Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.(Romans 5:5)

AMAKUSA

SAKITSU CHURCH

 

 

 

[World Heritage Site]It takes less than an hour from Ushibuka Port toSakitsu Church, after about an hour's drive from Izumi Station on the Kyushu Shinkansen, and a 30-minute ferry ride from Kuranomoto Port to Ushibuka Port in Amakusa. The Sakitsu settlement is known as a hidden Christian village facing Yokaku Bay, and in Amakusa, where the Christian culture flourished, there was hidden faith during the period of the ban of Christianity. Sakitsu Church was completed in 1885 as an old church. The current church was built by Father Harbu, who bought the site of Shoya Yashiki and designed and constructed by Yosuke Tetsukawa in 1934. The front altar is said to have been the place where a "treading picture" that was used as a test to determine a person's loyalty to Christianity was taken. This fishing village settlement centered on the "Marine Cathedral" represents the exchange and coexistence of the Japanese traditional religion and the Christianity formed as the faith continued.

OE CHURCH

[World Heritage Site]Oe Church is about 15 minutes drive from Sakitsu Church. Oe Church is a Romanesque-style church built by a French missionary Father Garnier in 1933 with his private property. Oe church located on a slope overlooking the city is a symbol of Christians as well as other residents. Oe Church and Sakitsu Church have a close relationship, because Father Garnier, who was also the priest of the Sakitsu Church, traveled along the hills called the Father Road and preached the Gospel in both districts. Oe Church was designed and constructed by Yosuke Tetsukawa. Nearby is the Amakusa Rosary Museum, where visitors can see Amakusa's Christian materials.