A married Chinese layman of Hebei martyred in 1900 during the Boxer Uprising, canonized among the 120 Martyrs of China.

Saint Marcus Ji Tianxiang was a married layman of southeastern Zhili (Hebei), China, killed at Yazhuangtou on July 7, 1900, at sixty-five years old during the Boxer Rebellion’s violent persecution of Chinese Catholics. He is venerated among the 120 Martyrs of China, beatified in 1955 and canonized in 2000 by Pope John Paul II, joining the many lay believers of Hebei who died for their faith that summer.

Quick Facts

• Born: c. 1835
• Died: July 7, 1900, age 65
• Place: Yazhuangtou, Jizhou, Hebei, China
• Venerated as: Married layperson and martyr

Who Was Saint Marcus Ji Tianxiang?

Saint Marcus Ji Tianxiang was a married Chinese layman of southeastern Zhili (present-day Hebei province) put to death at Yazhuangtou, Jizhou, on July 7, 1900, at sixty-five years old. His death occurred during the Boxer Rebellion, the violent anti-foreign and anti-Christian uprising that swept through northern China in the summer of 1900 and claimed tens of thousands of Chinese Catholic lives.

Historical Setting

The Boxer Uprising targeted Chinese Christians as agents of foreign influence, and entire village communities of Catholics in Hebei and Shanxi were massacred within weeks of each other in mid-1900. Marcus’s death at Yazhuangtou was part of this wider wave of violence against the long-established Catholic communities of southeastern Zhili, one of the regions hit hardest by the persecution.

Why the Church Remembers Saint Marcus Ji Tianxiang

Marcus is remembered as one of the many lay Chinese Catholics of Hebei who refused to abandon their faith when the Boxers came, joining the great company of Chinese martyrs of 1900 whose deaths became a defining chapter in the history of the Church in China.

Canonization and Feast Day

The production register records Marcus’s beatification in 1955 and canonization in 2000, when Pope John Paul II canonized 120 Martyrs of China, including Marcus, as part of that group.

What Catholics Can Learn Today

Marcus’s witness, given at an age when many would consider their life’s work complete, shows that faithfulness to Christ has no expiration and can be asked of anyone at any stage of life.

A Prayer to Saint Marcus Ji Tianxiang

Saint Marcus Ji Tianxiang, martyr of Hebei, pray for the Church in China and for all who suffer persecution for the faith today. Amen.

Sources

• Vatican.va (canonization of the 120 Martyrs of China, 2000)
• The Roman Martyrology