Cassiano da Macerata
CASSIANO DA MACERATA
Capuchin priest, missionary, and scholar; b. Macerata, Italy, 1708; d. there, Feb. 4, 1791. Little is known about his early life. He received the religious habit in 1728. In 1738 he was sent to the Tibetan missions and on Jan. 6, 1741, arrived at Lassa, Tibet. Approximately two years later Cassiano left Tibet and entered Nepal in northern India. His missionary activities were beset with typical mission problems, i.e., the bad example of local Christians, misunderstandings, and persecution. The Holy See recalled him in 1756. He remained at Rome, where he devoted himself to writing accounts of his missionary activities. His work is used as a source by other authors, some drawing heavily from his unpublished works. Cassiano also spent time working on a Tibetan grammar, which was printed by the Holy See in 1773.
Bibliography: Lexicon Capuccinum (Rome 1951) 361. clemente da terzorio, Le Missioni dei Minori Cappuccini, 10 v. (Rome 1913–38) 8:418; 9:600. Analecta Ordinis Fratrum Minorum Cappucinorum (Rome 188) 50 (1934) 47–49.
[m. craig]