The Church is located in Kurosaki district, where was place of the setting for Endo Shusaku’s novel Silence.  In 1897, the foundations were laid down according to Father de Rotz’s design. Construction followed and in 1920 the church was completed. The followers built it brick by brick with their own hands. The modest design serves to bring out the beauty of the bricks.  Experience the depth when you come inside and see the rib vault ceiling. The church’s stained glass also leaves a lasting impression.

Kurosaki Church, in Sotome…の続きを読む

  Built in 1882 by Father de Rotz, this low-ceiling church features a brick exterior, wood interior and stone entranceway.  The roof itself is low in order to limit damage done by strong winds. The church’s bell was brought here from France by a priest and rings out beautifully every morning.  The location is famous as the place where the movie “Gege” was filmed.

Shitsu Church, in Sotome…の続きを読む

  After the discovery of the numerous hidden Christians in Ikitsuki Island in 1865, they began to work on recovering their Catholic faith although they were not too successful at first. Then in 1878, a priest named Fr. Pelu came to Hirado and baptized many people who are said to be the ancestors of the churchgoers of Yamada Church today. The butterfly-wing decorations adorning the wall surface of the church interior was personally made and painted on by the priest at the time, and the mosaic-like paintings are made from actually, ground butterfly wings. These are considered as one of the church’s “seven sacraments.” In 1981, St. Thomas Nishi along with 15 other martyrs were beatified in the Philippines. St.Thomas was later canonized and a statue of him was built in commemoration of his canonization, in a garden in Ikitsuki.  

Yamada Church, in Hirado…の続きを読む

  This church is a catholic church in Hirado, Nagasaki. Hirado is a place where Francis Xavier visited 3 times in Japan to spread Christianity, and even during the Kinkyo Ordinance of the Edo Period that prohibited religions, Christianity was very widespread. For that reason when the ordinance was lifted this church was constructed, and the image of Francis Xavier was put on the side. One of the sites of the town is “the view of temples and church” which can be had halfway up the lane leading up the hill. The church was originally built on a different site in 1913, but was reconstructed at its present location in 1931.

St. Francis Xavier Memorial Church, in H…の続きを読む

  The church is a Christian Pilgrimage site and was designed by Tetsukawa Yosuke, a famous architect of various churches in Nagasaki-prefecture, and built between December 1915 and October 1917. It is one of the latest brick churches in the prefecture of Nagasaki. Tetsukawa Yosuke has called this one of his best works. The beautiful building facing Hirado Strait offers artists and photographers a motif typical of the Tabira district. The church has been designated an important cultural asset by the Japanese government. The history of the Tabira district began with the work of two foreign missionaries. In 1886, the French missionary Emile Raguet, in charge of Kuroshima Church at the time, purchased one hectare (2.5 acres) of wilderness at his own expense and urged three families in need to settle there. The same year, Marc-Marie de Rotz of Shitsu Church bought one hectare and sent four families to cultivate the pristine land. Gradually the number of the settlers increased a nd reached 80 families by the early Taisho era (1910s). In 1914, the Japanese priest Nakata Tokichi arrived in the parish. To replace the humble prayer house, he made tremendous efforts to raise funds for a formal church. Tetsukawa Yosuke designed the brick building, and the parishioners cooperated in the construction project, gathering a large number of seashells and burning them into lime powder. The site of …

Tabira Church, in Hirado…の続きを読む

  Construction of the original Urakami Cathedral, a brick Romanesque building, began in 1895, after a long-standing ban on Christianity was lifted. When completed in 1914, it was the largest Catholic church in East Asia.   The Atomic bomb dropped on August 9, 1945 explored in Urakami, only 500m from the cathedral, which was completely destroyed. What remained of the cathedral is now on display in the Atomic Bomb Museum. A replacement was built in 1959, and remodeled to more closely resemble the original in 1980. The nearby the Ground Zero in Peace Park contains remnants of the Ruins of Urakami Cathedral

Urakami Cathedral, in Nagasaki…の続きを読む

  Nakae no Shima is a Christian Pilgrimage site and is the UNESCO World Heritage site of Hidden Chriatian Sites in the Nagasaki Region. Located two kilometers off the coast of Hirado Island, Nakae no Shima is a small, uninhabited island where religious leaders were executed during the persecution of Christians. The island is considered sacred, and water collected there is used for baptism.  

Nakae no Shima / Christian Pilgrimage si…の続きを読む

  The Cathedral is one of the significant Christian Pilgrimage site in Japan.  Established 1865, this church is officially known as “Oura Cathedral, the Church of 26 Martyrs.” It was built by the French priest Bernard Petitjean of Fier who had been dispatched by the Foreign Missionary Church of Paris to dedicate prayers to the 26 saints martyred on Nishizaka hill. For this reason, the church faces Nishizaka hill. It was designated as a National Treasure in 1933 for its value as Japan’s oldest Gothic-style Cathedral.   “On March 17, 1865, a group of peasants from Urakami came to the church and professed their faith to Father Petitjean, thus revealing that Christianity had survived through the  centuries of persecution. The white marble statue of the Holy Mother at the entrance was built in commemoration of the dramatic discovery of the “Hidden Christians. Pope John Paul II visited here in 1981, and Saint Teresa of Calcutta commonly known as Mother Teresa visited in 1982.  

Oura Cathedral, in Nagasaki…の続きを読む

  In 1596, the Spanish ship San Felipe, heading from the Philippines to Mexico, washed ashore on the Tosa-Urato coast due to a typhoon. Shogun Toyotomi Hideyoshi confiscated the ship’s vast cargo. At that time, the navigator said that Spain first send Christian missionaries to increase the number of believers, and then eventually conquer the country. When Toyotomi Hideyoshi heard this, he was shocked and ordered the capture of Spanish Franciscan missionaries who were actively carrying out missionary activities in Kyoto.   Then, he ordered Ishida Mitsunari to execute Franciscan missionaries and Christians. This was the beginning of the Martyrdom of 26 Saints in Nagasaki on February 5, 1597.  

Causes of the Martyrdom of 26 Saints…の続きを読む

  26 Christians arrested in Kyoto who were consisted of 20 Japanese, 4 Spaniards, 1 Mexican, and 1 Portuguese. They were forced to walk barefoot to Nagasaki for about a month. On February 5, 1597, all 26 Christians arrived at Nishizaka and were tied to Crosses.    Paul Miki said from the Cross All of you who are here, please listen to me. I did not com from the Philippines, I am a Japanese by birth, and a brother of the Society of Jesus. I have committed no crime, and the only reason why I am put to death is that I have been teaching the doctrine of our Lord Jesus Christ. I am very happy to die for such cause, and see my death as great blessing from the Lord. At this critical time, when you can rest assured that I will not try to deceive you, I want to stress and make it unmistakably clear that man can find no way to salvation other than the Christian way. The Christian law commands that we forgive our enemies and who have wronged us. I must therefore say here that I forgive Taikosama (Hideyoshi).   I would rather have all the Japanese become Christians. (From Luis Frois’s Martyrs Records, 1597)  

26 Saints were the first martyrs in Japa…の続きを読む