1862 - John Chen Xianheng

February 18, 1862

Kaiyang, Guizhou

John Chen Xianheng. [CRBC]

In 1820 the Chen household of Chengdu, Sichuan Province, was overjoyed when a little boy was born to them. They named him Xianheng. His father was a scholar, and Chen was able to study poetry and the classics from an early age. His happy childhood came to an abrupt end when both his parents died prematurely. With all the income gone, Chen was forced to hire himself out as a labourer and struggled to survive from one meal to the next.

Chen had a sister who had married a government official. They had a daughter together and lived in Guizhou Province. The husband died from an illness leaving his wife and child without any support. She wrote a letter to Chen Xianheng, informing him of her dire situation and asking for help. He immediately travelled to Guiyang where he was able to start a small business and provide for his sister and niece. Guiyang at the time had a significant number of Catholics, and Chen’s dealings brought him into contact with some Christians who preached the gospel to him. He believed and was baptized, taking the Christian name John.

A priest named Simon Mei saw that John was a sincere and honest man, and sent him to study podiatry at a local clinic. After qualifying he travelled to the countryside, proving a great asset to the many sick Chinese and ethnic minority children who benefited from his expertise. Later, Bishop Hu sent John to assist the missionary Jean-Pierre Néel. Together they spread the gospel throughout Longli, Zunyi, Qingzhen, and other parts of Guizhou. At the end of 1861 they were travelling through Kaiyang when a severe persecution broke like a thunderstorm. The place where Chen, Néel, and other believers were hiding was disclosed to the authorities and soldiers were dispatched to arrest them.

They were roughly bound and beaten and taken to a facility where the soldiers were allowed to abuse and torture them at their pleasure. All efforts to make the captives renounce Christ were firmly rejected. They knew this would cost their lives, but they were not tempted to trade in the treasures of Christ for a momentary respite. The stubborn faith of the men caused the magistrate to fly into a fit of rage. He ordered them all to be executed, and on February 18, 1862, they were paraded through the town as the people stood by and abused them.

John Chen Xianheng had tasted of heavenly things and his spirit yearned to see the Lord Jesus Christ. The procession wound its way to a predetermined spot outside the city where Chen and his colleagues were beheaded. Early the next morning some Christians went to the execution site to collect the bodies of their slain colleagues. They came upon a horrendous sight:

“Ten wolves were devouring the bodies of the victims. Their heads were hung on the ramparts…. Bishop Faurie, worried about recovering the remains of these witnesses of the faith, organized a squad of five courageous young men who, during the night, went and cut the rope that held the five heads…. On March 6, the Christian community, with a great deal of emotion, paid them tribute.”[1]