The Persecution of the Kirishitan (Christian) Faith in Japan In Japan, for 250 years, there were people who hid their Christian faith for more than seven, eight, or nine generations, without being noticed even by their neighbors or the local government.Those who used to be called as Kakure (Hidden) Kirishitan (Christian in old Japanese), are now called Senpuku Kirishitan (潜伏キリシタン), Underground Christian. I first heard the name during a junior high history class about 30 years ago. At that time, I did not have any impression on them and only acknowledged their past existence. However, as the time passed, I found that the story of these underground Christian is not about the past but rather a dynamic drama that continues to live even now. There is a statement that shakes the thought lurking under unconsciousness: “Priests from Portuguese and Spain continue to preach against the government order, speaking ill of Shinto, blaming Buddhism, and lacking righteousness and goodness. Kirishitans…
My wife and I had planned on being the typical American couple. We’d get married, work for a couple of years (to earn some stability and get to know one another) and then start our family. We had seen our friends follow this same agenda and it seemed simple enough. We learned it was not always so simple… Finally, after a decade of trying and reaching the ripe-old age of thirty-eight, we realized that having a baby just wasn’t going to happen the “old-fashioned way.” So, we sought help. Only to find that “help” to be very expensive. The process of IVF (in-vitro fertilization) and subsequent pregnancy and birth would cost tens of thousands of dollars, which we didn’t have. But, we did have our house. Years of scrimping, saving, used cars and brown-bag lunches had allowed us to pay off our school debts and save just enough for a down payment on a small three-bedroom, two-bath house on the outskirts of town. Vickie and I both worked full time, living in tiny apartments in bad neighborhoods to…
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