarded his archaeological work as an extension of his missionary work, connecting, through his discoveries, the religious beliefs of ancient China to those of evangelical Christianity." "In Cross Culture and Faith, Linfu Dong sheds new light on the modern encounter between China and the West through Menzies's life, work, and thought. He elucidates the difficult 'negotiation' processes that Menzies endured on multiple levels and with multiple forces, including Chinese nationalism, Western imperialism, the evangelical Mission, and his own personal interest in Chinese archaeology." "Despite his belief in keeping Chinese artefacts in China, some of Menzies's personal collection was donated to the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto and to the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria in British Columbia. His work assured his place in the cultural memory of both East and West - appropriate, since his life so often straddled the two worlds."--Résumé de l'éditeur James Mellon Menzies (1885-1957) was a Canadian engineer, Presbyterian missionary, and archaeologist active in China in the 1920s and 1930s. In a tradition that saw archaeology as a means of gathering artefacts for the collections of Western museums, Menzies believed in collecting for the people of China. He also saw his archaeological work as an extension of his missionary work, connecting, through his discoveries, the religious beliefs of ancient China to those of evangelical Christianity. In Cross Culture and Faith, Linfu Dong sheds new light on the modern encounter between China and the West through Menzies's life, work, and thought. He elucidates the difficult 'negotiation' processes that Menzies endured on multiple levels and with multiple forces, including Chinese nationalism, Western imperialism, the evangelical Mission, and his own personal interest in Chinese archaeology within that world. Despite his belief in assuring Chinese artefacts remained in China, some of Menzies's personal collection was donated to the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto and to the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria in British Columbia. This has assured his place in the cultural memory of both East and West - appropriate, since his life so often straddled the two worlds Contents 5 Acknowledgments 7 Introduction 9 Chapter 1. Rural Ontario, 1885-1903 23 Chapter 2. Toronto, 1903-1905 29 Chapter 3. From Commitment to Departure, 1905-1910 39 Chapter 4. North Henan, 1910 49 Chapter 5. The Early Years, 1910-1917 60 Chapter 6. Somewhere in France, 1917-1920 74 Chapter 7. Rest and Return, 1921-1927 88 Chapter 8. Converts, Education, and Nationalism 101 Chapter 9. The Waste of Yin, 1914-1927 117 Chapter 10. Museums and Collectors 130 Chapter 11. Interlude, 1927-1928 145 Chapter 12. Marking Time, 1930-1931 160 Chapter 13. Next Stage, the 1930s 172 Chapter 14. Mature Archaeologist, the 1930s 193 Chapter 15. Frustrating Exile, 1936-1941 208 Chapter 16. American Interlude and Postwar Hiatus, 1942-1947 227 Chapter 17. The Last Stage, 1948-1957 246 Chapter 18. Conclusion 254 Epilogue. James Menzies's Legacy 268 Appendix. Oracle Bone Studies before 1914 279 Notes 283 Bibliography 317 Illustration Credits 331 Index 333