Foundations Christianity was established by
Jesuit Missionaries, led by
St. Francis Xavier who was a Jesuit Himself. The establishment of Christianity by St Francis Xavier happened six years after the discovery of Japan by Portuguese Sailors in 1549. In its earliest stages, approximately 250 years after its foundation in 1549, Christianity and its members faced violent persecutions and torture due to the forbidding of Gospel preaching in the country. Christianity in Japan, in general, was initially founded by
Assyrian Missionaries, however, it was St Francis Xavier who established Christianity and had managed to preach the Gospel through the assistance of a Japanese interpreter, which allowed for the rapid spread of Christianity first at the southern region and later reaching the pinnacle of its northern territory. In around 1580, the Christian convert population had surpassed 200,000 members, although facing much persecution paired with the rejection of foreign missionaries, priests and bishops as ordered by the ruling shogun
Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Persecution The persecution period for Christians involved capturing, torturing, and when they remained persistent about being Christians, were killed. Many Christians decided to hide their faith by disguising as members of
Buddhism or
Shintoism which were accepted religions in Japan, while practicing Christianity undercover. They were known as hidden Christians, or
kakure. This did not stop the Jesuit Mission in Japan, where eventually there was a group of Jesuits sent from the Vatican with the aim of further evangelising to the people. The plight of Christians eventually caught media attention in many major western countries. The Japanese government remained firm on the fact that the treatment of Christians should be dealt with internally without the interference of the western countries. However, the media coverage portrayed japan as an uncivilised country due to the treatment of Christians and led to slow reformation.
Christianity and the Second World War Japanese religion, in general, had entered a new phase after the commencement of WW2. US-allied forces had dismantled the state Shinto which led to the separation of state and religion through a new constitution in 1947. This involved freedom of religion which gave rise to new religious movements. However, this also included a rise in Christian converts during this period. The war was detrimental to the Archdiocese of Tokyo which contained the Vicariate of Sapporo. Throughout the war, fourteen out of twenty-one churches were destroyed within the Archdiocese of Tokyo. However, with the help of missionaries who had to leave China after the war, there was a significant expansion in the archdiocese, with 66 churches in total by 1963. On 30 March 1929, Msgr. Kinold was ordained a Bishop Vicar as the prefecture and was later lifted to the Vicariate of Sapporo, which is a territory for which a vicar is responsible. However, Japanese members are on a decline not only within the diocese but within the entire Catholic Church in Japan. Regardless, the diocese still maintains its liturgy as part of the Roman rite and offers services in both Japanese and English. == Cathedral ==