THE STORY BEHIND NAGASAKI 1549-1945
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September 30, 2021
On August 9th, 1945 at 11:02 A.M. an atomic bomb, named “Fat Man” was dropped over the heavily populated city of Nagasaki. Nagasaki was the heart and soul of Catholicism in Japan since the 16th century. Two thirds of the Catholics in Japan lived in this city.
In 1549, the Jesuit, Francis Xavier, and some Portuguese missionaries arrived in Nagasaki on August 15th, the feast day of the Assumption of Mary.
By 1580, just over 30 years later, there were 200,000 converts to Catholicism. Tens of thousands followed. But the Emperor began a persecution which began in Nagasaki. Twenty-six priests, brothers and two laymen were crucified after they were forced to march 500 miles to Nagasaki in the middle of winter. It took 30 days. The Catholic leader was Paul Miki.
Thousands came into the Church after this, and thousands were tortured and martyred. The Church had to go underground. The people had no priests because as soon as they arrived from overseas, they were captured and killed. But the people, without priests, taught and kept the faith throughout the next 250 years, and they were inspired by 26 martyrs. There was an oral tradition given by priest during the persecution and handed on to parents. The tradition stated that the Church would return to Japan, and people would know it by three signs:
1. The priests will be celibate
2. There will be a statue of Mary
3. They will obey the Pope in Rome.
A French priest, Fr. Petitjean, arrived in 1864. He was shocked to find 20,000 Christians on the island of Kyushu. They had practiced the faith in secret during these 250 years. When these people saw that Fr. Petitjean had the three characteristics, they knew that the Church had returned to Japan.
But persecution continued, and 20% of the Catholics died in prison. However, as time went on, Nagasaki became a heavily Catholic populated city again.
Then came August 9, 1945. The atomic bomb exploded in the city killing thousands of people. Twenty-seven nuns in a convent were killed in the blast as they sang hymns and prayed.
A survivor of the blast was Dr. Takashi Nagai. He was asked the question,
“Was there a relationship between the devastation of Nagasaki and the end of the war?”
He said, “Was not Nagasaki the chosen victim to make up for the sins of all the nations during World War II?”
Japan surrendered on August 15, 1945, the Feast of Our Lady’s Assumption.
Image: Martyrdom of Paul Miki S.J., Jacob Kisai S.J., John Goto S.J. and P. Petrus Battista in Japan in 1596 | Engraving after A. van Diepenbeec
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Martyrdom_of_Paul_Miki_S.J.,_Jacob_Kisai_S.J.,_John_Goto_S.J_Wellcome_V0033263.jpg
