Biography
John Chen Xianheng
About John Chen Xianheng
John Chen Xianheng came from a family in Chengdu and studied classical texts before the deaths of his parents left him in difficult circumstances. He later moved to Guiyang to help his widowed sister and her daughter, establishing a small business to support the household.
He became a Catholic catechist. In 1862, he was arrested with the missionary Jean-Pierre Néel and two other Chinese Catholics. The church account records their refusal to renounce their faith and their execution together outside the city. He was canonized in 2000 with the Chinese martyrs.
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