The book aims to study the cosmogonic works by Fr. Angelo Zottoli S.J., a Jesuit missionary who has been relatively little studied by the recent scholarship but who deserves a special recognition for his theological and philosophical ideas. Moreover, Zottoli was the teacher of Ma Xiangbo (¿¿¿ 1840-1939) and he played a crucial role in his formation. Knowing more about Zottoli's works would not only be interesting per se but it also paves the way to new studies on the complex and multi-layered relationship between European missionaries and Chinese students in Shanghai during the nineteenth century.
This book aims to shed light on the importance of cosmogony in the cross-cultural and interdisciplinary environment of Xujiahui. It shows how Zottoli was a teacher and a priest and those two roles reshaped his ideas, his personality and also his relationship with local Chinese converts.