Jean Domenge

Jean Domenge (born 7 April 1666 in Bordeaux, France; died 9 December 1735 in Macau), Chinese name Meng Zhengqi 孟正气 / 孟正氣, was a French Catholic priest and missionary in China, belonging to the Society of Jesus.

Jean Domenge was born in Bordeaux. He arrived in China in 1698. His predecessor was the Italian Jesuit Giampaolo Gozani. Jean Domenge is particularly remembered for his attempts to verify the alleged presence of Jews in the city of Kaifeng in Henan province. He made detailed sketches of what was believed to be a Jewish synagogue there and described the synagogue service he had attended, including readings from the Books of Moses. The French Jesuit had visited Kaifeng twice and he had close contacts. He wrote six letters from 1721–25. He made drawings of the congregational Torah reading and the interior and exterior of the synagogue.

In 1722, he created and sent to Rome a series of detailed sketches of what was believed to be a Jewish synagogue near the city’s drum tower. He also described the synagogue service he had attended, noting the readings from the Books of Moses and that the calendar used for celebrating religious festivals followed Western Jewish models, even though it had been adapted to the Chinese calendar.