russia’s behavior in blaming united states and the rest of nato for helping ukraine to beat russia in an invasion started by russia gives the whole world a clear example of revisionist history deserving historians to critically re-examine.
and in my personal interest, i am convinced that historian should re-examine china’s revisionist behavior in blaming 8 nations alliance in 1900 for the military conflict triggered by boxer rebellion.
likewise china is blaming united states for trade war for infringement of ip patents for coverup of covid19 for taiwan tension by threatening to invade and for South China Sea by building islands and behaving hostile.
these are classic behaviors of belligerent country with revisionist tendencies.
US Marine Corps captain John T. Myers, pictured sitting holding his sword, was breveted major for his bravery protecting the American Legation under siege in Peking during the Boxer Rebellion in the summer of 1900.
Born in 1834, this Chinese Christian had a job as a doctor. He was apparently a pretty swell guy, too, treating the poor in his community for no fee! One time, to treat his own ailment, he used opium. The downside? Welp, he became addicted to opium. Mark Ji knew that his was a bad thing, and he frequently went to Confession so he could get Eucharist while his soul was squeaky clean.
Unfortunately, given that understanding of addiction isn’t what it is now, the priest acting as Mark Ji’s Confessor decided that if he was always confessing the same sin, then he must not really be trying, and told him not to come back until he could say he’d given it up for good. Because he couldn’t do Reconciliation, he didn’t take Eucharist for decades, even though he went to Mass and pushed for his family to do so.
Then came the Boxer Rebellion, an anti-foreign and anti-colonial revolt in China, meant to reject all foreign colonialist elements from the country. The Chinese had enough of colonialist shenanigans from Europe–unfortunately this also meant slaughtering Christians, of European and Chinese origin. On July 7, 1900, Mark Ji and his family were among those who were told they needed to renounce their religion. They refused, and were killed.
Supposedly, Mark Ji died singing the Litany of Our Lady.
So yes, we have a saint who was an opium addict. Beatified in 1946, and canonized in 2000. And he (or rather, a character clearly modeled after him) appears in Gene Luen Yang’s awesome two-volume comic book about the Boxer Rebellion, Boxers & Saints (half of which is dedicated to the Chinese Catholic Community in San Francisco, if I remember correctly?).
I'm no good next to diamonds. When I'm too close, they start to fade. Are you angry with me now? Are you angry coz I'm to blame? Coz I'm far away. Further than I ever was…