Photographs of the Endicotts at Mount Omei 文幼章家人在峨眉山的照片

Photographs of the Endicotts at Mount Omei
文幼章家人在峨眉山的照片
Sichuan, China 
Ca. 1930s-80s 
Gelatin silver prints 
Courtesy of the James G. Endicott Family 

Leshan, where James G. Endicott was born, was the second missionary base in West China opened by the Canadian Methodists in 1894. The town was a Chinese religious center due to its proximity to Mount Omei, one of the four sacred mountains in China and an important pilgrimage site. One of the mission’s founders, Dr. Virgil C. Hart, befriended the Buddhist priest who lived at the summit of the sacred peak and an agreement was made to allow the missionaries to use the temples as a summer retreat. In later years, the missionaries had built western-style cottages near the mountain and the idyllic scenery provided respite for generations of missionary families, many of whom enjoyed themselves in ways that would have been recognizable to “cottagers” in Southern Ontario.   

乐山是文幼章的出生地，同时也是加拿大循道宗于1894年在中国西南设立的第二个传教基地。因靠近峨眉山——中国四大佛教名山之一，这里成为重要的宗教中心和朝圣地。传教站的创始人之一Dr. Virgil C. Hart，与峨眉山顶的佛教僧人建立了友好的关系，并达成协议，允许传教士们在夏季使用寺庙作为避暑之地。此后，传教士们在山附近建造了西式小屋，为家庭提供一个田园诗般的休憩场所。美丽的山水景色吸引了几代传教士家庭，他们以一种类似南安大略“度假者”的方式在此享受生活。