Da Gong Bao (“The Public Good”), July 17, 1902 (Nanjing)

On July 17, 1902, in Nanjing, Catholic convert Ying Lianzhi published the first issue of Da Gong Bao (“The Public Good”). Coming just after the Boxer upheaval, when rumors, fear, and resentment had hardened many hearts, he treated the printing press as a moral pulpit for a wounded nation. In a time when public speech could inflame division or invite retaliation, he aimed instead to awaken conscience—calling readers to reforms rooted in truth, honest learning, and service to the common good. His work showed a quiet kind of heroism: the courage to speak when silence felt safer, and to pursue healing when bitterness felt justified.

Ying Lianzhi (Journalist and Convert)

Ying addressed sensitive questions that many preferred to avoid, including how missionaries should relate to Chinese believers with humility and respect. He insisted that Christian witness must not ride on social privilege or foreign power, but on integrity and love. His insistence on moral clarity did not mean harshness; he urged people to confront corruption and injustice without surrendering to hatred. His example echoes: “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ Himself, who is the head.” (Ephesians 4:15). For Ying, truth was not a weapon, but a lamp—meant to guide repentance, reconciliation, and renewed civic responsibility.

Legacy: Learning, Virtue, and Fu Jen University

Ying’s commitment to faithful learning helped inspire the founding of Fu Jen University, where scholarship and virtue could meet. He envisioned education that formed character as well as competence, training leaders who would serve rather than exploit. Such a vision aligns with the enduring call: “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8). Ying Lianzhi’s life reminds us that courageous words can be an act of love—especially when they defend the dignity of believers, seek justice without pride, and invite a troubled society back to conscience and hope.