Christianity in Japan

Francis Xavier (who would later be canonized a Catholic saint for his missionary work),[14] Cosme de Torres (a Jesuit priest), and Juan Fernández were the first who arrived in Kagoshima hoping to bring Christianity to Japan.

This practice contributed to suspicions that the converts were in reality foreign agents working to subvert the local social order.

[16] The conversion of several elites in the area was likely due to the decentralized nature of the Sengoku period (1467-1615) where warlords vied for control among themselves.

The successor of Oda, Toyotomi Hideyoshi at first protected Christianity, however later changed his policy with the publishing of the Bateren Edict, banning missionary activities.

[30] Captain Herbert Clifford was an officer in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and the founder of the Loochoo Naval Mission (1843).

After Japan was opened to greater foreign interaction in 1853, many Christian clergymen were sent from Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox churches, though proselytism was still banned.

After the Meiji Restoration, freedom of religion was introduced in 1871, giving all Christian communities the right to legal existence and preaching.

The American Quaker Elizabeth Janet Gray Vining was hired by Emperor Hirohito in 1946 to be a private tutor to his son, Crown Prince Akihito.

"Vining was chosen because she was not only a Quaker known to be a pacifist but also an author of children’s literature, whom the Japanese expected to be sympathetic to the 12-year-old crown prince in the midst of the postwar confusion.

Some also write that the imperial side found Vining more ideal than the other candidate [a Presbyterian], as she, having lost her beloved husband in an accident, had experienced the utmost sorrow in life and therefore would have compassion for others.

[34] The celebration of selected Christian holidays has gained popularity in Japan since the Second World War – primarily as commercial events, but with also an emphasis on sharing time with loved ones, either significant others or close family.

[39] Japan has 15 dioceses, including three metropolitan archdioceses, with 34 bishops, 1,235 priests, and 40 deacons[40] spread out across 957 churches (parishes, quasi-parishes, mission stations, and assembly centres).

After meeting with King Philip III, Hasekura was baptized as a Catholic under the name Felipe Francisco de Fachicura.

After traveling to France and Rome, Hasekura returned to Japan in 1620 and was forced to renounce his adopted religion after Christianity was banned.

Many of these martyrs have been canonized, and their liturgical memorial is celebrated each year on February 6 in honor of their fidelity to "Christ and his Church" unto death.

In 1981 Pope John Paul II paid a visit to Japan, during which he met with Japanese people, the clergy, and Catholic lay-people, held Holy Mass in the Korakuen Stadium (Tokyo), and visited the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima, the Hill of Martyrs in Nagasaki, town of the Immaculate founded by St. Maximilian Kolbe in Nagasaki, and other places.

(March 13, 1815 – June 11, 1911) was the first Presbyterian missionary to Japan, arriving in 1859, the same year as the first ordained representatives of the Anglican Communion, the Rev., later Bishop, Channing Moore Williams, founder of Rikkyo University, Tokyo, and the Rev.

[53] Hepburn went to Japan initially as a medical missionary with the American Presbyterian Mission[53] opening a clinic in Kanagawa Prefecture, near present-day Tokyo.

Protestant church growth slowed dramatically in the early 20th century under the influence of the military government during the Shōwa period.

The post-World War II years have seen increasing activity by evangelicals, initially with North American influence, and some growth occurred between 1945 and 1960.

Teruhiko Okohira, who had been a Healdsburg College student from Japan, invited Grainger to accompany him back to his homeland to spread the Advent message there.

In 2020, the number of Jehovah's Witnesses was 212,683 active publishers, united in 2,964 congregations; 273,856 people attended annual celebration of Lord's Evening Meal in 2020.

[69] Because of this Christianity remains a popular topic in manga and anime, including Trigun and Saint Young Men.

[72][73][74] International Christian University is the alma mater of several Japanese media professionals, including Kaz Hirai, the former chairman of Sony.

[75] Sony owns several Christian media studios and outlets, including the Pure Flix streaming service.

[76] During the first Catholic missions from the 17th century, several high ranked people converted including Dom Justo Takayama and Hosokawa Gracia.

Social rights activist and author Toyohiko Kagawa ((賀川豊彦, Kagawa Toyohiko), who was nominated for both the Nobel Peace Prize and the Nobel Prize in Literature, has also become known outside Japan, due to his evangelical work mainly in Japan, social work, and labor activism.

[78] In 1952, Fuchida toured the United States as a member of the Worldwide Christian Missionary Army of Sky Pilots.

During World War II, he helped several thousand Jews leave the country by issuing transit visas to Jewish refugees so that they could travel to Japan.

Sugihara wrote travel visas that facilitated the escape of more than 6,000 Jewish refugees to Japanese territory,[83][84] risking his career and his family's life.