Adrien-Hippolyte Languillat SJ (1808–1878) was a French

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

and missionary in China. He was

titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

Sergiopolis Resafa (), sometimes spelled Rusafa, and known in the Byzantine era as Sergiopolis ( or , ) and briefly as Anastasiopolis (, ), was a city located in the Roman province of Euphratensis, in modern-day Syria. It is an archaeological site situated so ...

(1856–1878) and

vicar apostolic A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

of Southeastern Chi-Li (1856–1864) and Kiangnan (1864–1878).

Life

Adrien-Hippolyte Languillat was born in Chantemerle, district of Épernay (Marne), on 28 September 1808. He was a French bishop who was Bishop in partibus of Sergiopolis, Apostolic Vicar of Nanjing and Honorary Member of the Société d'Agriculture, Commerce, Sciences et Arts de la Marne. Languillat was ordained in Châlons-sur-Marne and was immediately placed as vicar in the parish of Notre-Dame, from where he was soon called to be parish priest of the Saint-Alpin church in Châlons. In 1841, he joined the Society of Jesus and went to China as a missionary. In 1856, he was created Bishop in partibus of Sergiopolis, and appointed Apostolic Vicar of the new Apostolic Vicariate of the South-East Zheli, in the province of Nanjing, then in 1865, he was transferred to

Jiangnan Jiangnan is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, including the southern part of its delta. The region encompasses the city of Shanghai, the southern part of Jiangsu ...

.Montanar, Valentine. "Kiang-nan." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 28 June 2019 Soon after his appointment, he paid his respects to the French Minister to confirm French protection of the mission.Strong, David. ''A Call to Mission - A History of the Jesuits in China 1842-1954'', ISD LLC, 2018, p. 62
/ref> Languillat emphasized the importance of education in the work of the mission, and was eager to support the development of an indigenous clergy. To this end, he established a minor seminary. In 1867, he had come to see his native country again and recruit nuns for the mission in China. He returned to China after three months in France, accompanied by six sisters of the

Society of the Helpers of the Holy Souls The Society of Helpers, formerly known as the Society of the Helpers of the Holy Souls, is a Roman Catholic religious congregation of women founded in Paris, France, in 1856, with the objective of assisting the souls in Purgatory through their servi ...

who were to take charge of an orphanage in Zikawei (Shanghai)."Society of the Helpers of the Holy Souls." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 27 June 2019 In Shanghai (which depended on Nanjing's headquarters), he approved the foundation of the Sisters of the Presentation (the ''presentandines'') in 1873 for young Chinese women. Three nuns made their first vows that year. Their convent, closed after the 1949 revolution, reopened in 1985. He also brought the Carmelites to (Shanghai). On 1 March 1868 Bishop Languillat consecrated the chapel and blessed the image of Our Lady of Sheshan, Help of Christians, which was copied from Our Lady of Victory in Paris."History of the Shrine to Our Lady of Sheshan", ''Agenzia Fides'', May 23, 2008
/ref>Tran C.S.J.B., Anh Thu. "The Shrine of Our Lady of Sheshan", ''Marian Shrines in China'', St. Francis Xavier Church (Chinese Community), Vancouver, BC. Canada, 2009. Languillat took part in the Vatican Council in 1870. His last years were overshadowed by a stroke in 1874. He died in Zikawei (Shanghai) on 30 November 1878.

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External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Languillat, Adrien 1808 births 1878 deaths 19th-century French writers 19th-century French Jesuits French Roman Catholic titular bishops French Roman Catholic bishops in Asia French Roman Catholic missionaries Jesuit missionaries in China French male writers 19th-century French male writers Roman Catholic missionaries in Syria French expatriates in Syria French missionaries in China Jesuit bishops