Christianity in Japan
Christianity in Japan has a long if challenging history. You can find Christian churches all over Japan, and there is a very small, though significant Christian-Japanese minority here. Of course many of the Westerners and other non-Japanese that come to live in Japan are also Christians. Usually you can find at least one Christian church in most large communities in Japan. One to two percent of the population here is Christian. Yet Christian customs abound and Christmas is well celebrated, though in a Japanese form that differs somewhat from the Western experience of Christmas. The Christians were persecuted and many were killed hundreds of years ago, for refusing to abandon their religion. In 1597,26 Christian martyrs were tortured and crucified on crosses outside Nagasaki, to discourage Christianity. Indeed, Roman Catholicism was repressed as well.
"Shusaku Endo's acclaimed historical novel "Silence" provides detailed fictionalised accounts of the persecution of Christian communities and the suppression of the Church." --Wikipedia.org From Christianity in Japan to Japan Religion From Christianity in Japan to Japan Living (home) The MormonsLatter-day Saints are Christians too of course and they are a small yet pretty visible minority in Japan. You can often see young non-Japanese Mormons, (usually young men) dressed in suits, and they are in front of the train stations of Japan promoting TheChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Indeed, the Mormons are an almost ubiquitous image of Japan Living.I asked a Mormon friend of mine to define what Mormon`s believed, but he found it difficult to summarize it. Perhaps it was an unfair question. Canadians often are dumbfounded by what does it mean to be Canadian? "Like, ah...we like hockey eh." The Mormons are a very small minority in Japan but they seem to have very active and loyal religious communities situated around their temples in Japan.
To Daily Life in Japan
The 26 Nagasaki Martyrs of 1597Among the 26 Nagasaki martyrs in 1597 there was a young boy named Ibaragi Ludovico. On his way to his crucifixion, he was told by a samurai:
"You are being punished for being a Christian. If you give up your Christian faith, I will adopt you and you do not have to die." The account I read said that Ibaragi answered: "It would be better if you also became a Christian and joined me on the way to heaven."
--from The Japan Times
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